the hole politics of english

its about lingual politics again folks - some stuff ive found about the vagina -

the word "vagina" adopted from latin originally meant "sword sheath" or "scabbard". upholding the frameword, the word "clitoris" is from the greek kleiein which means "to sheathe" or "to shut". the noun form kleis means a key, latch or hook.

i suppose it was inevitable that sooner or later we'd have the english-speaking world screaming about hollowness in a woman. my guess is that it also set the stage for dr sigmund fraud and his penis envy theories and how women feel "incomplete" and as if they are living with voids in them.

what i really liked though, was this little tidbit i came across about the concept of waxing the vulva. evidently, only prostitutes used to shave off the hair there and it was to avoid pubic lice. (they took to wearing merkins to disguise this and also the marks of venereal diseases.)

so isnt that just like the patriarchy! you're sexy only if you conform to a norm that insults your womanhood and sexualises children, and if you're sexy, you're also as sexually available as a prostitute.


note to self: think "yoni".