February 10th, 2010 by Elizabeth Kissling
Guest Post by David Linton, Marymount Manhattan College
Four years ago I published an article in Sex Roles (March 2006) about the twists and turns of the media coverage of a scandal that came to be known as “Camillagate.” It concerned the publication of a surreptitiously recorded phone chat between Prince Charles, heir to the British throne, and his lover, Camilla Parker-Bowles, that occurred in 1993. The reason the mild sex banter between two horny middle-aged royals got so much attention was that at one point they made joking references to tampons in an erotic context. The exchange was widely misreported with a distorted claim that Charles expressed a desire to be transformed into a tampon. It even became the basis for a skit on Saturday Night Live (only a small portion of it is available now online).
At the time I predicted that Charles would never get away from the tampon association. What I could not predict was how nuanced the forms of mockery would be. Who could possibly have guessed that the story would play out as a means of bolstering George W. Bush’s faltering reputation by contrasting his macho style with the more effete image of The Prince of Wales? Continue reading...
Tags: boys/men, guest post, Humor, shame, SNL, tampons
Posted in Celebrities, Communication, Internet, Men, Menstruation, Newspapers, Television | 2 Comments »
February 8th, 2010 by Elizabeth Kissling
If I correctly understand the terms of SHM’s copyright agreement with Oxford University Press, I am permitted to publish this unedited version of my review as a “pre-print” article. The final version will be available only from Social History of Medicine.
Lara Freidenfelds, The Modern Period: Menstruation in Twentieth Century America, Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University Press, 2008. Pp. 242. £31/$60. ISBN 978 0-8018 9245 5.
Lara Freidenfelds, an historian currently teaching in Women’s Studies at Wellesley College, has written a thorough and engaging history of menstruation in twentieth century USA. Her title, The Modern Period, is more than a succinct description; it cleverly references her discussion throughout of how advancing Progressive values shaped beliefs and practices surrounding menstruation. These Progressive values included faith in scientific rationality, belief in the value of education, and unqualified endorsement of technological progress. The ‘modern period’ also references the evolution of menstrual management practices into a coherent whole and the movement away from practices and beliefs considered old-fashioned, such as worries about catching a chill or the use of cloth pads. Her analysis throughout addresses the class implications of modernization; that is, the perceived need to adopt modern practices of bodily presentation and self-control for class mobility. Such modernization, asserts Friedenfelds, is a key component of Americans’ ability to see themselves as middle-class across great gaps in education and income. Continue reading...
Tags: beliefs, books, history, manners, menstrual etiquette, Menstrual Taboo, oral history, tampons, tradition
Posted in Communication, Girls, Menstruation, New Research, books | 1 Comment »
February 3rd, 2010 by Elizabeth Kissling
We’ve had a couple of productive discussions recently here at re:Cycling about men and menstrual humor, so it seems a good time to introduce Vinnie D’Angelo, creator of Vinnie’s Tampon Case. Therese Shecter has graciously shared this clip from her thought-provoking film, I Was A Teenage Feminist.
I’ve written about Vinnie and the role of men in menstrual activism before, in the “Menstrual Counterculture” chapter of my book, Capitalizing on the Curse: The Business of Menstruation. Here is a brief excerpt from that chapter:
According to interviews, D’Angelo’s motivation in developing his tampon cases was to help out his female friends. He would see them fishing in purses or backpacks for a tampon and retrieve “a mangled applicator and a lump of cotton with old gum stuck to the string” (quoted in Raappana). He also liked the idea of changing attitudes toward menstruation. . . . Interviews with D’Angelo reveal a feminist sensibility that extends beyond providing menstrual support.
I confess to some ambivalence here: I am uncertain what men’s role should be in celebrating menstruation. I appreciate [Harry] Finley’s genuine curiosity, and I admire D’Angelo’s feminist approach and his lack of squeamishness. I’m glad to see men talking about menstruation and not insisting that it remain hidden. I like D’Angelo’s playful, accepting attitude toward menstruation, but at the same time I find the fact that he has built a cottage industry of it vaguely exploitive. No one is harmed by his products, of course, but it is more than a little ironic that someone who doesn’t menstruate launched this successful line of whimsical, self-conscious menstrual products. On the other hand, perhaps D’Angelo’s masculinity adds a social legitimacy (as well as a humorous novelty element, as he has noted in interviews) that a woman’s name would not carry in the current cultural climate. And he’s great with the clever slogans: He owns the domain name knowyourflow.com, and recent ads for his tampon case say, “Don’t let your period cramp your style.”
