Summer Reading Challenge

Last summer I went on a Virginia Woolf reading spree (I still haven’t read all of Woolf yet, though) but this summer instead of reading the works of one author, I am picking a subject. Feminism!! Having completed my Women’s and Gender Studies major I want to continue reading some of the books that I never got a chance to read in school. Hopefully I can read a book a week and write down some of my thoughts! Here it goes…

In no particular order:

Enlightened Sexism by Susan J. Douglas

The Body Project by Joan Jacobs Brumberg

Female Chauvinist Pigs by Ariel Levy

Backlash by Susan Faludi

Flapper by Joshua Zeitz

No Turning Back by Estelle B. Freedman

The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir

The Invisible Sex: Uncovering the True Roles of Women in Prehistory

Bitch: In Praise of Difficult Women by Elizabeth Wurtzel

Victims of Fashion: Effects of the Corset on the Body

        Since the 1850’s, the ill effects of the corset on the female body has been the site of constant feminist debate. Nineteenth century fashions and the corset were inextricably linked to issues of women’s rights. The corset was thought, among dress reformers and feminists of the nineteenth century, as a garment imposed upon women by men in order to physically and mentally suppress women. Yet, not all feminists were willing to abandon the use of the corset. Women’s rights leaders such as Elizabeth Cady Stanton advocated “frilly” women’s fashions in order to appeal to the public and gain support for “larger” women’s rights issues. Feminists and advocates of women’s rights and dress reform had a lot to lose if they abandoned wearing the corset. Since the corset was the sight of femininity and respectability, the “woman question” would never gain support if women abandoned the corset, and thus appeared less respectable in public. There were “reform garments” that were created tin place of the corset which were much looser and had less shape, which made these reform garments non-appealing and less attractive to women and men. Yet, because women were not willing to abandon the corset, they were accused of being vain and narcissistic. Men accusing women of being vain because of their use of the corset is ironic in many ways because men set the standard for sexual beauty. Also, the tiny wasp waist as depicted in advertisements set the standard for female sexual beauty (achieved through drastic means such as tight lacing). In order to obtain a “tiny,” attractive waist, a woman risked her health in not only tight lacing but wearing the corset over an extended period of time.

Doctors of the time studied the effects of the corset, and it was universally agreed upon among medics that the corset negatively affected women’s bodies and health. Yet, doctors’ reports were mainly circulated within medical circles and their findings were not disseminated amongst the larger general public.  Women were also afraid to confide in their male doctors of any of their complaints related to the corset. Sexual assault by doctors during this time was not uncommon, and the female body in general was not only taboo, but something to be feared. Thus, women were rarely if at all educated about their own bodies, and entirely dependent on male doctors if they wanted to seek out information about their bodies. Although some of the negative side effects caused by the corset may have been exaggerated or ill founded, many of these “female complaints” and medical findings cannot be ignored.

In general, corsetry, and especially the practice of tight lacing, pressed upon the stomach, liver and the large and small intestines. One of the most common side effects of the corset, however, was known as chicken breast. Chicken breast occurred when the corset pressed too tightly against the ribs, causing the ribs to fracture. Fractured ribs could then lead to punctured lungs. The constant pressure upon the ribs that the corset caused inevitably spurred the myth that some women actually had their ribs removed in order to wear their corsets as tight as possible. This myth is completely unfounded considering the fact that no medical procedure during the nineteenth century would have been able to successfully complete such an operation without the proper disinfectants and anesthetics. Another popular misconception and caricature of corsetry is that it caused women to have fainting fits. The corset did press upon the diaphragm which did not allow it to expand properly, causing trouble in breathing. There were, however, cases of fainting due to the corset, but only under extreme circumstances were women prone to faint. Another more significant ill effect of the corset was that of women experiencing a prolapsed uterus. A prolapsed uterus was so common among women that pessaries (pictured to the left) were created and used to hold the uterus in place. Pessaries were created to be worn along with the corset in that the pessaries were attached to the corset. Although doctors knew about all of the negative effects of corsetry they were reluctant to advocate the disuse of the corset because much of their practice depended upon these “female complaints” caused by the corset. Essentially, the corset, to some extent, kept doctors in business.

