Vagina Monologue
How can you? How can you talk about something that has no good names? When I was little it was a cookie-I never got that one... "Don't forget to wash behind your ears and your cookie." Wait, aren't cookies food? That's not cool. Frankly, I've never seen chocolate chips down there... As I got older, it became a "crotch" but that just sounds vulgar. There's too many terms like "crotch-rot" out there-wouldn't want to insult it. Besides, men have "crotches" too...I do not have the same thing as a man, thank you very much. In health class there came the term vagina. No offense, but this is rather medical-something I'm sure Mrs. Miller did not mind. If you
Frankly, I'm proud that I own a clitoris-the only body part whose only purpose is to give pleasure. There are no other parts of the female "reproductive system" (as it was lovingly called)-no clitoris, no lips, no nothing. " Men can bravely speak about their penises without fear of ridicule, but when a woman talks about her vulva, it has to be quieted and shoved under the table-even by the woman herself. Why is it not taught to girls around the English-speaking world? Why do girls have to try to come up with names that aren't embarrassing or insulting all on their own? Why? Because that's our society, that's why. If girls feel that their vulvas are ugly and should be subjects of curse words, then perhaps they will keep feeling unsure of themselves and not challenge the patriarchal system that created these words. In high school, there were plenty of new names for it-pussy, cunt, beaver, twat, etc. While I love the word vulva and all that it stands for (at least for me), it's upsetting that we have very few words that women can be proud of when talking about their "privates. If girls can't even name their own body parts, how are they supposed to become empowered at a young age? If girls are embarrassed by their "private parts" then maybe this embarrassment and lack of pride will extend towards their speech and behavior. Then in college came a word I (growing up in a tiny Republican town) had never heard: Vulva. Hmmm, sounds better than twat, don't you think? Vulva is the best term I've heard so far. If someone wants to reclaim these words, more power to you, and I don't feel uncomfortable around them, I just don't want to call mine that-I'd feel like I was swearing at it.
Common topics in this essay:
Vulva Hmmm,
I'm Miller,
Frankly I've,
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Frankly I'm,
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Acceptance Essays
