Overheard in Grand Junction, Colorado on February 4, 2019 after Amy Irvine’s reading from her book, Desert Cabal: A New […]
Reframing the Pregnancy Story: On Literature, Stitching, and Lost Narratives
My Story When I found out I was pregnant on July 1, 2016, I thought it was the beginning of […]
Locating Enslaved Black Wet Nurses in the Literature of French Slavery
[gpullquote class=”aligncenter”]“Enslaved women and their children enter the archives in little more than fragments.”1[/gpullquote] In George Sand’s 1832 idealist novel, […]
Gender-Bending in Thirteenth-Century Literature: The Roman de Silence
Do genetics or environmental factors determine one’s gender identity? The question may seem a distinctly modern one. Indeed, premodern people […]
Because Science Says So
By Adam Turner
Vagina Week continues! With this post by Adam Turner on Naomi Wolf’s use of Science! in her new book, Vagina: A Biography. Naomi Wolf uses a whole lot of science in her new book, Vagina: A Biography (perhaps more accurately called an autobiography). She lectures at length about the nervous system, stress responses, brain chemistry, and how all of these things seem to have their center in powerful mind-altering (heterosexual, vaginal) sex. Taking her personal experiences as a jumping-off point (itself a dubious scientific technique) Wolf references a wide variety of studies to make her argument that the vagina, broadly defined, is a driving force in women’s lives, responsible for their happiness, successful relationships, creativity, and existential health.
Welcome to Vagina Week!
By Carrie Adkins
It is officially “Vagina Week” here at Nursing Clio. Carrie Adkins, Adam Turner, Ashley Baggett, Rachel Epp Buller, and Cheryl Lemus will each post their thoughts about Naomi Wolf’s new book, Vagina: A Biography, and dissecting some of Wolf’s claims about vaginas, orgasms, and female sexuality. Please consider posting your own thoughts in the comments section!
Carrie Adkins kicks off “Vagina Week” with an overall analysis of Wolf’s book: