Perceptions of Traditional Male Circumcision among University Male Students at a South African University

Bibliographic Data

ID2388232
AuthorsAnathi Nomanzana Ntozini (University of Fort Hare), Anathi Ntozini (0000-0002-4471-7383, University of Fort Hare, corresponding author), Ali Arazeem Abdullahi (0000-0002-8304-3967, University of Ilorin)
Year2018
Volume21
Issue2
Pages189-209
Publication date2018-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueMen and Masculinities (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1097-184X • E-ISSN: 1552-6828
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/1097184x16652657
OpenAlexW2417840076
LanguageEN
Citations received3
References cited23

In the past decade, traditional male circumcision, known as ulwaluko among the Xhosa-speaking people in the Eastern Cape Province, has become a burning issue in South Africa. The discourse has led to the emergence of two opposing camps: the supporters of ulwaluko who rely on 'traditional ideology' to justify the cultural relevance of the practice, and the opposing camp who believe that ulwaluko is no longer in tandem with the reality of the twenty-first century. Amid the ongoing debate, this study investigated the perceptions of ulwaluko among South African university students at the University of Fort Hare, South Africa. Open-ended individual interviews were conducted among nine male students at the university. The study relied on 'hegemonic masculinity' as the theoretical framework. The study revealed mixed feelings about the ulwaluko ritual among the students interviewed. In spite of the exposure to modernization and Western education, the students interviewed were still emotionally and culturally attached to ulwaluko, especially as a rite of passage. While some doubted the ability of the ritual to change 'bad boys' into 'good boys,' virtually all the participants believed that morbidity and mortality recorded during and after ulwaluko were not sufficient grounds to abolish it. This finding suggests ulwaluko may have, over the years, consciously or unconsciously, constructed an idealized masculine identity that is morally upright, faced with challenges to the ritual and burdened by a prescriptive set of masculine role expectations

Feeling · Hegemonic masculinity · Hegemony · Ideology · Masculinity · Modernization theory · Perception · Political science · Rite of passage · Sociology · Xhosa · Anthropology · Ethics and Legal Issues in Pediatric Healthcare · Female Genital Mutilation/Cutting Issues · Gender Studies · Genital Health and Disease · Law · Psychology · Social Psychology

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