11.1 FREUD AVAIT RAISON, LA SEXUALITE EST UN PROBLEME CENTRAL -" La force qui vous a donné la vie, nous en avons parlé, est très grande. Toutes les visions qui apparaissent après la mort ont une connotation sexuelle. Même chez des personnes apparemment évoluées, les hallucinations érotiques sont légions. L'iconographie religieuse d'origine les représentait crûment; c'est ainsi qu'on voyait des sexes énormes, du sperme coulant à flot, des vagins béants et des masturbations à la chaîne. Ces représentations sont encore visibles sur certaines Tanka tibétaines ou hindous. L'église catholique quant à elle, a expurgé des reproductions accessibles au public toute allusion au sexe pensant sans doute qu'elle seule est en mesure de comprendre. Le résultat est que personne n'est préparé à faire face à ses propres délires post mortem. Prenant le problème à bras le corps avec la vigueur qu'on leur connaît, les tantriques et, dans une moindre mesure, les juifs et les musulmans, se sont efforcés de couper à la base cette difficulté. L'ascétisme, la circoncision, l'excision font partie de l'arsenal du combattant spiritual."
11.2
L'ASCETISME OU EFFACEMENT DES FICHIERS PERTURBATEURS -" Pour que la
sexualité puisse s'exprimer, l'énergie qu'elle
réclame est importante et suppose une alimentation riche. Pour
modifier le chemin erroné qui précipite celle-ci en une
direction descendante, extérieure, perturbatrice,
l'ascète se propose de vivre dans des conditions où le
minimum vital est requis. Si, après quelques mois d'une vie
austère, la dépendance vis à vis du sexe se fait
encore sentir, la lame de l'exciseur viendra parfaire le travail. De la
section des filets nerveux qui empruntent le chemin du prépuce
ou du clitoris, ainsi partiellement, voire complètement
dénervés, s'ensuit une excitation génésique
pour le mieux diminuée et un contrôle accru de la fonction."
"The prepuce is primary, erogenous tissue necessary for normal sexual function [8]. The complex interaction between the protopathic sensitivity of the corpuscular receptor-deficient glans penis [42] and the corpuscular receptor-rich ridged band of the male prepuce [45] is required for normal copulatory behaviour. The increased frequency of masturbation, anal intercourse and fellatio reported by circumcised men in the USA [81] may possibly be due to the sensory imbalance caused by circumcision. Clearly, amputation of the prepuce causes changes in sexual behaviour in human males [81] and females [82]."
"During circumcision, the frenular artery may also be ablated, depriving the anterior urethra of its major blood supply"
"During circumcision, most of the penile dartos muscle is removed; all that remains is a few bundles of muscle at the circumcision scar. It has been observed that the flaccid penis in circumcised males tends to hang less vertically than in those with complete anatomy. The loss of dartos muscle support may explain the difference. Certainly, the loss of most of the penile dartos muscle makes the penis less able to make positional adjustments during erection and with temperature changes."
"Therefore,
the changes in circumcised male sexual behaviour [81] may be related to
a central nervous system alteration by retrograde axonal degeneration,
or to peripheral nervous system damage by loss of the prepuce ridged
band and amputation neuroma. It is assumed that amputation neuromas
also form at the female circumcision scar, although we are unaware of a
formal histology study."
"Frenulum. The prepuce is usually tethered at the bottom by the frenulum. The frenulum's function is to provide pleasure by stretching during sexual intercourse. In fact, the frenulum is coloquially known as the "sex nerve" in France and perhaps throughout Europe. By destroying this stretching action, circumcision completely destroys this fundamental means of sexual pleasure in the human male.
Vascularization. As with other neurologic structures such as the brain, the tip of the prepuce is richly supplied with blood by important vascular structures. The glans penis receives blood through the frenular artery.29 The prepuce serves as a conduit for several important veins. Circumcision may contribute to erectile dysfunction by destroy.ing these conduits."
Erectile
dysfunction (impotence) is now known to be usually caused by
circulatory problems. As noted above, circumcision inteferes with
penile circulation by destroying several important blood vessels that
provide circulation to the penis. Circumcision may also contribute
to erectile dysfunction by destroying some of the erogenous sensory
tissue in the prepuce that participates in the erectile response.
The sacrificial origin of circumcision
The
origins of circumcision are lost in antiquity. Male circumcision is
depicted in Egyptian tombs 5,000 years ago (1), while Gairdner refers
to evidence that it has its origins long before this in prehistory up
to 15,000 years ago (2). We do not know with certainty why this
operation was carried out, but many writers have suggested that it was
a sacrificial rite. No doubt human sacrifice was widespread, and it
seems likely that substitutes for this practice included the sacrifice
of domestic animals and mutilations of the human body, of which
circumcision is just one example. Circumcision would usually have been
carried out as an initiation ordeal at about the time of puberty, but
there was a tendency for the age at which it was performed to shift
earlier, so that Jewish ritual circumcision has been carried out on the
eighth day of life since biblical times.
