Customizing the Body (PDF file) - Print My Tattoo

8 Introduction
Piercing and Scarification • Piercing and scarification are two
other forms of drastic body alteration regularly practiced in a wide
variety of cultures. The primary function of infibulation in most
societies appears to be decorative. though some tribal cultures
use piercing to symbolize important social positions (especially
for women) such as marital status or sexual maturity (see Fisher.
1984; Jonaitis. 1983). Among the Tchikrin of central Brazil. for
example. the ears of both male and female infants are pierced at
birth and large. cigar-shaped wooden earplugs are inserted. The
male infant's lower lip is also pierced, and, after he is weaned,
this hole is gradually enlarged and decorated with strings of
beads. At puberty the Tchikrin boy participates in a ceremony in
which he is given a penis sheath (symboliZing power and controll,
his hair is cut in the adult style. and his lip ornament is changed
to that worn by grown men. As a mature adult the Tchikrin male
may wear a lip disk four inches in diameter or larger (Vlahos,
1979; 41; Brain. 1979: 178-180).
In contemporary western society, limited body pierCing-especially
of women's ears-for decorative purposes is conventional.
More extensive infibulation (of the nose, cheeks, nipples. genitals,
and so on), however, is commonly viewed with disfavor-thereby
making it a form of body alteration that is eminently suited for
symboliZing disaffection from mainstream values.
Scarification is the major approach to decorative and symbolic
permanent body modification used by dark-skinned peoples on
whom tattooing would be ineffective. As employed by Mrican
tribal groups. scarification is a decorative form primarily intended
to indicate one's position in the social structure. The basic cicatrization
technique involves lifting and cutting the skin, followed
by the application of an irritant preparation that inhibits healing
and promotes the formation of a raised keloid scar. Nuba women.
for example, undergo a series of scarification rituals related to
their physiological development: cuts are made at puberty, the onset
of menstruation, and after the woman's first child is weaned
(Brain. 1979: 70-73). Scarification is used to indicate tribal membership.
to symbolize passage into adult status. as a form of preventive
medicine (for example. by the Bangwa of Cameroon), and
to enhance the beauty of the body. Because cicatrization is quite