Annotated Bibliography
Article #1
Title - “Attitudes Toward Menstruation”
Author - “Elizabeth M. Wheaton
Database – JSTOR
http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.lrc.macewan.ca
The main purpose of this article is to illustrate the difficulties that arise religiously when women take contraceptives that induce breakthrough bleeding and/or spotting. The author focuses on women from Muslim and Orthodox Jewish cultures where any bleeding or spotting that occurs is considered unclean and intercourse is not prohibited during those times, due to religious beliefs. It is based on this that women from certain cultures are less tolerable of contraceptives that induce bleeding, the most frequent being IUD’s. The target audience for this article could range from someone who is an academia to anyone interested in cross cultural views on menstruation. The author references her evidence, the majority coming from scientific scholars. The argument that the author brings forth is balanced where she not only speaks of the Muslim and orthodox Jewish cultures but also of the western views, the only one problem is that the author does not speak of the negative stereotypes that exist today in western cultures pertaining to women and their menstrual cycle. The material is well organized and easy to read.
Article #2
Title – “ Socio cultural Aspects Of Menstruation In An Urban Slum In Delhi India”
Authors – Suneela Garg, Nandidni Sharma, Ragini Saha
Database – JSTOR
http://www.jstor.org.ezproxy.lrc.macewan.ca
Women’s perception of menarche and menstruation in the socio cultural context of an urban slum in Delhi India is the main focus of this article. The paper illustrates responses from participants, who took part in interviews or focus groups regarding reproductive tract infections. Responses show that in parts of India there is a silence surrounding menstruation and adolescent girls grow up associating menstruation with shame and negativity towards self image. There is a long...