What do you think, re:Cycling readers? How do you feel about the fact that two of the most visible examples of menstrual activism in the U.S., Vinnie’s Tampon Case and Harry Finley’s Museum of Menstruation, are created and promoted by nonmenstruators? Does it matter if these ventures are commercially successful? (Just for the record, Finley has received no financial benefit – only internet notoriety – from the Museum of Menstruation. Since introducing his eponymous tampon case in the late 1990s, D’Angelo has also developed Vinnie’s Giant Roller Coaster Period Chart and Sticker Book, and Vinnie’s Cramp Relieving Bubble Bath, which is also available packaged with Vinnie’s Soothing Bubble Beats CD of “music to menstruate by”. I do not know how profitable these products are for him.)
Tags: Activism, boys/men, Communication, feminism, feminist film, Men, tampon case, tampons
Posted in Activism, FemCare, Humor, Independent Film, Internet, Men, Menstruation | 5 Comments »
January 21st, 2010 by Elizabeth Kissling
The latest magazine ads for Always “Infinity” maxi pads remind me of this old joke:
Two young boys walk into a pharmacy one day, pick out a box of Tampax and proceed to the checkout counter.
The man at the counter asks the older boy, “Son, how old are you?”
“Eight,” the boy replies.
The man continues, “Do you know what these are used for?”
“Not exactly,” the boy says. “But they aren’t for me. They’re for him. He’s my brother. He’s four. We saw on TV that if you use these you would be able to swim and ride a bike. Right now he can’t do either one.”
So if I use Always, will I be able to be a contortionist like the acrobat in the picture? Because right now, I’m pretty sure I can’t do that.
Tags: advertising, boys/men, FemCare advertising, Humor, pads, Procter & Gamble, Tampax, tampons
Posted in Advertising, Disposable menstrual products, FemCare, Humor, magazines | 4 Comments »
January 11th, 2010 by Elizabeth Kissling
Britain’s North West Evening Mail reports that nation’s department of defense is considering whether or not to allow women to serve on subs. Women have gone to sea on submarines in pilot studies in the past, but presently only the Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Australian, and Canadian navies allow women on submarines.
The primary objections to the new inclusiveness are the possibility of minute radiation affecting chromosomes in pregnancy; screening equipment in submarine toilets that may not be capable of dealing with items like tampons; and the belief that having women and men working in close, cramped quarters could “create tension.” Plus, “it might worry submariners’ wives if women go on subs,” according to one merchant seaman who is a Petty Officer in the Sea Cadet corps.
However, it’s the Ministry of Defense that will be making the decision. A spokesperson told the paper, “The UK is bound by law to reassess occupations from which women are excluded every eight years. We expect the review will be completed in early 2010 and once the results have been evaluated we will publish our conclusions.”
Until then, I’ll join the Evening Mail in letting local businessperson Sally Broom have the last word.
“As far as I am aware, the only ‘official’ reasons for women not being allowed to spend time in submarines at depth are lack of facilities, and medical concerns surrounding pregnancy. In this case facilities should be made available and there should be no issue for women who are not pregnant.
“A traditional and ‘unofficial’ viewpoint is that the presence of women leads to lack of focus. But the idea that, as soon as a woman sets foot on a submarine with a team of highly drilled, disciplined men, the whole thing would collapse into a lustful mess is an absurd insult to both male and female sailors.
Tags: boys/men, discrimination, government agencies, Menstruation, military service, sexism, tampons
Posted in Law/Legal, Men, Menstruation | 2 Comments »
January 10th, 2010 by Elizabeth Kissling
This advert for Tampax appears in the February 2010 issue of Marie Claire, and probably other ladymags as well. It shows tennis star Serena Williams posing in a victory stance with clenched fist in the foreground, while security guards cart off Mother Nature, who is bearing a red-wrapped gift for Serena. The legend printed across the picture reads, “Serena shuts out Mother Nature’s monthly gift”.
