4
The Journal changes involved in adolescent girls becoming women are, for the most part,
a mystery to the male population. Pop culture hardly ever discusses the details of puberty
because it is mostly taboo. Sex education classes rarely go into any detail about the
emotional aspect of puberty, which means the curriculum is almost purely biological.
Young boys cant sit still and attentive listening to information about their own
development, much less some complicated story about the menstruation cycle and the
female hormonal system. Thus, most males remain uneducated about the female
reproductive system and the emotions that accompany females into womanhood.
As is common in our culture, when men dont know much about a subject, and
cant form scientific opinion about the matter, the topic become considered taboo.
Commercials for tampons and premenstrual medication are few and far between
compared to those related to erectile dysfunction. In fact as I watched TV yesterday, I
didnt come across a single advertisement for anything related to the menstrual cycle,
while I saw commercials for Enzyte, Extenze, Viagra, and Cialas, some of which
appeared multiple times.
Even when menstruation commercials appear on television, they are very careful
not to divulge too many details regarding the actual happenings of the process other than
that there is some leaking. Even the word menstruation is rarely used, rather being
disguised as mother nature giving an unwanted present each month.
A Got Milk commercial portrays a bunch of men running and fighting to get as
much milk as possible. man One even steals a couple gallons from a milk truck,
Journal 4
frantically leaving money strewn across the front drivers seat. Another man is caring a
paper grocery bag full of milk and walking a dog that has a satchel over its back, also full
of milk. The voiceover goes on to explain that, a recent study has shown that calcium
may reduce symptoms of PMS.
The underlying message in this commercial is that women with premenstrual
syndrome are unbareable, and men will do anything to ease the symptoms. The first flaw
of this commercial is that PMS does not occur in all women. In fact, it is not certain
whether PMS is even a confirmed medical diagnosis. Many medical professionals cant
even agree on the symptoms of PMS, leaving it an open umbrella to any and all side
effects related to the menstrual cycle. Another problem with this commercial is that
women that do experience symptoms related to premenstrual syndrome are not
necessarily over-emotional train wrecks, with massive mood swings.
In an episode of Entourage, an HBO series, one of the main characters returns to
California from a trip to New York to find that his girlfriend is on her period. He was
away for months shooting a movie, and was looking forward to have sex with her but she
didnt want to. When discussing the matter with his buddies, they all were appalled that
she wasnt willing to explore other avenues of sexual satisfaction for him. While this was
just boy talk, it is interesting that guys, especially in TV shows, movies, etc. are under the
impression that women have been put on Earth to please them.