Virginity: A Comparative Historical Study

In order to define virginity, a scholar must take many different structures into consideration. Whether those structures are culture, sex, biology, psychology or religion, there are no steadfast forms of the word virginity that stands for one single thing. The definition of virginity can be completely redefined in separate terms based on the structural parameters associated with it and has been explored because of this, throughout the ages and from various angles by women as well as men.

The most common textbook definition of virginity, which is passed down from most health classes in high school, deems virginity as having abstained from the physical act of intercourse which constitutes penis and vagina insertion[1]. However, branching out from that definition is also a similar explanation in health books which claims that the loss of a women's virginity happens purely when her hymen is broken and no longer intact. It does not matter if the hymen, "a fold of mucous membrane partly closing the external orifice of the vagina in a virgin"[2] is broken by intercourse or by other means such as horseback riding or other physical activity, the result is the same. Interestingly enough, in the dictionary definition of hymen, a clear stance on the term "virgin" is taken. It agrees with the health definition in the fact that the hymen is only mentioned in a context of a virgin vagina.

The physical act of intercourse where a women or girl's virginity is taken, is seen throughout cultures as something reserved purely for reproduction purposes. Certain cultures take the loss of virginity as a sign to pass on a bride price for dowry once the physical act has been put into fruition and only with that act will they transfer title and property.[3] As a social construct, the idea virginity offers to most cultures is something to be prized and cherished in a woman and something to disregard in men. The symbolism virginity carries with it is a central part of female and male culture throughout the world and dictates most interactions between the sexes.[4] This can be seen in a sociological study published in 1991by Alice Schulegal where preindustrial societies were studied on how bride price and exchange of goods affected the concepts of virginity. "One common notion is that virginity is valued when men have to 'pay' for wives by transferring goods in the form of bridewealth to the women's families. This notion is based on the assumption that there is some innate preference for virgins which can be activated when men have the upper hand, so to speak, because they are paying for the bride."[5] Thus, the value of virginity is placed on the marriage transaction itself and seen in different societies as unimportant or important based on that fact. As well as the understanding that though in Elizabethian societies, a dowry was given to the man as a symbol of the woman's purity, these societies operate in a constant flux of goods given by the groom.

Women are worth such great value because they are seen as an economic gain, being in constant circulation from place to place which gives them a knowledgeable advantage they can take with them.[6] Schlegal comes to these conclusions by comparing societies with bridewealth, to those who use bride service, which is much the same thing but involves the exchange manual labor instead of goods and money. Either display is seen as important because it indicates that the groom is of the same social class as the bride and thus worthy to take her hand in marriage and provide for her adequately[7]. These transactions are most often seen in Asia and native North America. The comparisons of society and the importance of goods exchanged for and with women are asked by the author as a precursor to the importance of virginity. There was a study done based on the acceptance and non-acceptance of premarital sex in the societies before marriage or with the bridegroom before marriage based on six levels of disapproval. The answers were analyzed and attributed to the different societies based on economic standing making virginity a direct correlation with the importance of the economy.[8] She goes on further to note that "an explanation grounded in type of marriage transaction is that it does not simply assign premarital permissiveness to the less complex societies and restrictiveness to the more complex; it suggests motives for parental control of adolescent girls sexuality."[9] Through asking the question of the importance of premarital sex in different economic societies as well as comparing the cultural reflections of virginity on the type of marriage transactions itself, she comes across the well known societal belief that the symbolic value of virginity is about power.

She even goes so far as to compare the ideas of virginity with the ideas about pregnancy in the culture such as with the Trobriand Islanders.[10] Fatherhood is socially defined through marriage and only recognized after a girl's virginity is taken. Through this society, if a women gets pregnant outside of marriage it is seen as a magical act and not as a claim on her body through male action. In this society the value on virginity is not as strong because the symbolism of the physical sex act is ignored until it is socially accepted. This makes premarital sex somewhat acceptable and the power of the family over women not as strong as those of the Renaissance Era. The stigma given premarital sex in most societies is freed through their belief in magic's and their ignorance of pregnancy so virginity is not nearly as important.

