Here's another great documentary on labiaplasty and soft-core pornography. Apparently seeing too much labia is considered "obscene" and automatically bumps soft-core porn up to hardcore porn. Warning, the video shows lots of labia and even some graphic surgery. Quite a few doctors have openly stated that the open "pornification" of our culture has lead to more women seeking out vaginal cosmetic surgery, and several have even reported women coming to see them with issues of Playboy while saying "I want to look like this." I find it interesting that something that is considered so controversial and lowbrow in our culture could also have such a massive influence on it. Perhaps that's one of the reasons people get so riled up about it.
Also, here's a great post from Jezebel about what going to see a cosmetic surgeon about your labia is like. It sounds really unpleasant, and I guess women now have to worry about their labia gaining weight along with their thighs. I'd like to take a moment to point out that her doctor called her labia fat without informing her about the risks of labiaplasty. In my research I've found there's quite a bit of underreporting when it comes to talking about the risks of labiaplasty, and cites like this probably add to the confusion.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Labiaplasty and FGM
There is of course an enormous difference between a woman choosing to undergo vaginal plastic surgery and a woman or girl who is forced to undergo genital mutilation. There is however a lot of discourse on labiaplasty and female genital mutilation, and there is evidence that suggests some of the side effects are the same. Several feminist bloggers are picking up on this.
Marge Berer, editor of Reproductive Health Matters was interviewed by Marie Claire on vaginal cosmetic surgery and why she believes it should be banned. Berer pointed out that both female genital mutilation and labiaplasty occur due to societal pressures; here is the United States women feel pressured to undergo the surgeries themselves, and in areas where genital mutilation still occurs mothers and grandmothers feel pressured to force it upon their daughters. The similarities between the actual procedures have some people wondering, as Johanna Gohmann of Bust Magazine put it, "at what point the disconnect occurs between denouncing the use of a scalpel by others and then picking it up ourselves."
Quite a few people are criticizing Berer for her statements, for the obvious differences between the procedures. Often times the clitoris is removed as well as labia during female genital mutilation, and the women who undergo it aren't making a choice to make themselves "prettier."
There is some evidence that suggests women who undergo vaginal plastic surgery may have difficulty during childbirth, similar to women who are genitally mutilated. A BBC News health article discussed this, as well as the fact that there are no studies examining the long term effects of labiaplasty or other forms of vaginal cosmetic surgery.
It is easy to criticize those who compare optional vaginal plastic surgery and genital mutilation, but it is also understandable that some people feel both procedures are the result of a misogynist culture that feels there is something inherently wrong with women's genitalia. The difference is in some cultures it is being forced, while in ours it's a choice.
Marge Berer, editor of Reproductive Health Matters was interviewed by Marie Claire on vaginal cosmetic surgery and why she believes it should be banned. Berer pointed out that both female genital mutilation and labiaplasty occur due to societal pressures; here is the United States women feel pressured to undergo the surgeries themselves, and in areas where genital mutilation still occurs mothers and grandmothers feel pressured to force it upon their daughters. The similarities between the actual procedures have some people wondering, as Johanna Gohmann of Bust Magazine put it, "at what point the disconnect occurs between denouncing the use of a scalpel by others and then picking it up ourselves."
Quite a few people are criticizing Berer for her statements, for the obvious differences between the procedures. Often times the clitoris is removed as well as labia during female genital mutilation, and the women who undergo it aren't making a choice to make themselves "prettier."
There is some evidence that suggests women who undergo vaginal plastic surgery may have difficulty during childbirth, similar to women who are genitally mutilated. A BBC News health article discussed this, as well as the fact that there are no studies examining the long term effects of labiaplasty or other forms of vaginal cosmetic surgery.
It is easy to criticize those who compare optional vaginal plastic surgery and genital mutilation, but it is also understandable that some people feel both procedures are the result of a misogynist culture that feels there is something inherently wrong with women's genitalia. The difference is in some cultures it is being forced, while in ours it's a choice.
