The Sanctity of Marriage

This evening, I was listening to NPR on my way home. A very interesting story caught my attention. The reporter was discussing an artificial hymen.

It's okay...you read that correctly. I said "ARTIFICIAL HYMEN". Hmmm? WTF? Yeah, that's the response I had too. The reporter detailed the importance of women maintaining their virginity in certain cultures. The story focused on women in the Middle East, Egypt and India. These cultures highly prize female "purity". A woman who has sex outside of marriage is viewed as damaged goods - unable to wed.

The reporter interviewed an Egyptian man, he stated that it is common (if not even expected) for men to have had sex before marriage. He laughed, however, at the thought of sexual equality for women. He reasoned that they are women - it just is the way it is. When confronted with the fact that this wasn't much of an argument, he agreed and cited "it just is how it is." WOW. An Indian woman was quoted as saying "a female can break as many glass ceilings as she'd like, but she better not break her hymen."

Really?

This got me thinking of my own situation. I am currently unable to wed. It's not because I don't have a partner who loves me. It's not because I'm not ready to commit to a lifetime with someone else. It's not even because I'm sexually unpure (shutup). Rather, it's because some people cling to an archaic and unfounded belief that marriage can't possibly be for anyone other than a man and a woman. Much like those women in the Mid East, Egypt and India, I find myself the victim of outdated and unfounded social beliefs.

The women in these cultures would rather purchase a fake hymen and enter into a marriage built on lies than to defy the cultural mandates they've grown up with. WOW. Let that one sink in for a while.

I'm glad I live in a country where we can be so vocal about opposition to societal standards. I'm glad I will one day (soon) be able to marry my partner. Mostly, however, I'm glad that I can look forward to doing it all without dishing out $29.99 for a fake hymen.

Ain't life grand?