The conclusions reached, that sociologically virginity is given its value through the transactions of the family and through distribution of wealth shows truth in the value that virginity now holds in the twenty first century. Premarital sex is no longer quite the taboo it once was and the continuation of the family line through social climbing is no longer relevant in a country made up of mostly immigrants. The insistence of parental control over female sexuality has declined with the open knowledge of contraceptives and the rise of economic goods and services lowers the value of virginity as a form of payment in a society newly based on merit rather than family wealth[11].

However, it can still be argued that virginity still carries a level of importance in an economically healthy society due to the resurgence of religion and religious values. A study done in 2001 on the consistency and acceptance of virginity pledges in teen's marks a defined acceptance of chastity as a power for men and women, rather than a power exercised over women.[12] The study was based off of American adolescents from Add Health in grades 7-12.[13] This changes the dynamic a bit, putting it into the hands of adolescents rather than the adults. "More religious adolescents tend to engage in sexual activities later then do their less religious counterparts. Behavioral measures of affiliation with one's religion seem to be more important...the effect of increased connectivity to others arising from participation in church and community groups."[14] This religious study, done by a male and a female emphasis the connections made through the religious structure as a peer confident based war for virginity. Though this type of virginity is defined by interactions and has its social roots in the understandings and strengths of peer over individual, the study still emphasizes the loss of virginity as something seen as primarily religious. The authors wanted to model "the effect of taking a virginity pledge in the transition to first intercourse by sex, age, and social context."[15] The movement resulted as a fight against sexually transmitted diseases and teen pregnancy in most churches and reached out to teens through leadership groups forming an identity movement.[16]

Unlike the study of the preindustrial societies, teens in the church regulate their own pledge and it is not moderated by a family member, however, it is seen as a gift to be given by the partner to another partner after marriage. The symbolism of that act shows love rather than ownership and thus releases the negative stigma attributed to it. "Adolescents' religiosity is measured with three behavioral items: frequency of praying, church attendance, and importance of religion."[17] Teens with higher religious affiliations are estimated to have a lower loss of virginity then non pledges even after statistical control for other factors including personal characteristics, and other controls that could be protective.[18] Rather than using virginity as a bargaining tool, this study discusses the importance of virginity in adolescent life and how without the pledge of waiting, they can tailspin and be targeted for negative experiences later on in life. The message is much the same as the sociological study, but the means and the reasoning are different in this study. Through comparing both male and female students the authors were better able to understand the pressure put on both through their peers and other stable outside relationships. They even argue that the self esteem of females rises as they continue to pledge to wait, which is much different than in the sociological study where waiting until marriage could be seen as a loss of control forced by parents.[19]

Further delving into the religious background of virginity on Christianity, it is a "religion based on a physical divine incarnation, by definition miraculous, and it desire, especially after Constantine, to set an orthodoxy by defining its doctrines ever more precisely, the mechanics of conception and birth necessarily acquired a special place in the articulation of the faith."[20] The argument of Averil Cameron's article in 1990 is that throughout the religion, it gleaned certain interests and ideas about virginity based on texts circulating around the Bible and the natural inclinations of the day. Most rhetoric began to circle around the Virgin Mary whose magical conception worked to define ideas of purity and virginity.[21] If this women was established as a major part of the faith, as well as the acquiring of conception and birth becoming a sacred concept to the religion, virginity being seen as a gift is only natural. Whether or not the symbolic value of virginity supposedly worked in women's favors as it did in the above study is yet to be determined. Cameron goes about answering this through a comprehensive look at women's roles in Christian texts and why they became the center of attention in a male driven book.[22]