New View Campaign
I found a website called New View Campaign, which is dedicated to protesting genital plastic surgery. They have some really interesting links on the page, including one to an artist named Betty Dodson. I love their slogan, Sex for our pleasure, or their profit?
The Official Breast
I've been reading more of Naomi Wolf's The Beauty Myth, and was disturbed to find there is a type of pornography that fetishizes plastic surgery, particularly breast enhancement surgery. What's frightening about this is that not only are large breasts considered erotic, but the actual cutting and operating is erotic as well. Apparently Playboy has even published features of a few models' breast enhancement surgeries.
Anyway, I decided to talk a little bit about breast enhancement surgery in this post, especially since a lot of what Wolf thought about it seems to coincide with what people are currently saying about vaginal cosmetic surgery. Wolf writes about how media and advertising companies monitor and censor everything that is not what she calls "The Official Breast," leaving women unaware that there is an enormous range of what is normal when it comes to breasts:
"Looking at breasts in culture, one would have little idea that real breasts come in as many shapes and variations as there are women. Since most women rarely if ever see or touch other women's breasts , they have no idea what they feel like... Since beauty censorship keeps women in profound darkness about other women's real bodies, it is able to make virtually any woman feel that her breasts alone are too soft or low or sagging or small or big or weird or wrong" (Wolf 247).
This idea that the culture we live in excludes all but one ideal when it comes to breasts also applies to vulva. Women are very rarely exposed to any other woman's genitals, save for what she see in pornography. Because of this lack of exposure to the wide variety of shapes and sizes and colors of vulva, many women begin to feel they are abnormal. As Wolf put it, "Women are not cutting their breasts open for individual men, by and large, but so they can experience their own sexuality. In a diseased environment, they are doing this 'for themselves'" (Wolf 247). Perhaps this same theory applies to women who choose to have labiaplasty; even though it's painful and may end up desensitizing them during intercourse, they choose to take the risk to experience their sexuality.
Still, in light of this, I propose that during sex education in high school, the girls get to have a special seminar called "Labia Love," where they learn all about the vast variety in vulva in order to help promote happy, healthy body image.
Anyway, I decided to talk a little bit about breast enhancement surgery in this post, especially since a lot of what Wolf thought about it seems to coincide with what people are currently saying about vaginal cosmetic surgery. Wolf writes about how media and advertising companies monitor and censor everything that is not what she calls "The Official Breast," leaving women unaware that there is an enormous range of what is normal when it comes to breasts:
"Looking at breasts in culture, one would have little idea that real breasts come in as many shapes and variations as there are women. Since most women rarely if ever see or touch other women's breasts , they have no idea what they feel like... Since beauty censorship keeps women in profound darkness about other women's real bodies, it is able to make virtually any woman feel that her breasts alone are too soft or low or sagging or small or big or weird or wrong" (Wolf 247).
This idea that the culture we live in excludes all but one ideal when it comes to breasts also applies to vulva. Women are very rarely exposed to any other woman's genitals, save for what she see in pornography. Because of this lack of exposure to the wide variety of shapes and sizes and colors of vulva, many women begin to feel they are abnormal. As Wolf put it, "Women are not cutting their breasts open for individual men, by and large, but so they can experience their own sexuality. In a diseased environment, they are doing this 'for themselves'" (Wolf 247). Perhaps this same theory applies to women who choose to have labiaplasty; even though it's painful and may end up desensitizing them during intercourse, they choose to take the risk to experience their sexuality.
Still, in light of this, I propose that during sex education in high school, the girls get to have a special seminar called "Labia Love," where they learn all about the vast variety in vulva in order to help promote happy, healthy body image.
The Perfect Vagina
Hello everyone! Here is a great documentary titled The Perfect Vagina, which focuses on labiaplasty and labia love! The documentarian set out to find out why vaginal cosmetic surgery is growing so fast in the UK, and did everything from having herself examined by a plastic surgeon to getting her labia cast by Jamie McCartney.
