I think the word that is even more absent is clitoris. Which makes sense
since it's associated with female pleasure — something that is even
more taboo than female body parts.

Cynthia
-- 

Cynthia Peters
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>>> On 7/18/2008 at 12:12 PM, in message

<488088A2.919D.0031.0 at langate.gsu.edu>,
"Daphne Greenberg" <ALCDGG at langate.gsu.edu> wrote:

> In the past, we have talked on this discussion list how the word

"vagina" 

> seems to be a taboo word in our society, and that this taboo creates



> discomfort in health literacy classes when it is necessary and

appropriate at 

> times to discuss the vagina. A word that is even less frequently

mentioned is 

> "vulva." In fact, many of us don't even know what the vulva is. The

vulva is 

> the word that is used to label all of the external female genitalia,

such as 

> the labia and the clitoris. It is not the same as the vagina which is

the 

> internal structure. Harriet Lerner in Lilith, Spring 2005, page 30

writes:

> 

> "The persistent misuse of the word 'vagina' impairs a girl's capacity

to 

> develop an accurate and differentiated 'map' of her internal and

external 

> genitals. And if sexual violations occur in childhood, inaccurate

labeling 

> increases shame and complicates healing."

> 

> Do you any of you teach health literacy classes? How easy is it for

you and 

> your students to use accurate terminology to label female body

parts?

> 

> Daphne

> 

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