Body modification and adornment is a universal culture.
attempted to change their body in order to fulfill their cultural construct of beauty, .
religious and social obligations. Body adornment and modification is a very broad subject, .
ranging from ceremonial body paint to amputation of appendages. Body piercing is the .
subject that is going to be discussed in this paper. So why is body modification just now .
coming to the attention of the modern world when it had been a part of history for .
centuries? It is my belief that a greater amount of young adults are finding that imitating .
traditions of primitive cultures is an excellent way to express themselves. However, the .
quest for non-conformity is not the only reason people change their appearance. .
Dissatisfaction with ones appearance and fascination with alteration is also reason for one .
to modify their body. .
.
A piercing can be defined as any object, intentionally left in the body, for which .
there is a no physiologically functional purpose, and must have be placed in an event .
which took a conscious decision. Nose piercing was the first piercing recorded .
approximately 4,00 years ago in the Middle East. It was mentioned in The Bible in Genesis .
24:22 Abraham told his oldest servant to find a wife for his son Isaac, and the servant .
found Rebekah. One of the gifts he gave her was a "golden ring". The original Hebrew .
word translates as "nose- ring ". Historically, piercing has had a long history in Europe, .
with references dating back to the Victorian Court wore Prince Albert piercing ( piercing .
of the genitalia) as a " dressing ring" and was used to secure the penis to either leg with a .
string or thong, to suit the fashion at the time. Pants were cut very closely at the crotch, .
and would make the male genitalia very pronounced. When viewed as a material aspect of our culture, popular piercing is an attempt to create an alien other. An attempt to break .
