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Clitoris
The clitoris is a tiny organ which even the woman to whom it belongs may find difficulty in seeing, except with the aid of a mirror.
It may be so concealed as only to come into view when the labia majora - the outer lips of the vagina - are separated.
Located above and in front of the urethral and vaginal openings, it is structurally connected to the labia minora (the inner lips of the vagina). The visible glans of the clitoris, which is hooded by a prepuce formed by the meeting of the labia minora, is, however, only the outward and visible manifestation of much more extensive erectile tissue, which forms a padding over the pubic bone.
The clitoris is a sexual organ that is present in biologically female mammals. In humans, the visible knob-like portion is located near the anterior junction of the labia minora, above the opening of the urethra and vagina. Unlike the penis, which is homologous to the clitoris, the clitoris does not contain the distal portion of the urethra and functions solely to induce sexual pleasure. The only known exception to this is in the Spotted Hyena, where the urogenital system is modified so that the female urinates, mates and gives birth via an enlarged, erectile clitoris, known as a pseudo-penis.
When sexual excitement reaches its peak, orgasm takes place, with rhythmic contractions of the muscles around the clitoris and vagina. Unlike men, women have the capacity for multiple orgasm without an intervening refractory period.
The appearance of the external glans of the clitoris is very various. In some women it may be quite noticeable and an obvious analogue to the penis, in others it may be small and barely visible. Although these are innate physiological characteristics, the size of the clitoris has been assumed to relate to the sexual activity of the female, and to be excessively developed by masturbation or indulgence in lesbian practices.
The role of the clitoris in orgasm has been the subject of very heated controversy. Although for centuries it had been known by medical and religious authorities in Europe that titillating the clitoris had a beneficial effect on conjugal relations, rendering them more pleasant and more likely to be fertile, from the later eighteenth century this information apparently became increasingly hidden.
Popular handbooks which went on being reprinted in the nineteenth century underwent expurgation and referred, if at all, much more generally to the necessity of mutual caresses and pleasure between the married couple. However, although the arousing role of the clitoris had been recognized, and even that a woman might bring about an orgasm by self-stimulation if her husband failed to give her an orgasm through intercourse, the assumption was very persistent that if women masturbated, they did so with a dildo in order to mimic penetrative intercourse.
Even today, although vibrators are most often used for clitoral stimulation, the large number of the models available vary in shape from the generally phallic to the hyper-realistically penile.
This supposition extended to the idea of women having sex with one another being thought impossible or else involving this substitution.
There are some grounds, however, for believing that there may well have been an oral culture, mainly among women, which, if it could not scientifically name and describe the clitoris, nevertheless knew about its significance. This, however, was increasingly eroded by the rise of a print culture privileging published writings (the vast majority by men) above oral information, and by a variety of social changes including greater privacy and greater separation between social classes.
A new ethos of mutual sexual pleasure in marriage arose during the early twentieth century: though shared pleasure had been an ideal in the Victorian era, suppression and ignorance meant that it had not always been achieved even with the best intentions.
Authors of marriage manuals emphasized the important contribution of the clitoris to the sexual arousal and satisfaction of the woman, even going so far as to suggest, in some cases, that the bridegroom should give his wife her first orgasm by manual stimulation before proceeding to defloration. Even so, clitoral stimulation was seen as something ancillary to penetrative heterosexual intercourse, which was defined as the central conjugal act.
Although the clitoris is such a small and apparently insignificant organ, there are and have been widespread conceptions that it is dangerous and threatening. There are substantial areas of the world today, in Africa and the Middle East, in which clitoridectomy is still routinely practised on ritual and hygienic grounds - though the number of cultures which practice it are far fewer than those in which some kind of circumcision of the penis is performed on boy children or youths in transition to manhood.
The practice is deeply embedded in national and religious cultures, and has proved very difficult to extirpate; attempts to do so have caused crises for colonial powers in Africa. While many of the cultures which practice it are Islamic, clitoridectomy is not coterminous with the Muslim world: it is found among other religious groups in the regions in which it is common, and is not practised in all Islamic nations.
Development and formation
Clitoral Hood and Glans. At the time of development of the urinary and reproductive organs in embryogenesis the previously undifferentiated genital tubercle develops into the clitoris or the penis, along with all other major organ systems, making them homologous. The head or glans of the clitoris is a simple bundle of 8000 nerve fibers, estimated to be twice the number found in the penis making it particularly well-suited for sexual stimulation.
