Foot binding was the custom of applying tight binding to the feet of young girls to modify the shape of the foot. The practice possibly originated among upper-class court dancers during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period in Imperial China (10th or 11th century), then became popular among the elite during the Song dynasty and eventually spread to all social classes by the Qing dynasty. Foot binding became popular as a means of displaying status (women from wealthy families, who did not need their feet to work, could afford to have them bound) and was correspondingly adopted as a symbol of beauty in Chinese culture. Foot binding limited the mobility of women, resulting in them walking in a swaying unsteady gait, although some women with bound feet working outdoor had also been reported. The prevalence and practice of foot binding varied in different parts of the country. Feet altered by binding were called lotus feet.

Answer this question based on the passage: what was the purpose of binding feet in china? Let's have some stream of consciousness first.
The important part for answering this question is: Foot binding became popular as a means of displaying status (women from wealthy families, who did not need their feet to work, could afford to have them bound) and was correspondingly adopted as a symbol of beauty in Chinese culture. So, the answer is a means of displaying status ( women from wealthy families , who did not need their feet to work , could afford to have them bound ) and was correspondingly adopted as a symbol of beauty in Chinese culture.