Social Norms And Taboos: Female Circumcision In African Culture

Taboos, religious and societal prohibitions and cultural norms not only dictate daily life experiences for many in modern society, they also have a strong impression on perceptions of other cultures and inherent matters of right and wrong. Human behaviour is not only governed by rational decision making, but also the shared values and standards of acceptable behaviour which are universally known and accepted within a society. These social norms and taboos have puissant effects on how we interact with others, eat, have sex and dress as well as the way we form opinions regarding how other people do the same things in their own lives and the taboos which their societies are governed by. (Fershtman 2011: 139) As the Encyclopaedia Brittanica defines
it, taboo refers to “the prohibition of an action based on the belief that such behaviour is either too sacred and consecrated or too dangerous and accursed for ordinary individuals to undertake.” (Fershtman 2011: 139) Taboos go hand in hand with what is considered to be ethical or ‘right.’ There’s a distinction between something seeming ‘irrational’ to one group and something being inherently wrong on a universal scale, however for the sake of academia, this writing refrain from getting caught up in implicit moral rightness/wrongness and discuss the taboo of Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) in the realm of both Western and African cultures.

Female Genital Mutilation, commonly referred to in practicing communities as female circumcision, is a tradition which appears in a variety of forms across (mainly) Africa. The process involves the cutting or removal of tissue from the genitalia of young women typically in order to elevate her from childhood to adulthood. It is believed that over 100 million women have had their genitals mutilated, with two million girls too young to give consent being circumcision each year - at a rate of one per eleven seconds. Distinctly separate from male circumcision which simply involves the removal of the foreskin, female circumcision, in severe cases, has the possibility for extreme health risks, with 1 in 5 women who are circumcised dying either directly from the procedure or a related health risk (such as blood poisoning etc.). The most severe and dangerous method of female circumcision is infibulation, in which the clitoris is removed and the edges of the vulva are temporarily sewn together. This can result in obstructed labor which can be fatal for both child and mother. (Gruenbaum 2003: 3) Varying from community to community, the procedure is performed at pivotal moments in a young woman’s life. In the Massai community of Northern Kenya and Tanzania, female circumcision is performed as a part of the marriage ceremony, proving that a woman is worthy to be a wife and mother. In other communities, most commonly, the procedure is performed on girls between the ages of four and eight. There is no simple, single answer to the question “Why?”, but rather a diverse mix of explanations which range from establishing gender identity, ensuring purity, symbolically marking the differences between sexes, confirming marriageability, social status, ethnicity and even moral status. (Gruenbaum 2003: 48 & 67)

In many African communities, girls who have not yet been circumcised lack a degree of respect in society which could only be gained through circumcision.
The taboo which surrounds female circumcision in African culture is not for the act itself, but rather on those girls who have not undergone the procedure yet/somehow choose not to. It is a taboo not to be a circumcised female, and cultural conditions for those who are not circumcised are so uncomfortable and inconvenient that all aspects of life are effected. It is such an ingrained aspect of the female experience that generally it goes unquestioned and is in fact a celebrated moment in life. The practitioners look on the tradition as an integral aspect of both an individuals and a communities cultural and ethnic identity. (Althaus 1997: 130) Many women stress the importance of circumcision as a central part of their transition into womanhood, a physical mark that they are not mature and ‘worthy’ of respect. (Shell-Duncan 2000: 117) Uncut women and their genitalia are considered to be taboo, unclean, immature and promiscuous, among the lowest in the social order of a community. When FGM is completed, it acts as a form of rite of passage, the woman is no longer taboo and the girl becomes a woman, connected to the rest of her community symbolically through the stream of blood which comes from her wounds. (Burrage 2015:
32)

