Fetishism and repression always seem to go together. The more forbidden or subversive something is, the greater the thrill.
Take for example this Victorian illustration (found via the Whores of Yore twitter) of what I assume is a device for privacy when fitting shoes. I guess it’s supposed to separate the lady from the process of measuring and fitting the shoe, and hence make it a more mechanical and impersonal act. In actual fact it’s a foot fetishists dream. The gentleman involved is even sporting a lascivious grin.
It looks like the top of the device has some sort of crank system and the panel has a split across the middle. So does it separate and then close around her foot once it’s in the hole? If so, it’s even kinkier than it looks at first glance. It’s device bondage crossed with foot fetishism.
How odd lol. I feel like the hyper-censorship of women’s bodies is probably what led to many fetishes like foot fetish. I mean the same thing can be said about women’s breasts here in the U.S. Breasts are hypersexualized, especially the nipples, and women are expected to cover them and to wear bras. If we didn’t cover them or wear bras I don’t think they would be nearly as sexualized as they currently are.
Absolutely. I’m sure that in Victorian times, when a woman’s ankle was seen as scandalous, there were an endless number of people who acquired feet and ankle fetishes. Human sexual desire is pretty much constant. Hiding things doesn’t diminish anything. It just shifts and magnifies focus.
Thanks for stopping by to comment!
-paltego