Virginity is the state of never having had sexual intercourse. It is viewed positively or negatively depending on one's gender, one's age, one's culture and one's own personal beliefs and attitudes.
In some cultures virginity has no special significance, and young people, of both sexes, engage in coitus very early and there is no special status associated with not doing so.
In others, virginity is required of both sexes, and in many it is required of women only. Violation may result in severe punishment.
For example, proving a bride's virginity became a public matter wherein the bed sheets used by the couple on their wedding night were hung out the window for the wedding guests to view. A bloodstained sheet was a sign that the groom penetrated the bride's intact hymen, causing it to bleed. Though not medically true, the theory was that the hymen would be unbroken if she were still a virgin.
Retaining Virginity: An Important Goal
In some North American cultures, retaining virginity until marriage has been an important goal. Many parents and some sex educators disapprove of loss of virginity until marriage and are especially adamant about teens remaining virgins. A chief motivator of this standard is concern about the welfare of young people, particularly young women, who are at risk for pregnancy.
A number of religious groups also are in favor of virginity until marriage, but their sanctions against premarital coitus are based more on the churches' ideology.
Peer Pressure
Not all adolescents and young adults are comfortable with the idea of virginity, however. Peer pressure often dictates that being a virgin is an undesirable indication of immaturity or prudishness. Losing one's virginity is seen as a rite of passage into the adult world of sexuality.
Like most sexual behaviors, remaining a virgin or not is a personal choice. Nowadays there may be more ambiguity about the goal or milestone for which virginity is being maintained. Until recently, marriage was the clear-cut boundary separating sanctioned intercourse from sinful intercourse.