For a very male oriented text, much of the bad in Christianity does not come from men but women. They play a central role in permeating the evil that Eve began, though there are some that deviate from the sinfulness through obedience and surrender of themselves. "It was agreed that sexuality and reproduction must be intimately connected with man's fall; thus mans salvation could be brought about only by a reversal of the circumstances of the fall, that is, by an absence of sexuality and specifically by...virginity."[23] Here, virginity as seen as an escape from the wicked temptress of sexuality. The practice of virginity for Eve, being pure and non-questioning in the ways of the world, would have kept her from sin and thus from bringing Adam down from Heaven because of her sins. When this was taught to women it's no wonder that their virginity became something akin to a mental prison, they were meant to remain virgins until marriage in order to abstain from spreading the inherent sinfulness that was in all women through Eve. It could have been perceived as physical and mental vaccinations from the rampant sexual plague women were unleashing on hordes of innocent men."In today's argument the exclusion of women from the priesthood is a way of containing the danger which their assumed sexuality is to represent; but in addition in the early Christian period a whole series of treatises appeared which on the whole we are now spared, regulating their dress, makeup, and demeanor, underlining both this perceived role and their metaphysical status as representative of the hidden 'other', and thus indicative of deceit, trickery and deception."[24] Women in this article are regulated in history through many different aspects, not just their virginity and virginity is used as an excuse to force women into compliance both socially and sexually with that of the church.[25] Rather than being a good influence on their self esteem, like in the social pledge peer groups, this socio-religious belief system forced women into a mold of guilt and shame and made them repent by taking away their sexual choices.

Only through denying themselves what they essentially are regulated to do in the social context of the world, get married and bare children, argues Cameron, can they be truly virtuous. [26] They must deny their sex and become like a man embracing a pureness of the mind after they marry and must let go of their physical virginity.[27] The word virginity holds many definitions in the religion and it is not only the physical act of sex, but a state of mind and a form of purity.[28] "This discourse of control and denial implied the coexistence of a complementary and different language."[29] Both definitions could be invoked depending on context and the understanding needed to get the message across as well as the historical values that needed preaching. Much of the interpretation needed was grounded in the sociological thought coupled with the religious texts in a mode of historical themes towards women such as forced marriage and their view as property and belongings to be traded.

Cameron's argument is evidenced in many early texts which she brings to light which could include, but does not, textual evidence from the religious text St Jerome: Virginity and Marriage (4^th c. A.D.).[30] This text is in direct agreement with her argument, written by a man for wealthy and pious women he states that a wise man stays a virgin forever because women are lecherous, petty, and whorish and you never know what type of women you're marrying until afterwards. [31] With this attitude, he is in direct agreement with the earlier themes and texts Cameron touches upon for her argument that women are oppressed by the idea of virginity in religion for something they could not control. Indeed, given the writers background as a teacher to rich women, it appears his only motive for lecturing on these doctrines was to bring about quiet and obedient wives for the men who married them. It remains an oppressive teaching of virginity based on mistakes and sins, perceived by gender bias and irrational hierarchies.

In the psychological realm of virginity, much was studied about this gender hierarchy in relation to the physical act of losing one's virginity and how this plays a role in psychosis. Sigmund Freud did a study of virginity in gender relationships in the 1950's which explored the psychological effect on losing virginity compared with the biological effects.[32] Most of his research was done in relation to men as the dominant factors and women as the submissive ones. In his study he explained that women must draw a defensive line before their first time, however, this doesn't mean that she doesn't want the sex.[33] It's a means of keeping her psychologically safe from the sociological impacts losing her virginity will transfer to her after the deed is done. He goes so far as to say that women will be inherently frigid and cold until the men get them used to it.[34] In effect he's saying to ignore her wishes if she doesn't want the sex and to continue onward because she will soon get used to it, thus condoning rape.

