Wyrok czy wybór?
Sentence or Choice?

Summary/Abstract: Women are under a specific type of social pressure. This refers to their virginity which despite being valued in theory is in fact disapproved of in practice. It is a common attitude that the fear of the unknown has to be overcome immediately and virgins should do everything they can to join the team of “red-blooded” women without delay. “It just doesn’t do to be a shy girl, a virgin who has never had sex; and you lose your virginity without giving in to male penetration”, says Anna Zawadzka with a hint of irritation. All other types of sexual activity, including masturbation, do not hold the status of being acts which give women the “privilege” of depriving them of their virginity. The female body, one entangled in social, political and patriarchal manipulation, is denied its beauty and intimacy. But “if my body belongs to me and not to all the bigots, bishops, advertisers, consumers, politicians and physicians, then let it open, unfold and burst under my own fingers”. Let it enter the erotic world by being entwined with another body without the pressure of “bloodthirsty hetero standards”, a world that offers a broad spectrum of pleasures and in which “customary” sexual intercourse is only one of the many options. Let virginity stop being an embarrassing secret and let it become a matter of choice, a choice that is not determined by social directives. Let virginity return to favourable status as the “power of self-determination”. Retrieved from all the stereotypical fairy tales let it exclusively belong to the female identity/sexuality. Sentence or Choice is highly charged with the energy of young feminism. Undoubtedly, one might argue against its message, but it is impossible to deny that the author presents her opinions and reflections with great honesty.

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