Ritual circumcision is particularly popular and widespread geographically. An important aspect of sacrifice is the shedding of blood, and circumcision is a notoriously bloody operation, and even in modern surgical conditions haemorrhage can be a problem. A rate of up to 2% is reported by Denton (3), sometimes requiring blood transfusion. Gellis (4) reported that there were more deaths in the USA from the complications of circumcision than from carcinoma of the penis. One can only guess what the mortality from haemorrhage and infections might be in primitive or ancient communities.
Another aspect of sacrifice is that the object which is forfeited should be valuable. The greater the value of the object sacrificed, the more worthy the sacrifice. This should make us wonder what are the value and function of the prepuce. If it were just a useless flap of skin, it would not be much of a sacrifice, and one might just as well shave off one's beard or cut one's toenails. Evidence will be provided below to indicate that the prepuce plays a major role in ensuring the sensitivity of the penis during sexual acts and that circumcision greatly reduces the possibilities of pleasurable sensations. This makes it an ideal sacrificial object, as the circumcised male is able to function normally in society and to procreate, but suffers permanent impairment of sexual enjoyment and bears a visible, life-long reminder of his sacrifice.
"Reasons for not circumcising
Until
recently the structure and function of the prepuce have not been known.
Now its important function as a major source of erogenous sensation on
the penis has been recognised. Not only is the circumcised man deprived
of this sensation, but also his glans becomes thickened and insensitive.
The reader may be puzzled why this was not known before. Males are
nearly always circumcised in childhood, and so they pass through all
their sexually active years with a circumcised penis and therefore have
no concept of what normal feeling is. Furthermore, men do not generally
discuss their erotic experiences in great detail with one another,
assuming that all share the same experiences. "
"Contrairement à la circoncision féminine, la circoncision masculine n'intéresse presque personne(10). Le débat sur cette question reste encore tabou. Cette attitude est observée dans l'article 24 alinéa 3 susmentionné de la Convention relative aux droits de l'enfant. Malgré sa formulation générale, les Travaux préparatoires démontrent que ses auteurs ne pensaient qu'à la circoncision féminine, et nullement à la circoncision masculine(11).
Pour le Docteur Gérard Zwang, la raison de la distinction entre ces deux types de circoncision est simple: la plupart des sexologues et des responsables de l'information sont des circoncis; ils empêchent tout débat autour de la circoncision masculine. De plus, elle provoque de nombreuses complications, comme des saignements, des infections, une réduction de la sensibilité du gland de la verge, ainsi que dans certains cas, un appauvrissement de la vie amoureuse.
Les médecins
Il
s'agit d'une corporation qui est très difficile à
affronter. Les participants avaient peu confiance en eux: un
médecin tire profit de l'opération de la circoncision et
on ne peut lui demander de couper la branche sur laquelle il est assis.
L'opération de la circoncision et le commerce du prépuce
(utilisé pour les grands brûlés), constituent un
marché juteux aux États-Unis d'un à deux milliards
de dollars par année. Malgré cela, certains
médecins se sont convertis et sont devenus des opposants
à la circoncision. Certains sont venus apporter leurs
témoignages et plaider contre la circoncision. L'un d'eux a
offert à NOCIRC le plateau sur lequel il circoncisait et nous a
donné une conférence intitulée: "Leave it alone".
"Information about the foreskin itself is almost always missing from discussions about circumcision. The mass circumcision campaigns of the past few decades have resulted in pandemic ignorance about this remarkable structure and its versatile role in human sexuality. Ignorance and false information about the foreskin are the rule in American medical literature, education, and practice. Most American medical textbooks depict the human penis, without explanation, as circumcised, as if it were so by nature."
Circumcision desensitizes: Circumcision desensitizes the penis radically. Foreskin amputation means severing the rich nerve network and all the nerve receptors in the foreskin itself. Circumcision almost always damages or destroys the frenulum. The loss of the protective foreskin desensitizes the glans. Because the membrane covering the permanently externalized glans is now subjected to constant abrasion and irritation, it keratinizes, becoming dry and tough. The nerve endings in the glans, which in the intact penis are just beneath the surface of the mucous membrane, are now buried by successive layers of keratinization. The denuded glans takes on a dull, grayish, sclerotic appearance
"Circumcision
harms the developing brain: Recent studies published in leading medical
journals have reported that circumcision has long-lasting detrimental
effects on the developing brain,36 adversely altering the brain's
perception centers. Circumcised boys have a lower pain threshold than
girls or intact boys.37 Developmental neuropsychologist Dr. James
Prescott suggests that circumcision can cause deeper and more
disturbing levels of neurological damage, as well. 38, 39"
"For example, psychological sexual and social effects have been reported in women after a mastectomy. They felt less attractive, less desirable and had less sexual satisfaction after their surgery [50,51]. Poor body image can also affect motivation and reduce feelings of competence, status and power. In addition, depression and suicidal attitudes have been noted [52,53].