The virginity that's explored in this study is direct correlation with marriage and not before. It is expected that the female partner will be a virgin on her wedding night and her "immature sexuality is transferred to the man."[35]who is properly equipped to handle the situation having more experience. He is thus put into the role of caretaker, ushering her through the experience and being her psychological rock as she resists the transition from girl to women. Freud explores different cultures in relation to the marital concepts of virginity and comes across certain cultures where a girl's virginity is taken before marriage by someone other than the bridegroom because there is less taint and horror for the bridegroom.[36] He does not have to deal with the blood that occurs through the physical act, nor the pain it causes, which could cause physiological strain on him and take away his pleasure from the act.[37] In some cultures the blood released from the breaking of the hymen is seen as a poisons substance being released from the women's innards, trying to infect the man who deflowers her with the evil that is inherently in her system.[38]

The thought process that goes with the act, Freud argues, signifies possessive imprint, and once the sex is done several times it will leave a psychological dependency on the female brain.[39] This dependency will make her not want anything, or anyone else.[40] This concept to us is completely unfathomable and ridiculous. While there are certain emotions triggered in women and men during sexual intercourse, none have been proven to make them stick around or form an unhealthy co-dependency right off the bat. However, Freud's psychological theories go with the societal structures of his time where the emphasis on being a subservient wife and mother were the running ideals in the forefront of women. This is a different study from the ones described beforehand because it calculates the impacts of the loss of virginity on a woman, however false the ideas may be, rather than the symbolism virginity carries in a woman.

As a psychological study most of the evidence used was gleaned from gender interactions as Freud could not watch and interpret sexual acts in a couples own bedroom. The majority of his theories carry a very male oriented perspective and cross over with cultural ideas of the perception of women as sinful to the ideal as women as submissive. His conclusions go so far as only to assess a women's loss of virginity as something to be expected and dealt with in a manner more befitting a child's scraped knee then a possible act of violation. The study shows a complete lack of disregard for women's feelings as defined by women themselves and as so often the case in most of the evidence given in the previous studies women's virginity is studied only in the context of men.

Which is why it's surprising that the next study was written for women, by a woman, and in a social context the book aimed to lead women in a virtuous and religious life, while still aiming at using man's rules for women as the guidelines. The Treasure of the City of Ladies written in 1405 by Christine De Pizan as a work used for women on how to stay on a pure and religious path in life speaks volumes on a study done about women continuing the thoughts of male dictated society.[41] The book operated mainly for an audience derived of wealthy women and princesses, though it did cater to the lower class women as a knowledgeable lesson to the princesses on how they should be treated.[42] Lower class women would not be reading the book because the majority of them were completely illiterate. However, one of the defining doctrines the book lays down is: "The lady who is chaste will want all her women to be so too, on pain of being banished from her company."[43] By surrounding herself with pure women, a woman may remain free from temptation to inappropriate emotions and sins otherwise viewed as threat to her virgin mind. Virginity is seen in the religious context, as an actual state of physical being and a state of the mind and the soul. "...she will have so abundantly and with such purity that in neither word nor deed, appearance, ornaments, nor bearing, conduct, social pomp nor expression will there be anything for which she could be reproached."[44] A woman must be pure, a virgin, in thought and deed in order to be open to God.

There are many rules and instructions in the book on how to remain a virgin and many of them center on social interactions between the sexes. The way in which males and females of a court interacted could have an immediate affect on a women's reputation[45] and the state of her pure mind. This is why interaction was regulated to the point where if a man was caught whispering privately with a women in the princesses chambers he was to be thrown out.[46] The same penalty was shown for a man trying to seduce a lady near the princess.[47] There was even a no touching rule or overly joking between the sexes when in the princesses company. Surrounding herself with people she could entrust her moral safety was most important in retaining a virgin outlook that was close to God. Freeing herself of the temptation to sin or be jealous of others interactions freed her soul up to be pious and true.

