Meanings of Sex

For as long as anyone can remember being a virgin or saving yourself for marriage has always been the the respected thing to do. This was a very European/Christian thing to do. This showed that the woman was still pure, that she wasn’t pregnant by another man and marrying another just so he could raise the child, and that her family still had honor because the daughter was still a virgin. This is still a very common concept in today's society but its not as exaggerated. Many women today lose their virginity before marriage and it is taken as the woman being “slut” or a “whore”. Which is a double standard because when a guy loses his he's praised for it and given high fives. So it can be said that some of the ideals and beliefs from the old European ages have stayed in our society today. European colonizers had sexual encounters with the Natives but didn’t go well. The european men automatically believed that the Native American women wanted to have sex just because of the way that they were dressed. However, the women did not want to so, the European men would beat the women until they finally caved in so they would not be tortured anymore.

However it was not anything like this for the Native Americans. Native Americans had very different sexual beliefs and practices. They believed that having sex was a natural part of the world. And that it was natural because they were able to create life. They even had rituals involving public sex. For them sex isn’t shameful, women dance around men naked and then after they have sex with each other. Virginity was not something that the Native Americans valued because they felt more value in the natural sense of sex and the fact of being able to procreate life.

The practices and rituals of the Native Americans went completely against the gender norms and ideals people believed go with male and female. Females are suppose to be reserved and covered up which is the exact opposite of the of what the female Native Americans were.

Women felt empowered with their sexuality, because although of the contrary beliefs that women were just a womb who carried the baby and just a piece of property. Women actually carry and nurture a baby for nine months.

This is a topic that to many is controversial depending on who you talk to. Many believe that sex is not a big deal and that a women should have the right to do whatever she wants with her body and not be judged for it. But others believe that if a woman has sex before she is “suppose” to, that she doesn’t respect herself.