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Modern, Taboo, and Menstrual Products
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Menstruation is a special biological property of female body. It is one of the natural differences between the sexes, and perhaps the most special difference between them. It is one of woman¡¦s biological features and also a biological fate. Aristotle attributed female monthly flow to the natural ¡§incapacity¡¨ of female beings. Because woman is naturally ¡§impotent¡¨ and ¡§cold¡¨, thus she fails to concoct semen and instead discharges blood.<1> Later the Galenists of the early modern time verified this ¡§physiological reason¡¨ that woman is inferior to man because her menses is the proof that her body is incapable of consuming enough blood as man does to fortify his body and mind.<2> This is a symbol of woman¡¦s physical weakness and intelligent inadequacy. Also, the Bible admonished people about menses thousands years ago and stated that a menstruating woman should be separated because of the menstrual uncleanliness and everything contacts the lower part of her body is polluted.<3> Moreover, as a ¡§natural¡¨ bodily function, menstruation does not be treated as other natural bodily functions. For instance excretion is also considered as ¡§unclean¡¨ in common sense, but one would not have to wait for a while after excreting to recover his/her cleanliness, however, a women has to wait for another seven days after her period to end her ¡§uncleanliness¡¨.<4> By the same token, the contaminated and mysterious image of menstruation led people to believe that something could be ¡§polluted¡¨ when menstruating woman is around.<5> Even late in the eighteenth and the nineteenth century, many people still believed that menstruating women should neither pickle meat nor enter sugar refineries for preventing them from spoiling the food.<6> Today, there are about 80 million American women between their 15 to 54 years of age.<7> In other word, there are millions of Americans having their menstruation every month. However, rarely would a woman utter in office or school that ¡§I got my period¡¨ as easy as she talks about her cold or migraine. By examining the material culture of menstruation, we can discover that the rooted convictions of menstruation in history have produced a menstruation culture in our society, a culture of taboo¡Xthe menstrual etiquette, the euphemisms for menstrual products as well as menses, and also the evasive advertisings about menstrual products.<8> The products along with the advertising, acting as saviors to facilitate freeing women from inconvenience and uncomforting, teach the women how to conceal their menstruation. Nonetheless, the analysis of the material culture of menstruation exposes the long-existing impression about menstruation dies hard in twentieth-century America. Under the novel package and refined design, an old suggestion of women¡¦s infection is still wrapped beneath modern women¡¦s belts. |
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