When that part is wounded there is often a corresponding psychological wound to the self and a loss of self-esteem. How much of a connection there might be between low male self-esteem is uncertain. Low self-esteem often induces feelings of shame and these are projected by attacking the self-esteem of others; shame isolates us from others and from ourselves. A physical loss, like circumcision, can be a source of shame. Such feelings are often mentioned in letters from circumcised men. Because shame remains a secret most circumcised men are unlikely to report their feelings.
The link between adult circumcision, loss of sensitivity and impotence has been noted in the medical literature [55]. Since infant circumcision also decreases sexual sensitivity [54], it is likely than circumcision is an unrecognized factor in the high rates of impotence in American men and by association, is also detrimental to male psychological health. According to a randomized study of 1290 men aged 40-70 years, 52% reported some degree of impotence, ranging from minimal to complete. This rate varied from ~40% at age 40 to 67% at age 70. (A literature search yielded no comparable European study.) Higher rates of impotence were associated with increased levels of anger and depression. Self-esteem was also lower in impotent men [57,58]. The psychological response to impotence would compound any pre-existing psychological symptoms that have already been discussed.
The potential social consequences of circumcision are profound [21]. There has been no study of these issues perhaps because they are too disturbing to those in societies that do circumcise and of little interest in societies that do not. Close psychological and social examination could threaten personal, cultural and religious beliefs of circumcising societies. Consequently, circumcision has become a political issue in which the feelings of infants are unappreciated and secondary to the feelings of adults, who are emotionally invested in the practice. "
A
conspiracy of silence serves to suppress questioning. (An editorial in
a Jewish newspaper claimed that circumcision 'is not subject to debate'
[87].)
Excuses for circumcision
The alleged medical reasons for circumcision are simply excuses - there are no valid medical reasons. The arguments for doing circumcisions have centered on alleged medical reasons.
most doctors actually tried to deny that circumcision hurt
Medical Motivations to Circumcise
Why
do doctors mutilate the genital organs of infants they are supposed to
be caring for? Clearly, money is involved. If two obstetricians deliver
700 babies each year and one of them circumcises all the males, he
makes a cool $35,000 each year on this procedure alone.
Other doctors do it because they refuse to admit that a huge medical mistake has been made, and others do it out of ignorance,
yet this does not explain everything. I know too many otherwise
perfectly rational men and women doctors who are unable to be
reasonable on this subject. I have seen a lot of bizarre occurrences
surrounding this practice. I do not believe that doctors would be doing
this unless there is something more, and I believe that something is
denial.
This may be the motive of male genital mutilation. It has been called by some "prepuce envy." This may be the motive that has tended to perpetuate circumcision wherever it is found. Men who have had it done to them cannot face the fact that they must go through this life, their one and only life, sexually impaired. So to maintain the denial they insist that their sons be mutilated in the same way.
This tragic facet of human nature, this denial of the outrage perpetrated on an individual, perpetuates the process. This does not make it right. These concepts should help us better understand the father who insists that this traumatic, unnecessary procedure be performed on his son. They should also help us to understand why this practice has been going on for so long. Denial has begun to operate wherever circumcision has been introduced.
What
are the consequences of this theory? Doctors who have been cut
themselves may be unable to stop cutting others. If that is so, then
all of us have a solemn responsibility to keep them from harming other
people's children.
"The
dorsal nerves of the penis were anesthetized bilaterally with
lidocaine. Electrophysiological testing was performed by stimulating
the dorsal nerve of the penis at the penile base distal to the block
and recording action potentials at the glans. RESULTS: Dorsal nerve of
the penis block resulted in anesthesia of the dorsal, lateral and
glanular aspects of the penis. The ventral surface, including the
frenulum, was intact to pinprick sensation. Dorsal nerve of the penis
stimulation resulted in responses from the corona, dorsal and ventral
mid glans, and penile shaft. Frenular responses were less consistently
obtained. The most common recorded pattern was a monophasic waveform
representing the arrival of a standing potential at a nerve terminal.
Latencies were progressively longer with increasing distance from the
point of stimulation with the longest latencies measured at the
frenulum. Amplitudes of the responses decreased with increasing
distance from the point of stimulation.CONCLUSIONS: The
dorsal nerve of the penis innervates the glans, including the frenulum
which is also innervated by a branch of the perineal nerve. Branches of
the dorsal nerve of the penis extend through the glans ventrolaterally.
Electrical representation of glanular innervation reveals the glans to
be filled with nerve endings supporting its function as a sensory
structure."
