7 of the Craziest Myths About Female Biology of All Time

[xchrom]

http://www.alternet.org/gender/7-craziest-myths-about-female-biology-all-time

From the Wandering Uterus to the Toothed Vagina, myths and misapprehensions about the female body have plagued us through the ages.



***SNIP

1. The Wandering Uterus

What if your uterus suddenly decided to spring from its station in your midsection and take off running wildly around your body?

That’s just what Plato theorized in his famous explanation for the discredited, fantasy diagnosis of “hysteria” that was widely believed to plague women well into the 20th century. In his dialogue Timaeus, Plato, following other Greek writers, describes the uterus as a little animal with a mind of its own that wanders throughout a woman’s body, "blocking passages, obstructing breathing, and causing disease."

***SNIP

2. The Toothed Vagina

You’re making love to your ladyfriend and suddenly, chomp! Her vagina has eaten your penis.


***SNIP

3. The Dangerous Clitoris

The clitoris, symbol of women’s pleasure, has raised alarm in many cultures. In the 16th century, Sinistrari, a Roman inquisitor and author of a classic text on demons, warned that women with elongated clitorises could rape men, and he recommended torture for such unholy females. In the 19th century, removal or cauterization of the clitoris was often prescribed by Western doctors as a "cure" for everything from masturbation to " immorality."

[boppers]

1. I haven't the stomach to follow the link. eom

[Ilsa]

2. Old excuses for violence against women.

Smart women must really emasculate men like that, too.