The Premarital Pelvic Exam and Heterosexuality during the Cold War

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Marriage
Reading 26: Carolyn Herbst Lewis, “Waking Sleeping Beauty: The Premarital Pelvic Exam and Heterosexuality during the Cold War”
Lewis C. Herbst explains to us how doctors encouraged premarital women to take part in a pelvic exam believing that this would instill in them “proper” marriage gender roles in the 1950s and 1960s. It would play a role in strengthening their marriages and thus the nation would be strengthened in return. In fear of rising divorce rates, sexual chaos such as homosexuality, cold war and the soviets, the physicians were worried of the nation falling apart and believed that through the above, they would encourage heterosexual marriages and thus ‘save’ the nation. Invention of “kegel exercise” by Arnold Kegel pointed to involuntary vaginal contractions during an orgasm as the pointer to female sexual maturity, disputing the clitoral stimulation, eventually leading to pelvic exam falling out of favor in medical practice. However, assumptions like women shouldn’t focus on their own pleasure since men were the necessary aspects in procreation violated the presumption heterosexuality whilst penetration using an instrument was more or less a violation of a woman’s bodily autonomy.
Reading 27: Laurie Essig and Lynn Owens, “What if Marriage Is Bad For Us?”
Until the 1800s when marriage was for love and companionship, one married for material and social reasons, not romance. Laws were enacted to regulate sexual behavior. The result was enforced lifelong sexual monogamy for both parties, at least in theory. In rejecting marriage, I find it compelling and thus agree with Essig and Owens analogy that marriage tends to breed less social ties since it promises complete fulfillment from romance. Similarly, to claim that marriage makes one wealthier is a confusion of causation with correlation since start-up marriage costs are high, weddings moving into a marriage does not equate wholly to increased earning potential and even if marriage can generate wealth, divorce often causes its destruction.
Reading 28: Kathleen Gerson, “Moral Dilemmas, Moral Strategies, and Transformation of Gender: Lessons from Two Generations of Work and Family Change”
The institution of marriage traditional was organized in a way that women participated by caring for others with regards to members of their immediate family and especially the kids. Men on the other hand played their role by providing for the family or better yet they cared by sharing their individually earned resources with those they held dear. In today’s marriage institution however, women have become more empowered and thus increasingly more self-independent. This therefore means that women don’t only just perform their traditional role of caring for others but have also taken up providing for the family some. Men therefore have had to adjust and for some it hasn’t been graceful since change isn’t easy. I am ...