This was also true in the role of her husband where she was expected to peer mediate between him and his subjects. "And so this lady will be, by pure, mild, and holy charity, an advocate and mediator between the prince her husband...and her people, or all people whom she may be able to help..."[48] In order to have a clear vision on how to help these people and be in a position to help, the women must morally above all others in conduct and have the persuasive means to convince her husband through her honest mind which is untouched by negativity or sin. The teachings of moral purity allow her a greater influence in the sphere of her husband, because she can be better trusted free of sin and lecherousness, as all regular women carry. Even as she extends her thoughts to others they are never impure thoughts of greed, jealousy or ill intent. A woman must be careful to rein even her own mind.[49]

This socially excepted doctrine agrees so thoroughly with the teachings of the church that is borders on being wholly religious except for the fact that most of the emotional morals taught are expectable for a healthier well being. "Prudence teaches the princess or great lady how above all things in this base world she ought to love honor and a good reputation."[50] Though that belief system on its own is a valid one, it proves sought after on the wrong grounds, the grounds of men's definition of women. As further in the text she explains if you don't act as a virgin men will get the wrong idea and you'll be considered impure and a slut.[51] These rules aren't purely for the moral integrity of women as they claim to be but they have their base roots in a misogynistic religion. The rules of conduct act as guideline to follow so their virginity won't be questioned in the eyes of men who could destroy their reputation and further, their chances at marriage and a good life. Though this text seems revolutionary in its quest for moral righteousness and purity of the mind, it is grounded on the thoughts of men which negate the teachings of one woman to many women. Even one of the rules encourages women to always be busy with housework in order to stay away from unclean, sinful thoughts.[52] This plays to the expected duties of women and harnesses it into a more acceptable practice. Much like propaganda it acts as a moral solvent for a task gender regulated. The conclusions on their own, that women should be virgins in thought and deed for themselves, rings true, but to do it for others negate the process.

This proves a biological function of virginity in a study done in 1993 by a female that "it is the model of women's virginity that is of most use to society."[53] That model is set up through "biological and cultural perspectives...[which] constantly merge."[54] The medical aspects of a virgin are linked directly with the body, circling back to the physical loss of virginity, not as a symbolic stigma but as the loss of a hymen.[55] A biological perspective calls for some sort of unbias study concluded by only certain facts and found knowledge. While most of the time this is true, a cross over for the term virginity must be made between biology and all other existing structures in order to reach a definition at all. The physical facts act as a base to be played off of in terms of the definition of virginity, as well as determining the consequences of a loss thereof. "The significance of virginity cannot be understood all by itself. As a biological fact, yes, but not as a social fact, a fact that enters into the lives of young women as a demand or as a virtue."[56] The context of virginity in terms of biological facts plays out on the consequences and how society views a virgin itself. Over the years there have been many terms indicative of a changing in the term virgin, now there are different categories based on biology that qualify someone as a "partial virgin". This is a glance into the changing culture as a direct result of the symbolism of virginity as induced by biological facts.

Because of these biological facts, Ardener argues that the female circle is always defined as one different and subject to different cultural laws then that of the male circle.[57] The categories work as boundaries to separate the sexes further and bring about excuses to socially structure a society based on physical anatomy."The sexual state of a woman, or her natural sexual properties, act as symbols of social purity,"[58] Once that purity is seen at risk the culture around them sees cause for concern and regulation. Her state of sexual nature acts as a reflection upon the culture as a whole, bound by the social constrictions set upon to prevent sinful interaction between the sexes that could be regarded as a scandel. Ardener draws to her biological definitions all those underlying factors that were first discussed practically that of social and cultural natures over women.

As a whole, perception contributes to all of what's given symbolic value in societies, so virginity should be no different. There is no straight forward term for it which does not carry a piece of each structure. Though most of the structures work further to implicate women as evil and control them, some structures can enter into the process with that intent but bring enlightenment and self esteem instead. For the most part it relies purely on the certain study and how the culture chooses to perceive it with everything else already known. Though all of these studies on virginity seemed valid to one person or another at the time, some of them have lost their appeal and thus their symbolism in modern day society due to the change in perception. Though males and females still work to define virginity and often must fight a battle of misogyny to do it, it is a question which can be cycled throughout time without a direct answer. The symbolism of virginity relies on many factors, and the most popular of that is to what time period it is being studied.

