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'{{Close relationships |expanded=practices}} {{essay|date=November 2018}} {{Lead too short|date=November 2018}} '''Sexual repression''' is a state in which a person is prevented from expressing their own [[human sexuality|sexuality]]. Sexual repression is often associated with feelings of [[guilt (emotion)|guilt]] or [[shame]], being associated with sexual impulses.<ref>Karen A. McClintock, ''Sexual Shame: An Urgent Call to Healing'', Fortress Press, Minneapolis, MN. ({{ISBN|0800632389}}) (2006).</ref> What constitutes sexual repression is subjective and can vary greatly between cultures and moral systems. ==History== [[Sigmund Freud]] was the first to use the term widely, and argued that it was one of the roots of many problems in [[Western world|Western society]].<ref>Wilf Hey. [http://www.vision.org/visionmedia/article.aspx?id=597 "Sigmund Freud: Psychoanalysis and Sexual Repression"] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080518033909/http://www.vision.org/visionmedia/article.aspx?id=597 |date=2008-05-18 }}, vision.org</ref> Freud believed that people's naturally strong instincts toward sexuality were repressed by people in order to meet the constraints imposed on them by civilized life. However, Freud's ideas about sexual repression have not been without their critics. According to sex therapist Bernard Apfelbaum, Freud did not base his belief in universal innate, natural sexuality on the strength of sexual desire he saw in people, but rather on its weakness.<ref>[http://www.bapfelbaumphd.com/Sexual_Reality.html B. Apfelbaum. "Sexual Reality and How We Dismiss It."] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090704081455/http://www.bapfelbaumphd.com/Sexual_Reality.html |date=2009-07-04 }}</ref> In some periods of Indian history [[anaphrodisiac]]s were utilised in order to lower libidos.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=fBVNAQAAMAAJ&q=|title=Sweet Tears and Bitter Pills: The Politics of Health Among the Yuroks of Northern California|last=Ferreira|first=Mariana Kawall Leal|date=1996|publisher=University of California, Berkeley with University of California, San Francisco|language=en}}</ref> ==Religion== {{Further|Religion and sexuality}} Most forms of Christianity [[opposition to homosexuality|strongly discourage homosexual behavior]].<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=PPEyAAAAIBAJ&sjid=pwgGAAAAIBAJ&pg=1827,2290931&dq=&hl=en liberal media] Free Lance-Star retrieved 27 January 2012</ref> <nowiki>Many forms of Islam have strict sexual codes which include banning homosexuality, demanding virginity {{</nowiki>[[Template:Citation needed|Citation needed]]<nowiki>}} before marriage accompanied by a ban on fornication, and can require modest dress-codes for men and women.</nowiki><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=csX0f7AVM3gC&pg=PA722 Sex and Society] Volume 3 - Page 722</ref> ==Laws== {{Further|Fornication|Adultery}} Various countries have laws against sexual acts outside marriage. In countries such as Saudi Arabia, Pakistan,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.eyeontheun.org/voices.asp?p=632 |title=Human Rights Voices – Pakistan, August 21, 2008 |publisher=Eyeontheun.org |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130121175822/http://www.eyeontheun.org/voices.asp?p=632 |archivedate=January 21, 2013 |df= }}</ref> Afghanistan,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aidsportal.org/news_details.aspx?ID=4236 |title=Home |publisher=AIDSPortal |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=http://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/20081026065259/http://www.aidsportal.org/news_details.aspx?ID=4236 |archivedate=2008-10-26 |df= }}</ref><ref name="travel.state.gov">{{cite web|url=https://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1142.html |title=Iran |publisher=Travel.state.gov |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130801084310/http://travel.state.gov/travel/cis_pa_tw/cis/cis_1142.html |archivedate=2013-08-01 |df= }}</ref> Iran,<ref name="travel.state.gov"/> Kuwait,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unhchr.ch/tbs/doc.nsf/0/2f5665ae20b956cb8025675a0033cafb?Opendocument |title=United Nations Human Rights Website – Treaty Bodies Database – Document – Summary Record – Kuwait |publisher=Unhchr.ch }}</ref> Maldives,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.everyculture.com/Ja-Ma/Maldives.html |title=Culture of Maldives – history, people, clothing, women, beliefs, food, customs, family, social |publisher=Everyculture.com }}</ref> Morocco,<ref>{{cite news|last=Fakim |first=Nora |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-19049000 |title=BBC News – Morocco: Should pre-marital sex be legal? |publisher=BBC |date=9 August 2012 }}</ref> Oman,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.interpol.com/Public/Children/SexualAbuse/NationalLaws/csaOman.pdf |archiveurl=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160516065620/http://www.interpol.com/Public/Children/SexualAbuse/NationalLaws/csaOman.pdf |archivedate=16 May 2016 |title=Legislation of Interpol member states on sexual offences against children – Oman |publisher=Interpol }}</ref> Mauritania,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/2010/af/154358.htm |title=2010 Human Rights Report: Mauritania |publisher=State.gov |date=8 April 2011 }}</ref> United Arab Emirates,<ref>{{cite web|author=Dubai FAQs |url=http://www.dubaifaqs.com/education-dubai.php |title=Education in Dubai |publisher=Dubaifaqs.com }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Judd |first=Terri |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/middle-east/briton-faces-jail-for-sex-on-dubai-beach-863918.html |title=Briton faces jail for sex on Dubai beach – Middle East – World |work=The Independent |date=10 July 2008 |location=London}}</ref> Sudan,<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/2007/06/28/idUSL28849488._CH_.2400 |title=Sudan must rewrite rape laws to protect victims |agency=Reuters |date=28 June 2007 }}</ref> Yemen,<ref>{{cite web|author=United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees |url=http://www.unhcr.org/refworld/docid/47387b712f.html/ |title=Refworld &#124; Women's Rights in the Middle East and North Africa – Yemen |publisher=UNHCR }}</ref> any form of sexual activity outside marriage is illegal. ==Marriage== {{Further|Child marriage}} Marriage has been seen as a means of controlling sexuality.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Murray|first=Melissa|date=2012-01-01|title=Marriage as Punishment|url=https://scholarship.law.berkeley.edu/facpubs/1885|journal=Columbia Law Review|pages=1}}</ref> Some forms of marriage, such as [[child marriage]], are often practiced as a means of regulating the sexuality of girls, by ensuring they do not have several partners, thus preserving their [[virginity]] for the future husband.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://dayofthegirl.org/child-marriage/ |title=Archived copy |accessdate=2014-05-30 |deadurl=yes |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140531090804/http://dayofthegirl.org/child-marriage/ |archivedate=2014-05-31 |df= }}</ref> According to the [[BBC World Service]]:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/people/features/ihavearightto/four_b/casestudy_art16.shtml|title=Article 16: Right to marriage and family and to equal rights of men and women during and after marriage|publisher=[[BBC World Service]]|accessdate=June 8, 2016}}</ref> {{quote|In some cases, parents willingly marry off their young girls in order to increase the family income or protect the girl from the risk of unwanted sexual advances or even [[promiscuity]].}} ==Female genital mutilation== [[File:Fgm_map.gif|200px|thumb|Prevalence of FGM in Africa]] {{Main|Female genital mutilation}} Female genital mutilation (FGM), also known as female genital cutting or female circumcision, "comprises all procedures that involve partial or total removal of the external female genitalia, or other injury to the female genital organs for non-medical reasons".<ref name="who.int">{{Cite web|url=https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/female-genital-mutilation|title=Female genital mutilation|website=www.who.int|language=en|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref> The practice is concentrated in 27 countries in Africa as well as Iraqi Kurdistan, Yemen and Indonesia; and more than 125 million girls and women today are estimated to have been subjected to FGM.<ref name="who.int"/> FGM does not have any health benefits, and has serious negative effects on health; including complications during [[childbirth]].<ref name="who.int"/> FGM is used as a way of controlling [[female sexuality]]; the [[World Health Organization]] (WHO) states:<ref name="who.int"/> {{quote|FGM is often motivated by beliefs about what is considered proper sexual behaviour, linking procedures to premarital [[virginity]] and marital fidelity. FGM is in many communities believed to reduce a woman's libido and therefore believed to help her resist "illicit" sexual acts.}} FGM is condemned by international human rights instruments. The [[Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence|Istanbul Convention]] prohibits FGM (Article 38).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.coe.int/en/web/conventions/full-list|title=Full list|website=Treaty Office|language=en-GB|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref> FGM is also considered a form a [[violence against women]] by the [[Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women]] which was adopted by the [[United Nations]] in 1993; according to which: ''Article Two: Violence against women shall be understood to encompass, but not be limited to, the following: (a) Physical, sexual and psychological violence occurring in the family, including [...] '''female genital mutilation''' [...]''