Female Genital Mutilation: Cross Cultural Practice

Female genital mutilation. or FGM. is a cross cultural practice that is generally thought to be horrific in nature by most of the western culture and increasing in negative views of the women in the areas where the practice still takes place. The practice has been going on for centuries. and continues to this day. The difference is the increased advocacy against FGM from people and organizations all over the world. Female genital mutilation involves various types of cutting of the vagina. There are no medical benefits to FGM and result in many problems .This practice takes place predominately in Africa. but also in some middle eastern countries and a few Asian countries. I came across the topic of FGM during an early class of cross cultural …show more content…
One cultural view of the practice. is that with the cutting and sealing of the vagina the genital becomes more feminine in nature and more aesthetically pleasing. The clitoris is seen as a penis by some and if it is not cut it could grow bigger into a penis making that women manly. Another reason for cutting of the vagina is that some people think of the vagina as unclean so it is a purity symbol. The sealing of the vagina become aesthetically pleasing because of its smoothness afterwards. One other major cultural view on FGM is the sealing discouraging premarital sex and the smaller vaginal openings are more pleasurable for husbands which can increase marriage prospects. The religious views of female genital mutilation are a bit murky to follow. There is no actual religious text that supports it. Some religious leaders defend the practice and others advocate against it. Both the cultural view and religious view include the thought that if a women does not participate in the practice of FGM in an area where the practice is traditionally upheld. she could be shunned within the community and seen as weak. Women in these areas have split views as well. They range from acceptance and even support sometimes to fear and horrified feelings. The women who support FGM do so because they generally agree with the traditional views or they are more afraid of the …show more content…
there is a practice for males that is equivalent to female genital mutilation. The procedure consist of the cutting and snipping of the foreskin of a baby. and occasionally an older male. Babies are. restrained and medicated while the cutting and snipping is taking place. Male circumcision is frequently done for a variety of reasons ranging from religious views to supposed health benefits and sometimes aesthetic reasons. The most of the religious views see the foreskin as something that is unclean and must be removed as a symbol as purification. The most common side effects of male circumcision include bleeding and infection. Some supposed health benefits thought to be the result of circumcision include a the procedure is thought to make it easier to keep the penis clean. which is thought to help achieve a smaller chance of getting a variety of infection. some evidence the procedure is connected to a lower chance of certain caner. and some people think it helps prevent STD's. One of the major reasons male circumcision continues is for aesthetic reasons. because the practice of male circumcision has gone on for so long in the United States. it has become a social norm. This means the majority of the men of this society are circumcised and most new parents do not want their child to be different from other children. All this information about male circumcision is comparable to the practice of female genital mutilation. One big similarity between male