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An essay on female genital mutilation
Female genital mutilation in africa cultural relativism
An essay on female genital mutilation
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In the story Wild Flower, Nina Smart tells her story of staying in Africa, Sierra Leonean, with her biological father. It unravels to reveal a terrifying truth behind a secretive women's society called Bondo society. When a girl comes of age, parents pay the society to kidnap and initiate their child. Nina soon finds out that initiation means mutilation of her body. Luckily Nina is smart and forms a plan to escape. Once she escapes she becomes a voice for all of the victims who have suffered the fate she avoided. Through her campaign to stop mutilation of the vagin area, she meets a women who tells her story of the trauma she went through. In this mini research, it’ll be based on the long term impacts of the girls mental and physical trauma. …show more content…
Sadly the procedure isn’t just one, there's four types. Number one; clitoridectomy is the “partial or total removal of the clitoris”(Female Genital Mutilation.), in rare cases only “the fold of the skin surrounding the clitoris”(Female Genital Mutilation.) is removed. Second; excision is the similar to the first but it’s also the removal of the labia, It’s the “lips”(Female Genital Mutilation.) that surround the vagina. Third; infibulation is the “narrowing of the gainal opening”(Female Genital Mutilation.), this is done through making a cover. The cover is made by either “cutting and repositioning the inner, or outer, labia, with or without removal of the clitoris.”(Female Genital Mutilation.) Fourth; all other harmful procedures to the area, “including pricking, piercing, incising, scraping etc.”(Female Genital Mutilation.) Long term consequences are ones women and girls have to live with. These include “recurrent bladder and urinary tract infections”(Female Genital Mutilation.), which is caused by the narrowing of the urinary outlet. It prevents the complete emptying of the urine from the bladder, especially during menstrual cycles. Both the urine and blood build up, leading to infections that travel into the uterus. During
Female genital mutilation is mostly practiced in Islamic and African cultures, claiming young girls as t...
This book shows the struggles that the main character, Precious Jones, has to go through after she was raped by her father twice. Not only is she raped, but her mother does nothing about it and just wants her to live with what ha...
The effects from this corrupt enterprise are undeniably painful and scaring. In common societies women are belittled and objectified excessively, it is hardly considered a conflict when unimaginable pain is inflicted upon them. The physical, emotional, and mental distortion and destruction, caused by violence last an eternity. The inane fear, agony of sha...
There are three kinds of female genital mutilation. Of the three procedures infibulation is the most serious form of female genital mutilation, as the exeternal or genetelia are almost scraped away and the normal urinary and vaginal openings are replaced by small openings in the sealed scar. The opening must be enlarged for sexual intercourse and even for child birth.(Sanderson13-61).Black Women are made to believe that “Infibulation purifies , and makes clean the outer surface of the womb , the enclosure of the home of the child birth , it socializes or culturalizes a woman’s fertility”(Janet Boddy 696). This cultural practice is considered as the gate way for a girl to enter womanhood and wifehood. The consequences of this dangerous process of Female Genital Mutilation are urinary infections, blood poisoning ,painful intercourse ,recurrent vaginal injuries in sexual acts ,and even death due to hemorrhage. Alice
This seemed to follow a pattern. Rain, who was recruited into sex trafficking at age 11, claimed her pimp only had minors in his “stable”. To keep control of his victims he threatened them by threatening their families. Finally yet importantly is Cindy who, along with other women, were intimidated and trapped within a home to insure their obedience. Their stories depict a world dominated by shame, regret, and fear.
Female genital cutting is often termed as female genital circumcision or female genital mutilation. This includes partial or complete removal of external female genitalia for non-medical reasons (WHO). Woman who undergo this procedure generally range from the ages five to fifteen years old. This process is known to have no actual health benefits however; it is practiced la...
The women in Nampossela lack the social and economic rights to make many significant decisions about their life. Due to her simultaneous position as an outsider and a member of the group, Holloway becomes an unbiased outlet that Monique and other woman can speak with regarding their difficulties. One such difficulty amongst women in Mali that Holloway discovered was female circumcision. Holloway, prior to her visit to Mali, was aware of the practice of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in rural villages. However, the intense birth of Korotun’s daughter causes Holloway to question the reasoning behind the traditional cutting. In response to Holloway’s mention of FGM, Monique explains her painful experience of circumcision at nine or ten and her thoughts on the subject, “Here we say that koloboli helps girls become good wives and bear children…it does not help the baby pass through…”(114). The practice of FGM in Mali occurs often enough that Monique had never met an uncut woman prior to Holloway, whose western background does not practice FGM.
