Demystifying the Female Body Through Body Horror: An Introduction to the Self in Relation to Body Horror Accompanied by a Selection of Short Stories

Abstract

Historically, myths and stories have constructed the female body as something monstrous, malevolent, and horrifying. They position the vagina and power found in one’s own femininity as threats to masculinity, morality, and castration. However, this patriarchal and misogynistic ideology is merely fabricated. Through an exploration of marxist feminist theory, semiotics, body horror as a genre, gynecological medicalization, and my own experiences as a person with a female body, this paper aims to demystify the female body. Additionally, the paper incorporates creative writing in the form of visceral body horror short stories to frame the theoretical analysis.Purchase College SUNYMedia StudiesBachelor of ArtsMcGlotten, Shak