T O P I C R E V I E W
-Vero-
Member # 26516
posted 06-06-2011 08:57 PM
I just finished watching this British documentary and it was quite interesting: http://documentaryheaven.com/the-perfect-vagina/ Obviously, it's a very graphic documentary, with views of women's genitals. If you're squeamish in any way, I'd HIGHLY recommend skipping the surgery scene. You see a labiaplasty in action, with the inner labia being cut away. I wasn't expecting it, and my boyfriend rushed into the room to see what was wrong with me because of the sounds I was making (pretty much OHGODOHGODWHYYYYYEWWWWWNOOOOOOOO). They use the terms vagina and vulva interchangeably which annoyed me a little, but on the whole a well made documentary. The plastic surgeons (male) made me mad because they didn't seem to care whatsoever that they were doing this to 15-16 year old girls (as well as adult women). I can understand if it's a medical issue and causing pain, but I don't think they should be encouraging really young girls to go through this before they finish puberty and their body is even done growing if it's more of a cosmetic issue. How about encouraging them to love every part of themselves for what they are? In that vein, I loooved the guy who's doing casts of women's vulvas to show the incredible diversity that exists though! So awesome. We need more of that around. Overall, I think this hour-long documentary is worth checking out. If you've seen it, any thoughts? Please share! [ 06-06-2011, 09:00 PM: Message edited by: -Vero- ]
waterlili
Member # 72599
posted 07-22-2011 04:45 AM
I saw that documentary a few of months ago and I thought it did an excellent job of bringing to light many issues surrounding expectations and body acceptance. The labiaplasty was extremely hard to watch, as it was plain to see the pain and trauma she was experiencing. I think it's unconscionable that surgeons would practice genital mutilation on anyone, but particularly girls who are so young and insecure. I definitely agree that other options need to be looked into, and it was beautiful to see how much more accepting of their vulvas some of the women were when they were able to see that just because their genitals were slightly different from others didn't mean they were abnormal or disgusting. I was particularly struck by how misogynistic and demeaning a few of the men she interviewed were, especially when one of them basically stated that he wouldn't have sex with a woman if she had an 'unattractive' vulva. These kinds of judgments are subjective and clearly outdated, and only lead to women feeling horrible about themselves. Personally, I would never want to have sex with someone who made me feel that any part of my body was wrong or ugly, and I feel so sorry for women who believe they should apologize for a part of themselves simply because they aren't deemed 'normal' by societal standards. There is already so much pressure to act and look like women in the porn industry, and the last thing anyone needs is someone telling them they aren't good enough. I would love for more documentaries like this to become more widely viewed, because I really think it could make a huge difference in how women perceive themselves. I hope that someday genital mutilation will be a thing of the past, and that both men and women will be more open minded about what they consider to be beautiful. (Also, what was up with 'meat curtains'?! I can't help but wince every time I hear that. Talk about self-loathing!)
-Vero-
Member # 26516
posted 07-22-2011 01:17 PM
Thanks for sharing your thoughts waterlili! I really appreciate your input and completely agree with what you've said. Also, yes "meat curtains" is such a horrible expression! I really wish people would stop using it.