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PaperclipPerfector  1yr ago (text post)   2442 thread views

Small-Scale Question Sunday for April 9, 2023

Do you have a dumb question that you're kind of embarrassed to ask in the main thread? Is there something you're just not sure about?

This is your opportunity to ask questions. No question too simple or too silly.

Culture war topics are accepted, and proposals for a better intro post are appreciated.

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Now that references to periods are considered acceptable in children's media, why weren't they before? Everything Disney has done so far on this subject has been pretty tactful. (Turning Red, the Baymax short, the Molly McGee episode)

My best guess is that it's because periods are associated with sexual maturity, making it a casualty of the larger taboo of references to sex in children's media (which is a perfectly understandable taboo). But my mental models of how other people think are usually wrong, especially in regards to Culture War topics, so I figured I'd ask you guys.

Periods have long been taboo across many cultures, with many having menstruating women seen as impure or needing to isolate. So I think it makes perfect sense that it was taboo to be in children's media. A more complicated question is, why were periods taboo but not stuff like sneezing or pooping or vomiting? I think the answer to that is that periods were possible to hide. You can't hide sneezing or pooping or vomiting from a 5 year old, so they'll inevitably make jokes about it. You can hide menstruation, so adults did.

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