"Circumcised men do not know what they are missing. They believe that the sexual sensitivity they have without a foreskin is "normal." (Similarly, a woman born in Somalia who had been subjected to a severe form of female circumcision insisted that it had no impact. "It's the same thing. There is nothing different about my sexuality.") (1) According to one man who was circumcised as an adult, sex without a foreskin is like sight without color. Those who have not seen in color cannot appreciate what is lost."
"Those
who have feelings about their circumcision are generally afraid to
express them because their feelings may be dismissed or ridiculed.
When asked why he had not revealed his circumcision feelings before,
one man said, "I would be looked upon as strange or else people would
toss it off lightly." Another said, "It's not something that anyone
talks about. If it is talked about, it's in a snickering, comical way
which I find disturbing. People laugh about it as if there is something
funny going on."
The
current tendency to eliminate the prepuce from anatomy textbooks [1]
reflects the popular emphasis on the glans; perhaps the wrinkling and
pleating of the retracted prepuce, like unwanted hair, is an affront to
good taste or simply superfluous to requirements
Noted Rabbi Moses Maimonides, in the Guide of the Perplexed, explains a rationale for circumcision that merits attention when circumcision is considered relative to human sexuality.
As
regards circumcision... [s]ome people believe that circumcision is to
remove a defect in man's formation; but every one can easily reply: How
can products of nature be deficient so as to require external
completion, especially as the use of the foreskin to that organ is
evident. This commandment has not been enjoined as a complement to a
deficient physical creation, but as a means for perfecting man's moral
shortcomings. The bodily injury caused to that organ is exactly
that which is desired; it does not interrupt any vital function, nor
does it destroy the power of generation. Circumcision simply
counteracts excessive lust; for there is no doubt that circumcision
weakens the power of sexual excitement, and sometimes lessens the
natural enjoyment; the organ necessarily becomes weak when it loses
blood and is deprived of its covering from the beginning.
We suggest that circumcision originated as a mechanism to lower, even if only slightly, sexual excitability/sexual distractions of young men. Because historical records will probably never be found and validated (circumcision was practiced in Pharaoh's Egypt and is thereby at least that ancient), the suggestion is not amenable to proof. Nonetheless, the argument is as follows.
The energy and aggressiveness of young men are valued assets in a society. Dangers from the young men of other groups need to be prevented, or, if not preventable, then thwarted. Internal tasks, such as communal hunts, require the young men's coordinated activities. If distractions from these tasks are minimized - not eliminated, just minimized - then the efficiency of the coordinated task is improved.
Sexual interest of young men in young women is a very real event. Sexual distraction and excitability for the individual man can certainly compete for his attention and focus. Circumcision could raise the threshold for sexual excitability and distraction. That is, circumcision would not eliminate the sex drive, it would just raise the threshold. (For the importance of "sensory" input to the brain from the man's genitalia for his effective sexual behavior, see Bemelmans et al., 1991; Gerstenberg, Nordling, Hald, & Wagner, 1989; Rowland, Leentvaar, Blom, & Slob, 1991; Xinet al., 1996.) That is, sexual behavior (of males) is not simply motor/reflex driven.
Thus, the argument here is that circumcision is low-grade neurological
castration. As a consequence of circumcision, the young men would be
expected to be a ply more tractable and a ply less distractible.
Fertility is not impaired. Aggressiveness is not impaired. The threshold for sexual excitability is simply raised.
Professor Madelenat.
My dear Colleague,
I apparently no longer exist, I never went to the Palais des Congres on 20 February 1996, I never gave a speech, and one cannot publish a presentation that I never gave.
My generation has already experienced the difficulties of legalizing contraception and the medicalization of abortion in spite of the French Episcopate and pressure from the Vatican. In our supposedly Christian county, it seems even more difficult to go up against the circumcisers' lobby united with the rabbinate and the imamate. They seem to hold the financial power in the two laboratories that sponsored your symposium, namely Schering and Theramex.
In order not to embarrass you further, I accept your decision, thanking once again Jean Cohen for his tolerance and courage.
Of course, as far as I am concerned, I will not stop there. I have resolved to denounce by every means in my possession this manifestation of militant religious obscurantism that revives the practice of anti-scientific censorship that I had thought died out in the Middle Ages.
Cordially,
frein/prepuce/frein_du_prepuce.htm
Frein du prepuce : Qui dit vrai? Le frein du prepuce et sa
fonction.
andrologues/andrologue.htm
Andrologue, neuro-andrologue, circoncision, frein du penis,
frein du prepuce. Qui dit vrai?
sexologues/sexologue.htm
Sexologue, neuro-sexologue, circoncision, frein du penis, frein
du prepuce. Qui dit vrai?
urologue.htm
Urologue, andrologue, neurologue, sexologue, neuro-urologue, circoncision et frein du penis
