In an attempt to “fake virginity,” more and more women request surgery to remove their hymen. Virginity is not a physical state. It is a mental one. A hymen does not indicate that it is present.
Virginity has been a popular concept for centuries, influenced by religion and social forces. Virginity is a term that refers to sexual inexperience. It has been historically associated with women.
A female virgin’s virginity can be determined by an intact Hymen, named after the Greek God of Marriage. The loss of innocence is associated with sexual activity (defined as penile-vaginal penetrating), which can perforate the hymen and cause bleeding.
There is no culturally-based indicator of male virginity.
Hymens, virginity, and hymens
Contrary to popular opinion, the hymen does not completely cover the vaginal open. Women wouldn’t have the ability to menstruate if it covered all of the opening. The hymenal tissues wear away over time, and the opening gets wider as a result of tampon usage or exercise.
Hymens are available in many different sizes and shapes – some women even don’t have one. The hymens of humans serve no obvious biological purpose.
It is problematic to associate virginity loss with penetrating vaginal sexual acts because this makes heterosexual sex our standard for virginity.
Virginity and hymens are still a matter that can make or break women who live in cultures that place a great value on virginity. Premarital sex can be forbidden in religions like Islam, Hinduism, and many sects within Christianity and Judaism.
The first marriage is “proof” that a woman has not bled. Some cultures have brides showing their blood-stained sheets to the family of her husband.
Between 40% and 50% of women do not bleed when they have their first sex. In some cultures, the hymen still has a lot of weight.
When is it time to re-virginise your car?
Women who aren’t virgins have to use elaborate deceptions to ensure that they get a good amount of blood at the nuptials. This is because if there isn’t enough blood, it can lead to annulment or, in worst cases, honor killings. A woman who is suspected of not being a virgin may be forced to undergo a gynecologist’s examination in order to confirm her virginity.
Many women are understandably terrified of their wedding. Some women may try to prove their virginity by hiding animal blood inside their wedding gowns and spreading it on the sheets. Some women buy a fake hymen and insert it right before sexual activity.
In extreme cases, women can “re-virginise” by undergoing Hymenoplasty. This is a surgical procedure that repairs the hymen.
Doctors in the United Kingdom claim that despite limited statistics, women are increasingly asking for a hymenoplasty. Some women pay L4000 and endure a lengthy recovery period for just a single night. The situation in Australia is likely similar.
There is a shortage of data on the effectiveness of this procedure and the complication rate, given its secrecy.
It’s not only women with conservative cultural backgrounds that “re-virginise.” Women from wealthy backgrounds are also “re-virginising” as a gift for their male partners.
Searching for youth
The Hymenoplasty is also a reaction to the stigma that women face when they age. Often, the restoration of hymens is combined with vaginal reshaping to make women look and feel younger.
Women are expected to remain “virginal” and “girlish forever.” We should be very concerned about the obsession with virginity in our culture.
Women risk their health and live to appear “virginal,” primarily for the sake of men. This creates a double standard where women are held responsible for “purity,” and only men can be considered virginal.
Women are taught at a young age that virginity is valuable, chastity important, and premarital sex shameful. Ironically, it is not recognized that the focus on purity in girls (at least in Australia) comes against a background of more subtle forms of sexualization (such as bras with padding for 7-year-olds).
Virginity does not exist, despite what the culture may tell us. It’s not something we can see or feel. We don’t have any evolutionary or physical advantages.
Hymenoplasty, a treatment that is deeply rooted in gender and sexual inequality, is a disturbing response to the issue of virginity.
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