Parts of the documentary are indeed hard to watch, and there are graphic depictions of a labiaplasty taking place. Parts of it are very uplifting too, and I highly recommend it for anyone who is interested in learning more about labiaplasty.
Parts of the documentary are indeed hard to watch, and there are graphic depictions of a labiaplasty taking place. Parts of it are very uplifting too, and I highly recommend it for anyone who is interested in learning more about labiaplasty.
Monday, July 11, 2011
Sexually Unlovely
I'm currently reading The Beauty Myth by Naomi Wolf, I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to learn more about cultural beauty ideals. The book was originally published in 1991, so parts of it are a little outdated for my project, but most of what I've been reading is still very relevant.
In the book Wolf spends some time discussing pornography, something she calls beauty pornography, and women's sexuality. According to Wolf, it's easy for women to identify why they dislike hardcore pornography; often times it is violent and objectifying. It's more difficult for those who dislike soft-core pornography to assess why. Wolf believes the reason some women feel adverse to soft-core pornography is that the women seen in the magazines and the movies are far more easy to identify with than the women of hardcore pornography. In hardcore porn, it's not necessarily about what the women look like, it's how they behave, but in soft-core porn the women are the same as the ones seen in everyday media and advertisements, only without clothes and in sexual poses. As Wolf puts it, "They are 'her' models undressed" (Wolf 148). As women compare themselves and their bodies more and more to the bodies they see in pornography, they do not just develop an aesthetic disliking of themselves, but sexual shame, which may lead to decreased pleasure in sex. Male sexuality is defined mostly by a man's desire to have sex, while women's sexuality is still largely defined by a collection of body parts that are sexual:
"Breasts, thighs, buttocks, bellies; the most sexually central parts of women, whose "ugliness" therefore becomes an obsession. Those are the parts most often battered by abusive men. The parts that sex murderers most often mutilate. The parts most often defiled by pornography. The parts beauty surgeons most often cut open. The parts that bear and nurse children and feel most sexual. A misogynist culture has succeeded in making women hate what misogynists hate."
If what our culture defines as female sexuality is also defined as "ugly" if it doesn't meet certain standards, it's no wonder women seek out surgical ways to fix the perceived problems. As Wolf puts it, "'Beauty' and sexuality are both commonly misunderstood as some transcendent inevitable fact; falsely interlocking the two makes it seem doubly true that a woman must be 'beautiful' to be sexual" (Wolf 150).
Wolf also goes on to discuss that our culture perpetuates the idea that if a woman feels ugly, it must be her fault, and that we don't have the right to feel sexually beautiful. If we object to beauty pornography, we are objecting to our own sexuality and feel "sexually unlovely." Sex and female sexual pleasure has been held hostage by what the culture feels is beautiful, lowering female sexual self-esteem and repressing female sexuality.
Perhaps this is why women are risking sexual pleasure through breast augmentations and labiaplasty. If our culture teaches us that the parts of our body that make us sexual can have something wrong with them, we are also taught that something is wrong with out sexuality. That same culture that teaches us something is wrong then shows us the easiest fix is to go under the knife.
In the book Wolf spends some time discussing pornography, something she calls beauty pornography, and women's sexuality. According to Wolf, it's easy for women to identify why they dislike hardcore pornography; often times it is violent and objectifying. It's more difficult for those who dislike soft-core pornography to assess why. Wolf believes the reason some women feel adverse to soft-core pornography is that the women seen in the magazines and the movies are far more easy to identify with than the women of hardcore pornography. In hardcore porn, it's not necessarily about what the women look like, it's how they behave, but in soft-core porn the women are the same as the ones seen in everyday media and advertisements, only without clothes and in sexual poses. As Wolf puts it, "They are 'her' models undressed" (Wolf 148). As women compare themselves and their bodies more and more to the bodies they see in pornography, they do not just develop an aesthetic disliking of themselves, but sexual shame, which may lead to decreased pleasure in sex. Male sexuality is defined mostly by a man's desire to have sex, while women's sexuality is still largely defined by a collection of body parts that are sexual:
"Breasts, thighs, buttocks, bellies; the most sexually central parts of women, whose "ugliness" therefore becomes an obsession. Those are the parts most often battered by abusive men. The parts that sex murderers most often mutilate. The parts most often defiled by pornography. The parts beauty surgeons most often cut open. The parts that bear and nurse children and feel most sexual. A misogynist culture has succeeded in making women hate what misogynists hate."
