Human female sexuality

In almost any historical era and culture, the arts, including literary and visual arts, as well as popular culture, present a substantial portion of a given society's views on human sexuality, which includes both implicit (covert) and explicit (overt) aspects and manifestations of feminine sexuality and behavior.

[34][35][36] Women, on average, tend to be more attracted to men who have a relatively narrow waist, a V-shaped torso, and broad shoulders.

[37][38] Based on contemporary research and surveys, women, regardless of sexual orientation, are just as interested in a partner's physical attractiveness as men are.

He identified Freud's theories as the source of this significant misunderstanding, and theorized that the "rhythmic factor" is not merely a principle in the "nutritive phase" and later in sexuality, but that it is at the base of all emotional processes.

[49] Some controversial traditional cultural practices, such as female genital mutilation (FGM), have been described as attempts at nullifying women's sexuality altogether.

FGM continues to be practised in some parts of Africa and the Middle East, as well as in some immigrant communities in Western countries, though it is widely outlawed.

[50][51] Methods employed to control female sexuality and behavior include the threat of death, such as honor killings.

The belts were worn by women to protect their chastity, which included preventing masturbation (such as by fingering) or sexual access by unauthorized males.

[55][56][57] Prior to the European colonization of North America, Native American attitudes regarding female sexuality were generally open-minded, particularly for younger, un-married women.

[59] Mammies, also called Aunt Jemima, were maternal figures who were portrayed as content within the institution of slavery – always with a smile on her face as the white family took up her life and her entire world.

Other writers, such as Germaine Greer, Simone de Beauvoir and Camille Paglia, were particularly influential, although their views were not universally or placidly accepted.

Toward the end of the 20th century the most significant European contributions to understanding female sexuality came from psychoanalytical French feminism, with the work of Luce Irigaray and Julia Kristeva.

Generally, modern feminists advocate for all women to have access to sexual healthcare and education, and agree on the importance of reproductive health freedoms, particularly regarding issues such as birth control and family planning.

Bodily autonomy and consent are also concepts of high importance in modern feminist views of female sexuality.

[73][74] The virginity and family honor of women still play an important role in some legal systems: in some jurisdictions, the punishment for rape is more severe if the woman was a virgin at the time of the crime, and under some legal systems a man who rapes a woman can escape punishment if he marries her.

[77] The social construction of masculinity and femininity play a lead role in understanding why women are commonly held responsible for the outcome of sexual encounters.

[78][failed verification] Sexual interactions often take place in unequal structural circumstances in the context of imbalance of power between men and women.

[78][79] Feminists, such as Catharine Mackinnon, have stated that the inequality in which heterosexual intercourse takes place should not be ignored and should play a crucial role in policies; Mackinnon has argued: "The assumption is that women can be unequal to men economically, socially, culturally, politically, and in religion, but the moment they have sexual interactions, they are free and equal.

Some scholars argue that a contributing factor in this division of responsibility for safe sex factors is the privileged status of male desire in Western culture, as indicated by the commonly held belief that the female sexual experience is not adversely affected by condom use but that the male sexual experience is diminished with the addition of this barrier.

[84] This link is considered something that cannot be underestimated as "discontinuation of condom use becomes a test or a marker which signifies the existence of a committed and exclusive relationship," and demonstrates trust.

[86] These ideas, male sex drive and coital imperative, paired with the social construction of femininity, may lead to an imbalance of the power in making the decision to use a condom.