.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.un-documents.net/a48r104.htm|title=A/RES/48/104 - Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women - UN Documents: Gathering a body of global agreements|website=www.un-documents.net|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref> ==Male circumcision== {{Main|Circumcision}} [[File:Global Map of Male Circumcision Prevalence by Country.svg|thumb|300px|Male circumcision [[prevalence]] by country according to a World Health Organization's 2007 review.<ref name=WHO_2007_GTDPSA>{{cite web |title=Male circumcision: Global trends and determinants of prevalence, safety and acceptability |year=2007 |publisher=World Health Organization |url=http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2007/9789241596169_eng.pdf |format=PDF}}</ref>]] Male circumcision has been practiced as a surgical means of sexual repression in some cultures, although it may be practiced for various reasons, with the World Health Organization recommending it as a means of reducing [[HIV/AIDS]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.who.int/hiv/topics/malecircumcision/en/|title=WHO {{!}} Male circumcision for HIV prevention|website=WHO|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref> Circumcision is also a religious tradition in Judaism and Islam. According to medieval Jewish theologian Moses Maimonides, the "reason" for male circumcision is "the wish to bring about a decrease in sexual intercourse and a weakening of the organ in question, so that this activity be diminished and the organ be in as quiet a state as possible."<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cirp.org/library/cultural/maimonides/|title=Moses Maimonides: The Guide of the Perplexed: Circumcision|website=www.cirp.org|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref> In the late-nineteenth century, circumcision of the penis was prescribed by John Harvey Kellogg as a "cure" for masturbation.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.gutenberg.org/files/19924/19924-h/19924-h.htm#chapi133|title=The Project Gutenberg e-Book of Plain Facts for Old and Young, by J. H. Kellogg, M.D.|website=www.gutenberg.org|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref> William Acton, a leading authority on sexuality in mid-Victorian Britain, advocated male circumcision in order to prevent "undue excitement of the sexual desires … which it is our object to repress."<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com.au/books?id=cVX7PaDkzGYC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false|title=The Functions and disorders of the reproductive organs in childhood, youth, adult age, and advanced life, considered in their physiological, social, and moral relations|last=Acton|first=William|date=1862|publisher=Churchill|language=en}}</ref> A "biocultural analysis" of male circumcision supports the hypothesis "that a practical consequence of circumcision, complementary to any religious-symbolic function, is to make a circumcised male less sexually excitable and distractible, and, hence, more amenable to his group's authority figures."<ref>Immerman, Ronald S. & Wade C. Mackey (1997) "A biocultural analysis of circumcision." Social Biology 44: 3–4, p. 265.</ref> ==Honor killings== {{Main|Honor killing}} An honor killing is the [[homicide]] of a member of a family or social group by other members, due to the perpetrators' belief that the victim has brought shame or dishonor upon the family or community, usually for reasons such as refusing to enter an [[arranged marriage]], being in a relationship that is disapproved by their relatives, having [[sex outside marriage]], becoming the victim of [[rape]], dressing in ways which are deemed inappropriate, or engaging in [[Homosexuality|homosexual]] relations.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/ethics/honourcrimes/|title=BBC - Ethics: Honour Crimes|website=www.bbc.co.uk|language=en-GB|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/honor%20killing|title=Definition of HONOR KILLING|website=www.merriam-webster.com|language=en|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref><ref>http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/honor+killing?s=t</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.cnn.com/2012/01/13/world/europe/turkey-gay-killing/index.html|title=Shocking gay honor killing inspires movie|last=CNN|first=By Ivan Watson|website=CNN|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/2011/CRIME/02/23/arizona.iraqi.father/index.html|title=Iraqi immigrant convicted in Arizona 'honor killing' awaits sentence|website=www.cnn.com|language=en|access-date=2019-07-29}}</ref> According to a UN Expert Group Meeting on good practices in legislation to address harmful practices against women:<ref>https://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/egm/vaw_legislation_2009/Expert%20Paper%20EGMGPLHP%20_Sherifa%20Zuhur%20-%20II_.pdf</ref> {{quote|They [honor killings] stem from the deeply-rooted social belief that male family members (in some cases, mothers and other women are involved in planning or carrying out honor crimes) should control the sexuality of or protect the reputation of women in the family, and that they may contain their movements or kill them for blemishing family honor, even when rumors or false gossip are the reason for public suspicion.