The female breast as a symbol of charity through breastfeeding

Abstract

The pursuit of the beautiful breast has existed for centuries. As a marker of femininity, a sexual symbol, and a sustainer of new life, the female breast has occupied an iconic position in Western art [1]. Between the medieval and Renaissance periods in France, poetic and artistic portrayals of the female breast expressed not only esthetic values and cultural anxieties concerning sexuality, but also political power, social class, and even religious ideology [2].However, the female breast can also be a symbol unrelated to sexuality-namely, a symbol of charity. I introduce two cases of breastfeeding as a symbol of charity: one to a woman's father and another to a starving stranger.Peter Paul Rubens (1577-1640) painted "Roman Charity" (Caritas Romana, 1625) (Fig. 1) [3]. This painting is based on the exemplary story of a woman, Pero, who secretly breastfeeds her father, Cimon, after he is incarcerated and sentenced to death by starvation. This story expresses the need for charity as a "giving of self" to others that can be explained by the embedded neural network for empathy in the human brain, which is closely linked to the sense of self [4]. It is generally accepted that in ancient Rome, a columna lactaria (lactation column) existed. This place was an ancient marketplace for transactions between those with breast milk to sell and those looking to buy [5].