When faced with a life altering situation although Molly’s characteristics and personality aid her in courageously defying them, the effects of facing this traumatic event will lead to long term psychological repercussions. When severe harm is inflicted on a person’s psyche, it is viewed as an emotional trauma (Levers, 2012). The emotional harm inflicted on Molly’s psyche originates from different dimensions; like her upbringing, her trauma is multidimensional too. As a child of the Indigenous community, whose ancestors and elders were killed violently in inter-group conflicts, and whose children were forcefully removed from families, Molly is would experience intergenerational trauma (Atkinson, 2002). Intergenerational trauma is trauma passed down from one generation to another; as a close knitted community group, the grief experienced by family members of losing their loved ones, would have been transferred across generations (Atkinson,
Neglect and the lack of care from society is affecting the life of Theresa Flores. As young girls they are being forgotten by their community and society as human beings who need to be cared for as they grow and heal from the traumatic events in their life. The stories of Theresa and Rachel prove events of human trafficking have taken place in the United States during the 1980’s-2000’s and are currently occurring. In The Slave Across the Street by Theresa Flores, Theresa informs the reader of her experiences with neglect and the effects these experiences have on her. As Theresa begins to show signs of physical abuse, the adults in her schools and community are taking no notice in fear the results would affect themselves. Theresa says, “By doing nothings, turning a blind eye, they
Clitoridectomy, also referred to as excision, removes the entire clitoris and the removal of the labia. Thirdly, there is a procedure called an infibulation. This is the most extreme form of circumcision, it consists of the removal of the clitoris, the labia, and the joining of the scraped sides of the vulva across the vagina, where they are secured with thorns or sewn with thread. A small opening is kept to allow passage of urine and menstrual blood. A woman with this type of circumcision must be cut ...
The novel Gabi, a Girl in Pieces, written by Isabel Quintero, portrays the extreme pressure women from traditional/cultural households encounter in order to be seen as “picture perfect.” Women have to be and act accordingly to the expectations of their family and community in order to be respected and valued as a “lady.” One mistake is all it takes to become known as “a mala mujer” which is why women are anticipated to protect their body as they would their life.
Yirga, Kassa, Gebremichael (2012). Female Genital Mutilation: Prevalence, perceptions and effect on women’s health. International Journal of Women’s Health, 4, 45-54.
In the Maasai society, genital cutting is a rite of passage from childhood to adulthood, and both men and women go through the process of circumcision. As society ages, opinions on cultural norms change. This is true for the Maasai society, where the views on female circumcision have and are changing. Female circumcision is classified into three categories, and defined by the World Health Organization, Type I is the removal of the foreskin on the vagina, Type II is the removal of the clitoris, and Type III is the removal of all external genitalia with the stitching or narrowing of the vaginal opening (“New Study”). Traditionally in the Maasai society, women underwent Type II or Type III circumcision. Written in 1988, “The Initiation of a Maasai Warrior,” by Tepilit Ole Saitoi, and is an autobiographical story of Saitoti’s circumcision in his initiation to a warrior. Though his story mainly focuses on the male circumcision part of the Maasai society, women’s circumcision and other basic traditions are discussed. Throughout the short story, the topic of circumcision and the rite of passage, both long- standing traditions in the Maasai society, are central themes.
Most people have experienced some form of violence in their family. Many of these dramatic events involve children becoming victims of abuse. In the movie “Precious” an African American sixteen year old female is tormented by her parents. Precious is the victim of several different form of abuse including: sexual, neglect, psychological, and physical. She is pregnant with her second child, both her children biological parent is her own father, who constantly rapes her. Precious’s mother is envious of her daughter because of the sexual relationship he has with his daughter. This creates conflict among them resulting in physical and psychological abuse. Precious escapes from realty by imaging herself as a glamourous star. With the help of her
The first common theme in Saadat Manto’s short story is rape and the effect it has on women during the Partition. A young girl, Sakina, is raped by a few men of in her community while her father is desperately looking for her amongst the dangers and chaos of the Partition. He asks social workers to help him find Sakina. When they do, they approach her and assure her to go along with them. Sakina confides in them but then ends up being repeatedly raped. At first, Sakina is a terrified and hesitant young girl trying to avoid the men. However, the ending is dramatically contrasted with her polar behavior. In the last scene, Sakina, is half conscious and barely alive yet she responds to the doctor’s command “open it” (his reference was to the window) by lifting her clothes up. Sakina “ …stirred a little. She moved her hand painfully towards the cord holding up her salwar” (Manto 362). After this scene, readers can powerfully feel the change that has come upon her after she has been raped. A once young and innocent girl had become