If what our culture defines as female sexuality is also defined as "ugly" if it doesn't meet certain standards, it's no wonder women seek out surgical ways to fix the perceived problems. As Wolf puts it, "'Beauty' and sexuality are both commonly misunderstood as some transcendent inevitable fact; falsely interlocking the two makes it seem doubly true that a woman must be 'beautiful' to be sexual" (Wolf 150).
Wolf also goes on to discuss that our culture perpetuates the idea that if a woman feels ugly, it must be her fault, and that we don't have the right to feel sexually beautiful. If we object to beauty pornography, we are objecting to our own sexuality and feel "sexually unlovely." Sex and female sexual pleasure has been held hostage by what the culture feels is beautiful, lowering female sexual self-esteem and repressing female sexuality.
Perhaps this is why women are risking sexual pleasure through breast augmentations and labiaplasty. If our culture teaches us that the parts of our body that make us sexual can have something wrong with them, we are also taught that something is wrong with out sexuality. That same culture that teaches us something is wrong then shows us the easiest fix is to go under the knife.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Made of Plastic, Not All that Fantastic; Part Two
The authors of "Evulvalution: The Portrayal of Women's External Genitalia and Physique Across Time and the Current Barbie Doll Ideals" have taken a close look at growing trends depicted in one of America's most iconic magazines, Playboy, and compared them to an equally iconic American toy, Barbie. The authors did extensive research, as is discussed in Part One. The authors came to the conclusion that at a young age girls are exposed to ideal perceptions of female beauty through Barbie dolls, and later on in life those same perceptions are reinforced by pop culture images like those in Playboy Magazine as the models' breasts get bigger and their genitals get more invisible. As was put by the authors:
"There is a striking parallel between Barbie dolls and Playboy Magazine models in terms of their portrayal of female sexuality. Despite Barbie's designation as a sexual icon, her sexual anatomy is incomplete; while featuring a prominent bosom, she lacks any semblance of genitalia... The juvenile ideals exhibited for women's genitalia match existing social constructions of women's sexuality according to which women's sex drive is absent and their sexual demeanor is subdued."
Our culture and social norms promote the idea that women must be sexy, but that there is a difference between being sexy and being sexual. Women are expected to look sexy, but they are not expected to enjoy sex; it is still largely seen as something men primarily enjoy while women must "give it up." As was put by Jessica Valenti in The Purity Myth: "The notion that women are the sexual gatekeepers and men are the potential crashers is widespread... in mainstream American culture. The idea is that women are supposed to do all they can to limit men's access to female sexuality (and women themselves, really), and men are meant to do all they can to convince women otherwise. This sets up a sexual dynamic that assumes women don't want to have sex" (Valenti, 2010). Ariel Levy came to similar conclusions in Female Chauvinist Pigs, where she exemplified how this dynamic perpetuates the idea that sex is a commodity and not an experience to be shared. These social trends are reinforced through Barbie and Playboy. Barbie is sexy but not sexual, and Playboy reinforces the idea that male sexual pleasure can be purchased.
