Overview of Female Genital Cutting

2374 Words5 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Ethical issues in female genital mutilation

Introduction
Female genital cutting (FGC) is an intentional procedure that modifies female genital organs for non-medical purposes and often causes pain and medical complications. More than 125 million girls and women are currently affected by this ritual. This procedure takes place in 29 different countries mainly concentrated in Africa and the Middle East. Generally, female circumcision is done by non-medically trained midwives but, trained medical professionals have been offering their services more and more lately. In fact, more than 18 percent of circumcisions are now performed by health care providers in an attempt to prevent unsanitary circumcisions which can cause harmful health consequences (“Female Genital Mutilation”). Usually, circumcision is done to girls between the ages of 4 and 11 but can range anywhere between birth and puberty; the mean age for girls is 6.5 years old. The purpose of this is to symbolize a woman’s fertility and to ensure that she will be married a virgin (Shell-Duncan and Hernlund 55-56). Female genital cutting is a widely used practice throughout the world which can cause harmful health complications as well as a range of social issues.
Theoretical Overview
According to the World Health Organization there are four types of female genital cutting. Type one is a clitoridectomy, in this process the clitoris and the prepuce is partially or totally removed. The second type is called excision and includes the removal of the clitoris and labia minora and sometimes the labia majora. The third type, which is the most frequently type of circumcision performed, is called infibulation. Infibulation is the process of creating a small opening to the vagina by removing the clitoris and reposition...

... middle of paper ...

...armful health complications as well as a range of social issues.

Works Cited
Boddy, Janice. "Spirits and Selves in Northern Sudan: The Cultural Therapeutics of Possession and Trance." American Ethnologist 15.1 (2009): 4-27. Print.
"Female Genital Mutilation." World Health Organization. N.p., n.d. Web. 3 May 2014. .
Geertz, C. (1993). Religion as a Cultural System. Waukegon: Fontana Press.
Gruenbaum, Ellen. "Sexuality Issues in the Movement to Abolish Female Genital Cutting in Sudan." Medical Anthropology Quarterly 20.1 (2006): 121-38. Print.
- - -. "Socio-cultural Dynamics of Female Genital Cutting: Research Findings, Gaps, and Directions." Culture, Health & Sexuality 7.5 (2005): 429-41. Print.
Shell-Duncan, Bettina, and Ylva Hernlund, eds. Female "Circumcision" in Africa. Boulder: Lynne Rienner, 2000. Print.

Show More
Related

  • Female Circumcision: Rite Of Passage Or Violation Of

    1501 Words  | 4 Pages

    It examines questions about cultural practices and why some/all people accept them and whom that might be benefitting or harming (ibid). In other words, it examines the behaviors, consequences, social factors, and above all the power structures in play. In Althaus’ article, she postulates that one reason that female circumcision is used is to increase the sexual pleasure of men (Althaus, 131). Here we can see the strong presence of a patriarchal society. Recall the purpose here is not to actually criticize this practice but rather seek the underlying interests or motivations of implementing it. The strong presence of a patriarchy indicates that women in a way are indeed used as means to serve the interests of men both sexually and also by providing a child. This brings about the winners (men) and the oppressed

    Read More

  • Analyzing Edgerton's Argument

    1094 Words  | 3 Pages

    Female genital mutilation is mostly practiced in Islamic and African cultures, claiming young girls as t...

    Read More

  • Female Genital Mutilation Is a Violation of the Rights of the Girl Child

    666 Words  | 2 Pages

    Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) has had different definitions in the ‘Scientific World’ and the world of those who embrace the act. According to the definition of the World Health Organization (WHO), Female Genital Mutilation is the act of removing the external parts of the female genitalia, partially or totally for non-medical reasons (WHO) whereas the practitioners see it as the cutting of “extra skin tags” of the female’s reproductive organ. Various reasons have been put forward to support it, ranging from social, cultural and religious reasons, mainly in the so called Islamic communities. FGM is a violation of the rights of the girl child, causes health implications and drastically disempowers the sexuality of women.

    Read More

  • Female Genital Circumcision Essay

    2844 Words  | 6 Pages

    Female genital circumcision (FGC) is a cultural ritual that is performed to the vast majority of women within the countries of Sudan, Kenya, Mali, Benin, Togo, and parts of the Middle East. Female genital circumcision also termed as female genital mutilation is used based upon a person’s beliefs. This ritual has been highly controversial for many years especially in the western society, due to the health risks that women may have to go through. Doctor Gruenbaum, and anthropologist who studied FGC in Sudan, has researched this topic and believes that outsiders need to have an open mind about diverse cultures. I believe that this procedure should not be illegal; however, education about the risks of the procedure should be enforced in the countries where this takes place, in order to create a safer environment for the ritual to be performed in. The goal of this essay is to know what Female Genital Circumcision is and different types of FGC and why this is performed and why it is important for outsiders to not have ethnocentric views when dealing with this. This essay also deals with why it should be medicalized instead of enforcing laws to ban this years long tradition in all African countries. When challenging female genital circumcision, we are also challenging the people who perform this procedure, their culture, values and beliefs.

