The mental representation of the clitoris: The fear of female sexuality

Kulish, Nancy

doi:10.1080/07351699109533873

Cited by 24 publications

(19 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Lerner attributes the source of anxiety to failure to create mental representations with correct verbal labelling, giving 'permission' to 'be a sexually operative and responsive female ' (1976, p. 270). Other authors emphasise the female genital anxieties in terms of threats to inner space as punishment for libidinal strivings (Kulish, 1991;Lax, 1994, Mayer, 1995Richards, 1992Richards, , 1996.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Riddle of Femininity: The Interplay of Primary Femininity and the Castration Complex in Analytic Listening

Fritsch¹,

Ellman²,

Basseches³

et al. 2001

Int J Psychoanal

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This study elucidates the application of an analytic attitude to questions of gender and sexuality. The paper reports on a study group's exploration of the relative heuristic use of two important organising concepts in analytic work with female analysands: primary feminity and the phallic castration complex. A tendency to cling to one position over the other skews analytic listening. Two cases are presented of women struggling to consolidate positive feminine identifications and, to that end, working through conflicting feminine identifications and defences against a resolution of the awareness of gender differences. Analytic listening requires a view of each psychic construction as a layer to be understood in its own right yet as a cloak soon to reveal the next layer--a different construction. The study includes observations on perverse fantasies in women.

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Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Riddle of Femininity: The Interplay of Primary Femininity and the Castration Complex in Analytic Listening

Fritsch¹,

Ellman²,

Basseches³

et al. 2001

Int J Psychoanal

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show abstract

“…To my reading, Kulish (1993) is the only recent psychoanalytic author who has highlighted in detail the important role of the clitoris as an erogenous zone in feminine sexual pleasure. To my reading, Kulish (1993) is the only recent psychoanalytic author who has highlighted in detail the important role of the clitoris as an erogenous zone in feminine sexual pleasure.…”

Section: T H E Role O F T H E C L I T O R I S In Women's Passionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To my reading, Kulish (1993) is the only recent psychoanalytic author who has highlighted in detail the important role of the clitoris as an erogenous zone in feminine sexual pleasure. Kulish (1993) maintains that "it is more difficult to attain mastery over impulses with the ill-defined representation of the clitoris" (p. 5 1 8 t t h a t because the clitoris is poorly represented intrapsychically the impulses associated with it are more difficult to locate bodily, and thus to master. Why has the role of the clitoris been minimized?…”

Section: T H E Role O F T H E C L I T O R I S In Women's Passionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Passions in Girls and Women: Toward a Bridge Between Critical Relational Theory of Gender and Modern Conflict Theory

Hoffman

1999

J Am Psychoanal Assoc

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This paper considers (1) some aspects of the lack of dialogue among psychoanalytic schools; (2) Brenner's (1982) conception of drives and drive derivatives as inextricably linked to relationships, and some of its less-appreciated implications; (3) the debate over the importance of childhood sexuality in mental life; (4) the attempts by relational theorists to address and reintegrate the role of sexuality and gender, particularly in the study of feminine psychology; (5) the problematic role of aggression in psychoanalytic theories of women; (6) the avoidance by both men and women of women's passions and their anatomical loci, especially the clitoris, whose only function is the provision of pleasure; and (7) the suggestion that an integrated theory, including an understanding of the role of the body as well as of the passions and the defenses against them, results in the most effective clinical psychoanalytic approach. It then suggests that a bridge could be built between a relational point of view that takes into consideration the role of bodily experiences, and a classical point of view in which drive is seen as inextricably linked to relationships from birth on.

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“…Among psychoanalysts, Nancy Kulish (1991) has tied female circumcision to the fear of female sexuality. She suggests that it has two functions: ''to attenuate and control women's sexual desires and behaviors'' and ''[to remove] undesirable masculinity from a female and prepare her for her proper feminine role'' (p. 520).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Female genital mutilation: Insider/outsider discourses and the politics of judgment

Lehman

Nath

2009

Psychoanal Cult Soc

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Through the lens of a contemporary antifemale genital mutilation discourse, this field note provides background on how psychoanalysts and feminists have written about the practice of female circumcision. The authors provide preliminary ethnographic data, obtained from women and men in two indigenous groups in Kenya, on the subjects' firsthand views of the practice. Their views are consistent with control of women's sexuality, but also implicate an adjacent discourse on blame and responsibility for HIV. These findings are considered in terms of how political stances are affected by insider and outsider positioning and the role of judgment in political activism.Female circumcision is a tradition that has been practiced globally for hundreds of years. The practice is known to occur in 28 African countries, as well as in a smaller number of countries in Asia and the Middle East (World Health Organization [WHO], 1997). Current estimates suggest that over 130 million women worldwide have been circumcised (WHO). Despite the significant number of women who have been through this experience, those living in the West often have little firsthand experience with the practice.Nonetheless, the merits, purpose and cultural significance of female circumcision have been the subject of longstanding international political discussion. The debate has been fueled by questions about the safety of the practice, as well as by the conviction that circumcision limits a woman's r

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The mental representation of the clitoris: The fear of female sexuality

Cited by 24 publications

References 24 publications

The Riddle of Femininity: The Interplay of Primary Femininity and the Castration Complex in Analytic Listening

The Riddle of Femininity: The Interplay of Primary Femininity and the Castration Complex in Analytic Listening

Passions in Girls and Women: Toward a Bridge Between Critical Relational Theory of Gender and Modern Conflict Theory

Female genital mutilation: Insider/outsider discourses and the politics of judgment

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