[1] In the early stages of sex education only this definition was given leading to very one sided perception especially in terms of religious abstinence. Blank, Hanne. Virgin: The Untouched History. USA: Bloomsbury, 2006.

[2] This definition was gleaned from the Webster's Dictionary definition of hymen and if you'll notice, the dictionary itself is not free of its own view of virginity. Included with the definition for hymen is the tacked on "in a virgin" implying to the medical example of a virgin, one who is without a hymen, regardless of means. www.Dictionary.com

[3] Schlegel, Alice."Status, Property, and the Value on Virginity."American Ethnologist 4 (1991):719-734.

[4] This is seen throughout history regardless of culture or time period. The appropriateness of the interactions men and women share in public are based on the beliefs of what is proper for a woman to do or not do in the context of her culture. Schlegel, Alice."Status, Property, and the Value on Virginity."American Ethnologist 4 (1991):719-734.

[5] Schlegel, Alice."Status, Property, and the Value on Virginity."American Ethnologist 4 (1991):719-734.

[6] One of the most famous ways of the circulation of knowledge of agriculture and the cultivation of plants in different regions came from the constant flow of women through different households and countries. Schlegel, Alice."Status, Property, and the Value on Virginity."American Ethnologist 4 (1991):719-734.

[7] Schlegel, Alice."Status, Property, and the Value on Virginity."American Ethnologist 4 (1991):719-734.

[8] Schlegel, Alice."Status, Property, and the Value on Virginity."American Ethnologist 4 (1991):719-734.

[9]Schlegel, Alice."Status, Property, and the Value on Virginity."American Ethnologist 4 (1991):723

[10] Schlegel, Alice."Status, Property, and the Value on Virginity."American Ethnologist 4 (1991):725

[11] Schlegel, Alice."Status, Property, and the Value on Virginity."American Ethnologist 4 (1991):732

[12] Bearman, Peter S. "Promising the Future: Virginity Pledges and First Intercourse."AJS 4 (2001):859-912

[13] Bearman, Peter S. "Promising the Future: Virginity Pledges and First Intercourse."AJS 4 (2001):871

[14] Bearman, Peter S. "Promising the Future: Virginity Pledges and First Intercourse."AJS 4 (2001):869

[15] These all act as influential and determining factors in the education about sex, the role of puberty, and the personalities and possible pressure surrounding them. Bearman, Peter S. "Promising the Future: Virginity Pledges and First Intercourse."AJS 4 (2001):869

[16] Chastity rings have become popular as a symbol of God's love. A teen wears the ring on their left ring finger where a wedding ring would go to serve as a reminder to remain pure and wait till marriage. The ring is a replacement for the ring they will receive when they devote their lives to someone else, as for now their lives are devoted to God's love. Bearman, Peter S. "Promising the Future: Virginity Pledges and First Intercourse."AJS 4 (2001):870

[17] Bearman, Peter S. "Promising the Future: Virginity Pledges and First Intercourse."AJS 4 (2001):874-875

[18] Bearman, Peter S. "Promising the Future: Virginity Pledges and First Intercourse."AJS 4 (2001):883

[19] Bearman, Peter S. "Promising the Future: Virginity Pledges and First Intercourse."AJS 4 (2001):900

[20] Cameron, Averil. "Virginity as Metaphor: women and the rhetoric of early Christianity." History as Text: The Writing of Ancient History.(1990):181

[21] Cameron, Averil. "Virginity as Metaphor: women and the rhetoric of early Christianity." History as Text: The Writing of Ancient History.(1990):181

[22] Cameron, Averil. "Virginity as Metaphor: women and the rhetoric of early Christianity." History as Text:The Writing of Ancient History.(1990):183

[23] Cameron, Averil. "Virginity as Metaphor: women and the rhetoric of early Christianity." History as Text: The Writing of Ancient History.(1990):183

[24] Cameron, Averil. "Virginity as Metaphor: women and the rhetoric of early Christianity." History as Text: The Writing of Ancient History.(1990):184

[25] However, in Jewish religious texts women are not blamed for the force loss of their virginity rather it is the men who are stoned, forced to pay bride price, or in some cases which proves horrible for the woman raped, forced to marry her. Evans, Roger Steven. Sex and Salvation: Virginity as A Storeriological Paradigm in Ancient Christianity.MD: University Press of America,2003:19.