    Read More

  • monique

    641 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Cultural History Of Circumcision

    860 Words  | 2 Pages

    Unlike male circumcisions which were practice for religious purposes, female circumcision is done for social convention and is practiced as a way to prepare girls for marriage, as well as conform to societal norms of femininity. Female circumcisions are often motivated by what would be considered proper female behavior and as a way to promote virginity as well as cause pain during intercourse to uphold these beliefs. Much like male circumcision these societal beliefs about sex and purity, have affected these cultures in their convictions that circumcision must be performed to be pure and free of

    Read More

  • Female Genital Mutilation

    1710 Words  | 4 Pages

    2. FEMALE GENITAL MUTILATION: AN INTRODUCTION. National Organization of Circumcision Information Resource Centers FGM Awareness and Education Project. Box 2512 San Anselmo, CA 94979

    Read More

  • Female Genital Mutilation: A Violation of Human Rights

    3259 Words  | 7 Pages

    Female genital mutilation (also known as female circumcision) is the cutting of female clitoral hood and removing clitoris. Following the cutting of female genital organ, there are many short-term and long-term health risk problems, and even death due to some complicated infections. The reasons for performing female genital mutilation are connected with socio-cultural beliefs, attitudes, values and customs, transition of girls into womanhood, tradition and cultural heritage, the fear of not having access to resources and opportunities as a young woman, perception to reduce sexual desire of females; hence, will sustain premarital virginity, and maintain marital fidelity. Actions have taken at international, national and regional levels since the past many years and have begun to bear fruits, but the practice is still undergoing in many countries in the world and highly prevalent in Africa. To continue and motivate further reduction in changing the society’s attitudes towards female genital mutilation in the countries where the prevalence has remained stable so it’s therefor...

    Read More

  • Female Circumcision

    1301 Words  | 3 Pages

    Female Genital Cutting." Womenshealth.gov | 800-994-9662. The National Women's Health Information Center. Web. 15 June 2010. .

    Read More

  • Gender Inequality

    1215 Words  | 3 Pages

    "Female Genital Mutilation and Other Harmful Practices." WHO. Ed. WHO. World Health Organization, 2014. Web. 03 June 2014.

    Read More

  • Analysis: The Initiation Of A Maasai Warrior

    929 Words  | 2 Pages

    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.

    Read More

  • Female Circumcision As An Example Of Ethnocentrism In Western Culture

    935 Words  | 2 Pages

    Many feminists in the Western Culture have this ethnocentric idea that female circumcision is “female mutilation” portraying it as a “barbaric tradition” and “violence against women” (“Yes to Female Circumcision?”). According to Fuambai Ahmadu, a Sierra Leonean-American anthropologist, female circumcision is an initiation that symbolizes matriarchal power. The practice is “synonymous with women’s power, their political, economic, reproductive, and ritual spheres of influence” (Ahmadu, pg. 14). By having no regards to the cultures and traditions of these small-scale societies, we are invalidating their beliefs and presenting ethnocentric

    Read More

  • Essay On The Sambia

    850 Words  | 2 Pages

    Homosexuality has become a hot topic of acceptability within the past few decades. The United States has its own fair share of legislation and debate among different cultural groups with the society. However, some societies across the world have instances of ritualized homosexuality as passage to adulthood. Gilbert Herdt is a noted cultural and clinical anthropologist who has conducted extensive research on human sexuality. He is a founder of the Department of Sexuality studies in San Francisco State University and maintains a position as a professor (Gilbert Herdt 2010). He has become an international figure in regards to child and adolescent sexuality, the gender relations involved in cultural views and development of sexuality, and orientation. His work The Sambia: Ritual and Gender in New Guinea, has gained recognition and highlighted the dichotomy of gender in relation to sexuality and power. He won the Ruth Benedict Prize in 1988 for his research (Gilbert Herdt 2010). The Sambia are a “rugged mountain people” that call the rainforest of Papua New Guinea home (Herdt 2006: 1). Herdt began his research in 1974 to discover a group of people who broke the preexisting stereotypes of overly aggressive behavior (Herdt 2006: xvii). His ethnographic research included field observations through participant observation and interactions with informants (Herdt 2006: xxi). His close relations to his informants allowed him insight into traditions and the associate change. He looked to the evident gender differences in the Sambian society that preoccupied the people to the ritual initiation th...

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On Female Circumcision

    1200 Words  | 3 Pages

    Many question whether female circumcision (FGM, genital cutting, etc.) is a form of abuse, is it a humane and morally acceptable practice and how can we fix this horrendous practice? These assumptive thoughts are typically made through the eyes of outsiders, female circumcision is many things and must be looked at through such a lens. Despite, all of this female circumcision is still framed very commonly between these three views, female circumcision is abuse, is a result of patriarchal societies, and is a cultural and religious practice.

    Read More

  • essay

    1246 Words  | 3 Pages

    In Searching for “Voices”: Feminism, Anthropology, and the Global Debates over Female Genital Operations, Walley discusses the social issues concerning female genital operations as perceived by “westerners”, as well as discusses her ethnographic account of female circumcision. Her main purpose of doing this was to lay the groundwork for “a more productive feminist and anthropological debate” capable of going beyond the binary terms in which female circumcisions are usually discussed. Since female circumcisions are known by a variety of names, such as female genital mutilation and female genital torture, and with her understanding of the negative connotation often associated with those varieties of names, Walley makes the decision to adopt the term female genital operations instead. In 1988, Walley went in the village of KiKhome, in western Kenya as an English teacher and immersed herself in the lives of the people living around the village to better understand the practice of female genital operations as an outsider. One day, some of her students invited her to assist at a female genital operation ceremony. She found out that the participants see circumcision as a rite of passage into adulthood. However, she truly wanted to know the participants’ personal views on the topic rather than the imposed views of their parents and their culture. The four women she interviewed told her that “their custom was good,” and it was something that a person needs to accept with her whole being not to feel the pain. Nevertheless, some of the women told her that they would not want their daughters to undergo circumcision, and that they themselves regretted having done the procedure. Walley finally gave up “searching for real voices,” because what t...

    Read More

More about Overview of Female Genital Cutting

Open Document