thoughts on circumcision

Alright, well like other students in the class i was unsure of the exact practice which takes place during a femal circumcision. So i looked it up- wholey hell was my first though. First off there can be different forms of female circumcision; one of which merely involve minor cutting of the anatomy, but in the case of ritual defloration more radical forms require the complete removal of the parts of the labia. Even more appalling is infibulation, in which the entire parts of the female anatomy are removed and then fastened shut with either thorns or a thread. for those of you who are always inquisitive in class- there is a small opening for urination and "that time of the month". This is all done to ensure that she is virginil, which was seen as desirable. Once married, the woman has to be cut open before intercourse. In some cultures the anatomy is cauterized or rubbed with nettles to destroy the nerve endings! Wholey hell!!! No thank you. That is so desterbing, but then again- that is our culture. Our culture sees the strange in the familiar, meaning giving up the familiar idea that we live our lives only in terms of what we decide in favor of the intially "strange" notion that society shapes these decisions, as it does all our experiences. To give you, reader, and idea an example would be; much like the selection of a mate, the choice of how many children to have woudl seem to be personal. Yet social patterns apply- in the united states the average number of children per family is 2, while in Cambodia it is 4, and in Niger it is 7. So i guess my point behind that is, who are we to say what is culturally acceptable when we are not even intergated in such a society? For our society it is acceptable for the male to be cirsumcised, but odd for the female, this would be strange for the Kikuyu area and its people.