The clitoris is a complex structure that includes the external and internal components.
Visible to the eye is the clitoral hood (prepuce), which in full or part covers the head (clitoral glans), shaft and inner lips (labia minora). Inside the body are the legs or clitoral crura, urethral sponge, clitoral bulb (previously referred to as vestibule bulb) and corpora, perineal sponge, a network of nerves and blood vessels, suspensory ligaments, muscles and pelvic diaphragm. The clitoris extends from the front commissure where the edges of the outer lips (labia majora) meet at the base of the pubic mound to the fourchette. In humans, the clitoral shaft then extends several centimeters upwards and to the back, before splitting into the two legs, and shaped like an inverted "V", these crura extend around and to the interior of the outer labia.
There is considerable variation with regard to how much of the clitoris protrudes from the hood and how much is covered by it, ranging from complete, covered invisibility to full, protruding visibility. An article published in the Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology in July 1992 states that the average width of the clitoral glans to be with in the range of 2.5 - 4.5 mm (0.10-0.18 in) indicating that the average size is smaller than a pencil eraser. There is no correlation between the size of a clitoris and the person's age, neither to being post-menopausal, nor to height, weight or use of oral contraceptives. Those who have given birth do tend to have slightly larger measurements.
During sexual arousal and during orgasm, the clitoris and the whole of the genitalia engorge and change colour as these erectile tissues fill with blood, and the individual experiences vaginal contractions.
Masters and Johnson documented the sexual response cycle, which has four phases and is still the clinically accepted definition of the human orgasm. More recent research has determined that some can experience a sustained intense orgasm through stimulation of the clitoris and remain in the orgasmic phase for much longer than the original studies indicate, evidenced by genital engorgement and colour changes, and vaginal contractions.
Recognition of existence
For more than 2,500 years the clitoris and the penis were considered equivalent in all respects except their arrangement .
Medical literature first recognized the existence of the clitoris in the 16th century .
This cycle of discovery continued, notably in the work of De Graaf (Tractatus de Virorum Organis Generationi Inservientibus, De Mulierub Organis Generationi Inservientibus Tractatus Novus) in the 17th century and Kobelt in the 19th.
The full extent of the clitoris was alluded to by Masters and Johnson in 1966, but in such a muddled fashion that the significance of their description became obscured.
That same year, feminist psychiatrist Mary Jane Sherfey published an article on women's sexuality that described in detail the extensive nature of the internal anatomy of the clitoris and in 1981, the Federation of Feminist Women's Health Clinics (FFWHC) continued this process with anatomically precise illustrations. Today, MRI compliments these efforts, as it is both a live and multiplanar method of examination
Female Genital Modification and mutilation
The external part of the clitoris may be partially or totally removed during female genital cutting, also known as a clitoridectomy, female circumcision, or female genital mutilation (FGM); this may be a voluntary or involuntary procedure. The topic is highly controversial with many countries condemning the traditions that give rise to involuntary procedures, and with some countries outlawing even voluntary procedures. Amnesty International estimates that over 2 million involuntary female circumcisions are being performed every year, mainly in African countries.
In various cultures, the clitoris is sometimes pierced directly.
In U.S. body modification culture, it is actually extremely rare for the clitoral shaft itself to be pierced, as of the already few people who desire the piercing, only a small percentage are anatomically suited for it; furthermore, most piercing artists are understandably reluctant to attempt such a delicate procedure.
Some styles, such as the Isabella, and the Nefertiti do pass through the clitoris but are placed deep at the base, where they provide unique stimulation; they still require the proper genital build, but are more common than shaft piercings. Additionally, what is (erroneously) referred to as a "clit piercing" is almost always the much more common (and much less complicated) clitoral hood piercing.
Some cultures at various times in history have practiced stretching, which can enlarge the clitoris, or can make it more visible .
Enlargement may be intentional or unintentional.
Those taking hormones and or other medications as part of female-to-male transition usually experience dramatic clitoral growth; individual desires (and the difficulties of surgical phalloplasty) often result in the retention of the original genitalia, the enlarged clitoris analogous to a penis as part of the transition.
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