Finally, since women were always expected to wear the corset, it may come as no surprise that even pregnant women were expected to wear a modified form of the corset. Although women were essentially bred to be married and have children, the pregnant woman’s body was taboo and was not meant to be shown. Therefore, corsets for pregnant women were created in order to reduce the appearance of their pregnancy, to the obvious detriment of their future child. The pregnancy corset was essential in order for a woman to maintain her ideal “virginal” state of appearance. In fact, during a woman’s state of pregnancy the female body became invisible, offensive, and tabooed, and it was the fetus that was of the most concern and not the mother. However, if a woman was unwed and became pregnant, the corset was used to not only hide her pregnancy, but to cause a miscarriage as well. Some women who were unaware that they were pregnant, and continued their use of corset or even of tight lacing could inevitably cause an unexpected miscarriage. It was also widely thought among doctors at the time that the continual use of the corset throughout a woman’s pregnancy would produce a child that was not only unhealthy, but would affect the child’s mental capabilities as well. In fact, pregnant women were chastised for wearing the corset, yet in order to appear in public during their pregnancy they had to wear the corset. Again, women experienced a double standard in being criticized for wearing the corset and not wearing the corset. Also, corsetry also affected women during labor, making labor more painful for women, especially women who began wearing corsets at a young age. In terms of the psychological effect that pregnancy had on women, the corset functioned as a means for “the pregnant nineteenth-century woman to convince herself, consciously or unconsciously, that no pregnancy had occurred and that bleeding after months of ‘failed’ menstruation was simply a case of cleared ‘obstruction’” (Summers 52). In sum, the corset was used to perpetuate society’s taboos about pregnancy and the maternal body.

The Girls Who Went Away: Stories of Adoption

The Girls Who Went Away: The Hidden History of Women Who Surrendered Children for Adoption in the Decades Before Roe v. Wade by Ann Fessler is a remarkably researched book about the hundreds of thousands of teenagers and young women who gave their children up for adoption during the fifties, sixties, and seventies.  Mixed with historical research and personal testimonies from mothers who relinquished their children, The Girls Who Went Away reveals the social stigma associated with unwed pregnancy, and the emotional distress these unwed mothers experienced during and after their pregnancies.

Having been adopted herself, Fessler collects the stories of mothers whose stories have remained silent, and whose experiences have been misunderstood for decades.  During the fifties and sixties sex education was virtually non-existent. Schools promoted abstinence and many parents never bothered to have “the talk” with their children. Yet, despite the taboos concerning sex and teenagers, many teenagers were “doing it.” Unlike previous generations where going on a date meant sitting on the front porch and being monitored by parents; teenagers of the fifties and sixties were getting it on in the backs of cars and at parties without any protection. Many of the testimonies of the young women who became pregnant, conceived during their first sexual experience.

Once these young women found out that they were pregnant and told their parents, they relinquished any power over their bodies and had little to no say in making the decision whether to keep their child or not. In all of the testimonies in the book, each young woman was sent away to a maternity home for unwed mothers. Many parents were ashamed and disappointed in their daughters and knew that their family’s and daughter’s reputation would be tainted if the neighbors or the general public “found out.” While at the maternity home, the young women were unprepared for what was to come. While in labor, these young women did not know what to expect, had no one there to support them, and were treated poorly by doctors and medical staff. Some women were tied down to the hospital bed  or put out and had no recollection of giving birth.

After giving birth to their child, these young mothers would then be bombarded by social workers to sign the fateful papers that would ultimately relinquish their child. In signing these papers, these girls had no choice but to give away their child. They were either forced by their parents or could not afford the medical expenses and the means to support their child. Yet, once mother and child were separated, many parents and families refused to talk about the whole “ordeal” ever again. These girls were supposed to forget that they were ever pregnant and move on with their lives. They received no counseling and all of the women experienced either emotional distress, depression, anxiety, or post traumatic stress disorder. Women also were confronted with many health problems due to the stress of their situation. No matter what these women experienced after their pregnancy, they could never forget, and the thought of their child and where their child ended up stayed with them throughout their entire lives. For each of these women, their pregnancy and relinquishment shaped their entire lives.

After years of wondering where their child ended up and whether or not they had a good life, some mothers were lucky enough to be reunited with their child and establish a relationship with their child and their families. Through this reunion, these mothers were able to begin a healing process and come to terms with their situation and relinquishment of their child.

What Fessler’s work reveals is essentially the horrible way in which unwed mothers were treated not only by society but by their own families as well. Getting pregnant was solely the girl’s fault, and the fathers were able to continue on with their lives without the same type of chastisement experienced by pregnant women. Ironically, society could not figure out why middle class, respectable, young girls were getting pregnant. So, in order to explain this striking phenomenon, many doctors and psychologists claimed that these young girls were neurotic. Yet, society failed to educate young women and men on preventing pregnancy, and due to this lack of education, women were the ultimate sufferers.

For more information about The Girls Who Went Away, visit: http://www.thegirlswhowentaway.com/