Female Genital Mutilation Video Analysis

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The social problem that is portrayed in this video is female genital mutilation. According to our text, social problem is defined as an issue that negatively affects a person’s state of being in a society. In Kenya and many other countries, female genital mutilation, also known as FGM, may be a part of their culture or tradition, but I believe that this action is 100% a social problem in their society. This ritual is negatively affecting the female children and adults. In this video, Alice, who is a young Kenyan woman, directly states, “There is really a lot of imbalance in this community. The women don’t have any position.” Unlike the other women, Alice decided not to follow the tradition of getting circumcised and believes that this is …show more content…
One of the main reasons is the belief that FGM will control the sexuality in women. In this culture, they strongly enforce virginity until marriage. In the video, one of the circumcisers stated that the women who are not cut, would misbehave while the husband is away. These communities believe that girls are not considered complete adult women until they have been mutilated. The female genitalia are considered unclean and resemble the male parts on a woman. In our culture, it is easy to recognize that these beliefs and traditions are considered to be the cause of a social problem. Due to the tradition and culture being so strong in this community, the women do not feel liberated enough to speak up and stand up for their rights. They continue with the tradition, basically risking their lives in some incidences, to not rock the …show more content…
In this theory, all parts of a society work together harmoniously to build a solid social structure. It’s somewhat of a tag team approach to meeting everyone’s needs. Social structures help guide and shape social behavior through a mutual agreement of trust that all members will perform their respective duties. If someone doesn’t do their part the system breaks down and order is lost. Symbols, rituals, and sacred traditions are passed down from generation to generation for thousands of years and have a strong effect on social structures. In the documentary, “The Cut”, the video shows how a sacred rite of passage includes all members of the community preparing for and celebrating the “ceremonial cutting” of a young girl enabling her to transition into womanhood. This cultural practice is thousands of years old, believed to be given by God, and a ritual that must be followed. They state in the video that they have always done it this way and see no reason why to change it. Even though this African tradition causes many health issues, and even death, women are very involved in carrying it out. Most young girls do not question it either and if they do, like Alice in the video, they are ostracized by their community. This social problem exists because the members of this society all know what their responsibilities are and rarely does anyone
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