As I said previously, I have some ambivalence about these ads. In today’s period-hating cultural climate, it takes some courage for a celebrity to appear in advertisement for a menstrual product. And it’s great to see acknowledgement that an athlete can win contests at any phase of her menstrual cycle (even the Boston Marathon).
But look closely at this ad, and read the copy. What’s missing?
That’s right – there’s no mention of blood or menstruation. The word period, itself a euphemism, isn’t even used. Only the flowery, secretive euphemism “Mother Nature’s monthly gift” represents menses.
And Mother Nature is reduced from the clever, wise-cracking Aunt Flo portrayed here to a kooky sitcom aunt reminiscent of Gladys Kravitz. Who wants to receive her gift?
Tags: advertising, blood, Celebrities, Communication, FemCare advertising, Procter & Gamble, sports, Tampax, tampons
Posted in Advertising, Celebrities, Disposable menstrual products, FemCare, Language, Menstruation, magazines | 7 Comments »
January 7th, 2010 by Laura Wershler
I love Terry O’Reilly’s take on advertising and enjoy listening to his program The Age of Persusion on CBC radio whenever I get the opportunity, usually catching it by chance as I did this past Monday morning. This episode, Marketing the Unpleasant, tackles the subject of advertising feminine hygiene and other “delicate” products.
Here’s how the episode is described on the show’s website:
They are the ads that make everyone squirm- consumers, media, and especially ad copywriters; ads for the funeral industry, laxatives, incontinence pads, and the queen mother of unpleasant ad briefs- feminine hygiene products. Terry O’Reilly kicks off the 4th season of The Age of Persuasion with an insider’s look at marketing the unpleasant, from the strange-but-true history of marketing menstruation products, to Wal-Mart’s recent decision to sell caskets and urns online.
Now I don’t appreciate the marketing the unpleasant description as regards advertising menstruation products, (he actually calls the assignment ”the Queen Mother of awkward (ad) briefs”) but the show provides some interesting insight into the history of menstrual product advertising. I learned that it was ad legend Arthur Lasker who came up with the idea to bring menstruation education to high schools, which subsequently “led generations of young ladies” to his client’s product – Kotex. Men setting the agenda for what young women learned and thought about menstruation? Just to sell a product? Hey, it’s still happening today. Now we’ve got male doctors setting us up to buy cycle-stopping and other hormonal contraceptives for everything that ails us. If you listen to the show you’ll hear some clips from a 1950’s Disney produced film called Molly Grows Up. The film was written, directed, produced and consulted by men. It will make you either laugh or gag. Continue reading...
Tags: advertising, FemCare advertising, pads, tampons
Posted in Disposable menstrual products, Menstruation | 11 Comments »
January 5th, 2010 by Elizabeth Kissling
There’s an intense, important discussion going on at FWD/Forward about how the latest ramp-up of security theatre of air travel could affect persons with disabilities. Blogger Lauredhel points out that the following items all show up in a back-scatter x-ray produced by a full-body scanner:
- Urinary catheters.
- Incontinence pads.
- Colostomy and ileostomy bags.
- PEG feeding tubes.
- Mastectomy prostheses.
- Certain medication pumps and implanted ports, such as insulin pumps.
- TENS machines.
- Pacemakers.
- The bodies, including genitalia, of transgender and intersex and genderqueer people.
Lauredhel notes, “All of these are the signs of bodies already marginalised. Some of these signs may be clear on current security screenings – some may not.” She explains how the resulting invasion of privacy is likely to be even more invasive than for able-bodied, cis-gendered, cissexual folks.
The list suggests that menstrual pads and tampons will also be visible. Will menstruating travelers be asked to confirm that they’re indeed menstruating? Will they be compelled to prove that item is really a tampon and not a concealed weapon? And what about menstruators who are transgender, intersex, genderqueer, or otherwise do not conform to conventional expectations about gender expression? Will they be subject to further interrogation or required to “prove” their sex?
If you didn’t already hate flying and the aggravation of TSA security theatre, you will.
Tags: government agencies, pads, security, tampons, travel
Posted in Internet, Menstruation, Objects | 4 Comments »
December 23rd, 2009 by Elizabeth Kissling
Tags: holiday, tampons
Posted in Humor, Music | Comments Off
Readers should note that statements published in re: Cycling are those of individual authors and do not necessarily reflect the positions of the Society as a whole.
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