Relationships August 13, 2018
It's time to get cliterate.
We all know about the gender gap, but what about the orgasm gap? In the 2010 National Survey of Sexual Health and Behavior, 85% of men believed their partner orgasmed the last time they had sex. However, only 63% of women reported that they actually had an orgasm the last time they had sex. If you’re a guy, and your partner has a vagina, this should concern you. Unless you’re a total tool, you should want your partner to enjoy sex as much as you do. You need to get cliterate.
And even if a guy isn’t sexually involved with someone who has a vagina, they should still get educated. Men have dominated the history of the clitoris, and as a guy, it’s important to understand your gender’s role and privilege in that history.
So without further ado, meet the clitoris.
Wednesday Martin’s eBook “The Button” details the long timeline of clitoral fake news. All throughout the past, men have come up with their own explanations for this sex organ.
The Ancient Greek philosopher Claudius Galen believed that women didn’t have enough body heat for the clitoris to manifest as a penis. The medieval guide “Malleus Maleficarum” believed the clitoris was a source of witchcraft— “the devil’s teat.” And 16th century physician Andreas Vesalius believed that it was proof of bad health.
Flash forward a few hundred years. Sigmund Freud, the father of psychoanalysis, created a new social expectation. Martin explains that he thought “healthy, mature women had vaginal orgasms… not immature, unfeminine clitoral ones.”
Freud argued that women had a responsibility to transfer their clitoral excitement to their vagina. “Elimination of clitoral sexuality is… necessary… for the development of femininity,” he asserted.
It’s possible that this expectation contributed to the orgasm gap. So don’t feel bad if you can’t make your partner orgasm through penetration! You might just need a little more clitoris action.
The clitoris was so misunderstood that even top medical authorities dismissed its importance. Gray’s “Anatomy” (no, not the TV show) is a detailed medical text that doctors regularly consult. Written by English anatomist Henry Gray in 1858, professionals continuously update and revise this book to this day.
“The Button” explains how one of this book’s revisions stunted the understanding of female sexuality for years. In 1948, Dr. Charles Mayo Goss simply erased the clitoris from the original diagrams, essentially removing them from existence. What’s more disturbing is that no other medical professional at the time seemed to challenge or question Goss.
In 2005, a woman and her team finally brought correct clitoral information to the world. Thanks to the work of Australian urologist Helen O’Connell, we have a detailed account on clitoral anatomy.
After the publication of O’Connell’s work, 3-D rendering by Buisson and Foldes revealed imaging of the “excited internal clitoris.” This “internal” clitoris is as big as a penis.
“Pound per pound, centimeter per centimeter, women have as much erectile tissues as men do,” Martin states.
“The Button” also explains that the clitoris has 8 thousand nerve endings, “making it fourteen times more sensitive than even the most sensitive part of the penis.”
And vaginas can orgasm more consecutively than penises can.
So work with your partner. Try to understand their preferences. Find the right balance between penetrative and clitoral stimulation. And make sure you never, ever underestimate the clitoris again.
Both genders are now paying the cost of past men’s insecurity and ignorance. Because the clitoris was historically dismissed (and even erased), many individuals aren’t properly educated on the complexities of their own body parts. And many men —sometimes unknowingly— fail to let their partners reach orgasm.
Even more terrifyingly, clitoral mutilation is still a thing.
Not only is it a thing, but it’s also common in many cultures. As a part of female genital mutilation (FGM), this form of “female circumcision” is prevalent in Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
According to UNICEF data, “200 million women alive today living in 30 countries have undergone FGM.” Perpetuated by years of tradition, women in these cultures undergo FGM to preserve chastity, uphold a religious belief or social pride.
However, efforts to increase clitoris awareness are quickly taking effect. UNICEF has a campaign to spread awareness and advocacy for legislature that will end FGM. CLITERACY, spearheaded by activist Sophia Wallace, is another movement that reclaims female sexuality. This project incorporates street art and gallery spaces to make the public cliterate. One of her works is shown above.
Follow Sophia Wallace on Instagram, get Wednesday Martin’s book “The Button” and keep up with cliteracy news. It’s time for all genders to get cliterate.