This perception that women are not sexual beings, and that their sexuality is dependent upon male perception, may be a part of why women are choosing to undergo painful genital alteration through waxing and plastic surgery. According to the authors' findings, as women are increasingly exposed to Playboy they become increasingly aware of the absence of labia minora, and begin to fear that their genitals are not only undesirable but are abnormal. Playboy's male readers are likely to be similarly influenced by the images they see, and impart those beauty ideals upon their partners. With increasing pressure from some partners' perception and the mainstream media, women are choosing to risk their own sexual pleasure and health to be more appealing. Once again as was put by the authors:
"Media images may not only contribute to concerns about genital appearance, but may also effect women's sexual health via the body modifications they encourage. According to a 2001 excerpt from Shine Magazine, "A lot of women bring in Playboy, show me pictures of vaginas and say, 'I want to look like this.'" Women who undergo cosmetic genital surgery in an attempt to more accurately fit media ideals put themselves at risk for reduced physical sensation, among other complications."
Popular culture and societal norms still largely enforce the idea that women's sexual appeal and worth is determined primarily by male perceptions of sexuality and beauty. Because of this, women are undergoing painful, irreversible surgery to have their genitals "fixed," risking their sexual pleasure for the perceived benefit of their partner. Magazines such as Playboy have increasingly reinforced the ideal of a "neat and tidy" labia, all at the expense of women who are exposed to these images without being exposed to a wide range of different, yet normal labia.
"There is a striking parallel between Barbie dolls and Playboy Magazine models in terms of their portrayal of female sexuality. Despite Barbie's designation as a sexual icon, her sexual anatomy is incomplete; while featuring a prominent bosom, she lacks any semblance of genitalia... The juvenile ideals exhibited for women's genitalia match existing social constructions of women's sexuality according to which women's sex drive is absent and their sexual demeanor is subdued."
Our culture and social norms promote the idea that women must be sexy, but that there is a difference between being sexy and being sexual. Women are expected to look sexy, but they are not expected to enjoy sex; it is still largely seen as something men primarily enjoy while women must "give it up." As was put by Jessica Valenti in The Purity Myth: "The notion that women are the sexual gatekeepers and men are the potential crashers is widespread... in mainstream American culture. The idea is that women are supposed to do all they can to limit men's access to female sexuality (and women themselves, really), and men are meant to do all they can to convince women otherwise. This sets up a sexual dynamic that assumes women don't want to have sex" (Valenti, 2010). Ariel Levy came to similar conclusions in Female Chauvinist Pigs, where she exemplified how this dynamic perpetuates the idea that sex is a commodity and not an experience to be shared. These social trends are reinforced through Barbie and Playboy. Barbie is sexy but not sexual, and Playboy reinforces the idea that male sexual pleasure can be purchased.
This perception that women are not sexual beings, and that their sexuality is dependent upon male perception, may be a part of why women are choosing to undergo painful genital alteration through waxing and plastic surgery. According to the authors' findings, as women are increasingly exposed to Playboy they become increasingly aware of the absence of labia minora, and begin to fear that their genitals are not only undesirable but are abnormal. Playboy's male readers are likely to be similarly influenced by the images they see, and impart those beauty ideals upon their partners. With increasing pressure from some partners' perception and the mainstream media, women are choosing to risk their own sexual pleasure and health to be more appealing. Once again as was put by the authors:
"Media images may not only contribute to concerns about genital appearance, but may also effect women's sexual health via the body modifications they encourage. According to a 2001 excerpt from Shine Magazine, "A lot of women bring in Playboy, show me pictures of vaginas and say, 'I want to look like this.'" Women who undergo cosmetic genital surgery in an attempt to more accurately fit media ideals put themselves at risk for reduced physical sensation, among other complications."
Popular culture and societal norms still largely enforce the idea that women's sexual appeal and worth is determined primarily by male perceptions of sexuality and beauty. Because of this, women are undergoing painful, irreversible surgery to have their genitals "fixed," risking their sexual pleasure for the perceived benefit of their partner. Magazines such as Playboy have increasingly reinforced the ideal of a "neat and tidy" labia, all at the expense of women who are exposed to these images without being exposed to a wide range of different, yet normal labia.
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