The Growing Demand in Europe for Reconstructive Clitoral Surgery after Female Genital Cutting
A Looping Effect of the Dominant Discourse
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 19374071 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Sara Johnsdotter (0000-0002-7625-5873, European Commission, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2020 |
| Volume | 79 |
| Pages | 141-166 |
| Publication date | 2020-01-01 |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Droit et Cultures (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0247-9788 • E-ISSN: 2109-9421 |
| Publisher | OpenEdition (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.4000/droitcultures.6153 |
| OpenAlex | W3111478251 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 7 |
| References cited | 57 |
When activism to combat «female circumcision» gained momentum in the 1980s, a discursive gap was created that persists until today. On the one hand, campaigners, activists, governments and some scholars promoted a discourse that focused on these practices as mutilations; on the other hand, not all scholars were willing to adopt the new term (FGM, «female genital mutilation») or to drop the perspective that these practices must be described within their wider contexts, with the full variations in different settings. Starting from this gap, this article discusses «reconstructive clitoral surgery», or «clitoris repair», as a cultural phenomenon growing out of the first discursive stream. Using Ian Hacking’s concepts «interactive kinds» and «looping effect», I argue that the increasing demand for reconstructive clitoral surgery in European countries needs to be understood in relation to the dominant anti-FGM discourse. While many interdisciplinary teams around Europe strive toward providing a holistic and respectful care for women requesting the surgery, I contend that the ubiquitous anti-FGM discourse has negative effects for both circumcised women who opt for surgery and those who do not
Art · Clitoris · Female circumcision · Gynecology · Phenomenon · Reconstructive surgery · Sociology · Visual arts · Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Issues · Gender Studies · Genital Health and Disease · Law in Society and Culture · Medicine · Surgery
Damaged genitals”—Cut women's perceptions of the effect of female genital cutting on sexual function. A qualitative study from Sweden
Against legalising female ‘circumcision’ of minors
Protecting Children from Medically Unnecessary Genital Cutting Without Stigmatizing Women’s Bodies
Male or female genital cutting
How Canadian Law Shapes the Health Care Experiences of Women with Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting/Circumcision and Their Providers
Deinfibulation Contextualized
Criminalizing ‘female genital mutilation’
The looping effects of human kinds
Wombs and Alien Spirits
Psychosexual Consequences of Female Genital Mutilation and the Impact of Reconstructive Surgery
From the “maturity” of a woman to surgery
Female Genital Cutting (FGC)
Discourses on sexual pleasure after genital modifications
The production of sexual mutilation among Muslim women in Cairo
Female genital mutilation’ in Europe
Picturing female circumcision and female genital cosmetic surgery
Attitude Toward One’s Circumcision Status Is More Important than Actual Circumcision Status for Men’s Body Image and Sexual Functioning
Les mutilations génitales féminines. État des lieux et des connaissances
Safeguarding Women's Bodies
Irua Ria Atumia and Anti-Colonial Struggles Among the Gĩkũyũ of Kenya
Between Michel Foucault and Erving Goffman
| Citations per year | 1.4 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2021 - 2026 (6) |
| Highly cited | No |