{"id":3677,"date":"2021-09-13T19:24:00","date_gmt":"2021-09-13T18:24:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vulvani.com\/die-tabuisierung-der-menstruation-eine-lange-geschichte\/"},"modified":"2022-11-03T11:57:28","modified_gmt":"2022-11-03T11:57:28","slug":"the-taboo-of-menstruation-a-long-story","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.vulvani.com\/en\/the-taboo-of-menstruation-a-long-story\/","title":{"rendered":"The taboo of menstruation \u2013 A\u00a0long story\u00a0\u2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

The period is still a taboo<\/a> subject all over the world. But why is there actually a taboo of menstruation? How did it start? And what can we do about it \u2013 and for a normalization of the period<\/a>? Sophia looked into the history of the taboo and found the origins in religions, witch burnings and patriarchal doctors:<\/p>

Taboo of menstruation \u2013 Where does the word taboo come from?<\/em><\/h3>

The word taboo (in German Tabu) comes from Polynesia and is made up of the words \u201cta\u201d<\/em> and \u201cbu\u201d<\/em>. \u201cTa\u201d <\/em>means \u201cto mark\u201d something. \u201cBu\u201d<\/em>, on the other hand, stands for intensity. In general, the word taboo means \u201cthoroughly or intensively marked\u201d. Basically, marking has neither positive nor negative connotations. <\/p>

One could speak in the same way about menstruation<\/a>. It has always been \u201cthoroughly marked\u201d. But why is it so negatively marked in our society? How did this taboo<\/a> develop? Historically, our society is permeated by patriarchal structures that taboo the biologically female body processes in a negative sense. The old-world religions such as Judaism and Christianity have also contributed significantly to the tabooing of menstruation: <\/p>

Patriarchal religions and their contribution to the taboo of menstruation<\/h3>

One would think that blood as a substance is considered \u201cpurifying\u201d in many religions. Blood sacrifices cleansed sins and were offered as gifts to the gods. The blood of women, however, was marked with exactly the opposite. To this day, Christianity speaks of the \u201cvirgin\u201d Mary and her \u201cimmaculate\u201d conception. All female sexuality is considered \u201cdefiled\u201d and \u201cimpure\u201d in Christianity. This also applies to the biologically female bodily processes such as birth, ovulation, and menstruation. In the Bible, menstruation<\/a> is seen as a \u201ccurse\u201d imposed on all women as punishment for Eve\u2019s sexual seduction. <\/p>

Thus, it is written in the Old Testament: \u201cWhen a woman has her flow of blood, she shall be counted unclean for seven days. Whoever touches her shall be unclean until evening. And everything on which she lies while she has her period shall be unclean, and everything on which she sits shall be unclean\u201d (Deuteronomy 15 19-20).<\/p>

The religious taboo on menstruation goes so far that in Orthodox Judaism women are forbidden to have sex during their period<\/a>. They are also considered \u201cunclean\u201d during the following six days <\/p>

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The taboo of menstruation through the Enlightenment and human\u2019s turning away from the body<\/h3>

At the time of the Enlightenment and the rise of capitalism, the way menstruation was tabooed changed. Even before the industrial age, menstruation was considered toxic, threatening, and impure, but at that time it was still considered a powerful force that was both feared and respected. Menstrual blood was used, among other things, as a love potion, but it was also used to inflict a desired suffering on someone. <\/p>

In the early days of industrialisation, however, this changed, and the biological female body was reduced to the domestic and its potential reproductive capacity was brought into focus. From this point on, menstruation was seen as a sign of failed fertilisation and was therefore considered negative and useless. Any meaning was written off and it was declared a \u201cmere excretory process\u201d. In our society, excretory processes are associated with \u201cdisgust, shame, stench\u201d<\/a>. Thus the form of tabooing menstruation had changed. Menstruators<\/a> were taught to be ashamed of their bodies. They should ignore their menstruation because it was useless and something \u201cdisgusting\u201d and \u201cunpleasant\u201d. <\/p>

Until the beginning of the 20th century, menstruation was also the main argument against higher education for women<\/a>, as it was assumed that intellectual work was harmful for the \u201cfemale organism\u201d and that the \u201cfemale brain\u201d would use too much energy and blood during learning, which would be needed for the process of menstruation. <\/p>

The Subjugation of the Female Body \u2013 Suppression of Midwives and \u201cFemale\u201d Medicine<\/h3>

Until the Middle Ages, the profession of healer and midwife was often practised by women. Many women had an enormous knowledge of their bodies<\/a>, about menstruation, childbirth and \u201cwomen\u2019s ailments\u201d which was passed on from woman to woman. <\/p>

The witch trials in the 17th century, which cruelly condemned thousands of innocent women and some men to death in the name of the patriarchal Catholic Church, denounced mainly women with great medical knowledge. That was one of the reasons why women were slowly pushed out of the professional fields. Studious men took their place. Midwives were declared incompetent; the male gynaecologist took their place \u2026<\/p>

And so much for the clever male doctors: In 1919, the Viennese doctor B\u00e9la Schick observed that the flowers his housekeeper had put in a vase during her menstruation<\/a> would wilt particularly quickly. He therefore thought he had discovered that menstrual blood contained a toxic substance called menotoxin, which could also be transmitted through women\u2019s sweat and blood. It was not until 1958 that new studies were carried out and, of course, no toxic substance was found in menstrual blood. For almost 40 years, however, this was considered \u201cscientifically proven\u201d. <\/p>

What can we do?<\/h3>

The history of tabooing menstruation is long and cruel. Our society is riddled with the red threads of misogynistic and patriarchal structures in which there seems to be no place for a normal and pleasant way of dealing with menstruation<\/a>. They can be found in religions, in medicine and in the economic system. All menstruators<\/a> are affected by these structures that persist and must suffer from the lack of acceptance of their bodies in this society. Therefore, we must stand together against this and fight for an open and enlightened society where there is space for diversity<\/a> and the body processes that make up our humanity and accompany us throughout our lives.<\/p>

You want to read more about the taboo topic of menstruation? Then here are some of my book tips:<\/p>