}} ==Same-sex sexual activity== {{Further|Sodomy law}} Various cultures attempt to repress homosexual sexual expression. As of 2014, same-sex sexual acts are punishable by prison in 70 countries, and in five other countries and in parts of two others, homosexuality is punishable with the [[death penalty]].<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-25927595|title=Where is it illegal to be gay?|date=2014-02-10|access-date=2019-07-29|language=en-GB}}</ref> Apart from criminal prosecution, LGBT individuals may also face social stigmatization and serious violence (see [[violence against LGBT people]]). ==Studies== Some researchers{{who|date=November 2018}} have hypothesized a relationship between sexual repression and [[rape]]. However, they have been unable to find any support for this hypothesis - whether the tremendous difficulty of measuring sexual repression is to blame, or whether the theory is simply false, is unknown.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=VYj_woVgA3EC&pg=PA93 Mary E. Odem, Jody Clay-Warner, ''Confronting rape and sexual assault'', Rowman & Littlefield, 1998, p. 104.]</ref> Sexual repression is often viewed as a key issue within [[feminism]],<ref>{{cite journal |title = Sex and Power: Sexual Bases of Radical Feminism |last = Shulman |first = Alix Kates |journal = [[Signs (journal)|Signs]] |publisher = [[University of Chicago Press]] |issn = 1545-6943 |volume = 5 |issue = 4 |year = 1980 |pages = 590–604 |doi = |jstor = 3173832 |via = [[JSTOR]] }}</ref> although [[feminist views on sexuality]] vary widely. ===Michel Foucault=== [[Michel Foucault]], in his ''[[The History of Sexuality]]'', neither refutes nor confirms what he calls the "repressive hypothesis." Instead, he says sexuality has become an important topic to understand and manipulate for the purpose of nation building. Through categorization of sexuality, the idea of repression was born. While he agrees sexuality has become much more controlled, he equates it to necessity. Furthermore, it is through [[psychiatric]] and medical discourse on sexuality that it has become repressed. Foucault argues that religious confession as well as psychiatric procedure codify confession within as a means of extracting [[truth]]. Because the mechanisms of sex were obscure, it was elusive by nature and its mechanisms escaped observation. By integrating it into the beginnings of a scientific discourse, the nineteenth century altered the scope of confession. Confession tended no longer to be concerned solely with what the subject wished to hide but with what was hidden from himself. It had to be extracted by force, since it involved something that tried to stay hidden. This relationship of truth scientifically validated the view of the confessed which could assimilate, record, and verify this obscure truth.<ref name="Foucault1990">{{cite book|author=Michel Foucault|title=The history of sexuality|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Mbc5eMjLpoC|accessdate=5 January 2013|date=14 April 1990|publisher=Vintage Books|isbn=978-0-679-72469-8|pages=65–66}}</ref> ==Repression in various countries== {{Incomplete section|date=May 2017}} Many countries{{which|date=November 2018}} have developed a much more liberal attitude{{cn|date=November 2018}} towards sexuality, but in some{{which|date=November 2018}} it has become less so.{{cn|date=November 2018}} ===China=== Reproduction-based sex was urged by [[Mao Zedong]], but later politicians instituted a [[one-child policy]]. In a country where atheism is popular, the restriction cannot be ascribed to religion but to nationalist motives.<ref name="Body & Society">{{cite journal |title=Rethinking Sexual Repression in Maoist China: Ideology, Structure and the Ownership of the Body |journal=[[Body & Society]] |date=September 2005 |last=Yuehong Zhang |first=Everett |volume=11 |issue=3 |doi=10.1177/1357034X05056188 }}</ref> ==See also== {{Portal|Sexuality}} *[[Age of consent]] *[[Antisexualism]] *[[Asexuality]] *[[Delayed ejaculation]]<!---is this sexual repression?---> *[[Erotophobia]] *[[Heterosexism]] *[[Opposition to pornography]] *[[Sexuality in China]] ==References== {{Reflist}} {{Close relationships navbox}} [[Category:Guilt]] [[Category:Human sexuality]] [[Category:Political repression]] [[Category:Sexology]] [[Category:Sexual emotions]]'