10 Pick-Up Lines From History That Wouldn't Work Today

4. "My Feet Are Cripplingly Disfigured"

Foot binding was a common practice in China for almost 1000 years, until it was banned in 1911. The origins of the tradition are unclear, but it is generally thought to have begun when Emperor Li Yu of the Southern Tang Dynasty asked his concubine to bind her feet in silk and perform ballet for him. The practice caught on, and young girls from wealthy families would have bandages tightly wrapped around their feet from the age of four to change their shape and stop them from growing. Women with these so-called €˜lotus feet€™ were considered to be more dainty, more attractive when they walked (or rather, hobbled), and better wives. Sometimes poor families would even bind the feet of their eldest daughters in the hopes of marrying them into richer families. Amazingly, the desirable length of a €˜lotus€™ foot was 3 inches, and to achieve this length the toes would be wrapped underneath the foot. Ladies, next time you curse your high heels for giving you blisters, remember that it could be worse.