Female circumcision is an integral part of the societies that practice it, where patriarchal authority and control of female sexuality and fertility are givens. In communities where ones place in society is determined by lineage traced through paternal blood lines, female circumcision and infibulation reduces the uncertainty surrounding paternity by discouraging or preventing female sexuality outside of marriage. (Althaus 1997: 131) Circumcision is seen as a joyous occasion for both an individual and a community, accompanied by festivities with gifts and a communal meal which is attended by all members of the community, all gathered together to celebrate the enhanced femininity and purity of a young woman who is no longer considered ‘taboo’ by society due to her cut genitals (Gruenbaum 2003: 63) Virginity and purity of an individual has important implications on others in a community; if a girl dishonours herself she dishonours her entire community. Furthermore, for example, a boy in the Samburu of Kenya who has an older, uncircumcised sister, cannot join the warrior class until she has been circumcised. (Althaus 1997: 131) According to an elderly woman interviewed in the ethnographic film Massai Women, circumcision is an important part of well being for the female community, in conjunction with seeing your offspring and and grandchildren survive and be circumcised. (Curling 1974) If a woman does not undergo the procedure and resists being cut, she will either be forcibly cut or ostracised from her family and community.

Female circumcision, like many other cultural rituals associated with establishing or strengthening identity, derives a great deal of its power from its symbolic value in identity information. (Gruenbaum 2003: 66) The juxtaposition between the Western and African societies positions on female circumcision is summed up in a quote gathered by anthropologist Bettina Shell-Duncan upon telling a Rendille woman of North Eastern Kenya; “In your place this might be fine, but for Rendille women, circumcision is the only thing that separates us from animals.” (Shell-Duncan 2000: 115)

Western culture brands practices such as female circumcision as absurdities, atrocities even, but the reality is that the typical West African is a product of an environment in which life is largely regulated by traditional customs and taboos.
(Ajayi 1980: 61) In Western society, parents allowing their children’s genitals to be surgically altered in painful procedures which can cause grave harm to their health is unfathomable, and the practice of doing so is extremely tabooed in society. The term commonly used in the West to refer to female circumcision, “Female Genital Mutilation” has the direct connotation of intentional harm and is tantamount to an accusation of evil intent, which many practicers say is not there. This word choice reflects the vile standard to which Western society holds female circumcision and the extreme taboo which is associated with it. There is much North American/European ethnocentric discussion and writing surrounding the topic, with practicers being seen as less rational or humane, with writers failing to consider the differences in values and traditions which vary from society to society. The question must be asked that if these practices are based on deeply held cultural values and traditions, can outsiders effectively challenge and condemn them without challenging the cultural identity of the people who practice
them?

Female circumcision is a restriction placed upon tabooed female sexuality in African society, not entirely unlike the taboos or restrictions placed on Western woman’s sexuality such as the extreme positions of the American far right on abortion or family planning. (Burrage 2015: 12) There are many aspects of female circumcision which are found to not sit well with Western society and render it a severe taboo; the main two being the lack of autonomy many women have and the modifications which are made to the body. The matter of a lack of consent cannot be disputed, however according to anthropologist Hilary Burrage, “while FGM is extremely rare among modern white women, there are other practices such as labiaplasty and breast enlargement which could be seen as similar.” (Burrage 2015: 12) FGM is seen by many modern cultures as the ultimate in sickening patriarchal oppression, indeed it is seen by some to be patriarchy incarnate. In a world in which female self-determination and women’s rights are growing and becoming more prominent, a procedure such as female genital mutilation which so severely violates the dignity and autonomy of women is rendered such as strong taboo.

As pioneering anthropologist Mary Douglas said, “to an outside observer, a taboo or religious prohibition might seem irrational; to the believer, however, it simply seems right.” (Douglas 1966: 3) Douglas also says that “there can never be a final and correct world view”, this leads one tho consider the duality of taboos and the differentiation which distinctly separates communities and cultures across the world. While in many African cultures female circumcision is a required procedure in a young woman’s life, in Western society, it is seen as a barbaric act which must be stopped. Values, traditions and what is considered to be ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ vary greatly from society to society, these variations being clearly observable in few instance clearer than in deeply valued.taboos.