[26] Cameron, Averil. "Virginity as Metaphor: women and the rhetoric of early Christianity." History as Text: The Writing of Ancient History.(1990):185

[27] Cameron, Averil. "Virginity as Metaphor: women and the rhetoric of early Christianity." History as Text: The Writing of Ancient History.(1990):186

[28]Cameron, Averil. "Virginity as Metaphor: women and the rhetoric of early Christianity." History as Text: The Writing of Ancient History.(1990):186

[29][29] Cameron, Averil. "Virginity as Metaphor: women and the rhetoric of early Christianity." History as Text: The Writing of Ancient History.(1990):186

[30] Amt, Emilie. Women's Lives in Medieval Europe. New York: Routledge, Chapman and Hall, 1993:23

[31] Amt, Emilie. Women's Lives in Medieval Europe. New York: Routledge, Chapman and Hall, 1993:25-26

[32] Young-Bruehl, Elisabeth. Freud on Women. New York: W.W. Nortan and Company, 1990. 204-214

[33] Young-Bruehl, Elisabeth. Freud on Women. New York: W.W. Nortan and Company, 1990:207

[34] Young-Bruehl, Elisabeth. Freud on Women. New York: W.W. Nortan and Company, 1990:207

[35] Young-Bruehl, Elisabeth. Freud on Women. New York: W.W. Nortan and Company, 1990:211

[36] Young-Bruehl, Elisabeth. Freud on Women. New York: W.W. Nortan and Company, 1990:207

[37] Young-Bruehl, Elisabeth. Freud on Women. New York: W.W. Nortan and Company, 1990:207

[38] Young-Bruehl, Elisabeth. Freud on Women. New York: W.W. Nortan and Company, 1990:207

[39] Young-Bruehl, Elisabeth. Freud on Women. New York: W.W. Nortan and Company, 1990:207

[40] Young-Bruehl, Elisabeth. Freud on Women. New York: W.W. Nortan and Company, 1990:207

[41] Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003. 28-32, 36-40

[42] Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003. 28-32, 36-40

[43] Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003:51

[44] Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003:32

[45]Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003:51

[46] Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003:51

[47] Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003:51

[48] Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003:21

[49] Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003:20

[50] Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003:28

[51]Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003:94

[52] Pizan, Christine De. The Treasure of the City of Ladies. Penguin books ,2003:145

[53] Ardener, Shirley. Defining Females: The Nature of Women and Society. Oxford: Berg Publishers Limited,1993:40

[54] Ardener, Shirley. Defining Females: The Nature of Women and Soceity. Oxford: Berg Publishers Limited, 1993:34

[55] "Medical models are specialist models, but this fact does not in itself guarantee that they are culture free, in the sense of being objectively free and universally valid." Ardener, Shirley. Defining Females: The Nature of Women and Soceity. Oxford: Berg Publishers Limited,1993:35 This means that much like the dictionary definition of hymen which carried implications of virginity, even biological texts are not free of cultural bias.

[56] Ardener, Shirley. Defining Females: The Nature of Women and Soceity. Oxford: Berg Publishers Limited,1993:35

[57] Ardener, Shirley. Defining Females: The Nature of Women and Soceity. Oxford: Berg Publishers Limited, 1993:39

[58] Ardener, Shirley. Defining Females: The Nature of Women and Soceity. Oxford: Berg Publishers Limited, 1993:41