Breasts in western society involve many issues.
There are many issues around woman's breasts in western society. Women's breasts are considered a sexual organ similar to the genitals, thus many women tend to hide their breasts. Others use their breasts as a way to manipulate the men from whom they are seeking a reaction or some attention. Clothing can be used as a way to expose enough of their breasts to arouse a man's sexual interest.
Exposing breasts, even for breastfeeding, is seen as indecent and shameful. Breasts are to be hidden. As it is basically forbidden to expose breasts, a taboo has developed around breasts. Yet breasts are constantly displayed in a provocative manner on television and magazines. Media and advertisements give the message that breasts are only beautiful if they are big and protruding. Thus develops the whole issue of push-up bras and breast enlargement to the extreme point of cosmetic surgeries as well as the whole psychological issue of feeling deficient.
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Female breasts are a source of sexual fantasy and obsession for many men. They find breasts enticing when they can see some cleavage from breasts that are almost visible, yet still hidden. It is extremely interesting that the men who have larger breasts than many women can walk around bare-chested (note the term bare breasted seems to mostly be applied to women) and no one pays any attention.
An amusing story tells of a young anthropologist talking to women in Mali, Africa where women go around with bare breasts. When she told them that western men are fascinated with breasts, they laughed so hard, they fell on the floor. Their comment was "You mean men act like babies?"
Many children grow up without ever seeing even a single naturally nude breast other than their own. It is also astonishing that some children grow up in North America without ever seeing a baby breastfeeding!
All of this is such a major contrast to the understanding that breastfeeding was God's design to help mothers and babies bond. The intimacy of breastfeeding has no words that truly describe the experience. There is a sense of meaning, purpose and accomplishment that surpasses most other life experiences. This is what women were given breasts for and one could hope that an appreciation of breasts for this reason will eventually predominate in our culture.
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