To me this is a song about the Christian perversion of sex- turning it from a natural celebration into something dirty and repulsive. Sheela Na Gig is an uninhibited pagan fertility Goddess. She is depicted as sitting spread eagle, using her hands to pull her vaginal lips apart; a welcoming enticement into carnal pleasure and the miraculous creation of life that results.
It's not easy being a pagan fertility goddess in a culture of Puritan repression. It's pathetic that too many men have been taught to find such open sexuality as filthy and wrong.
The song triumphantly declares she will not hide or conform- she will not let derision crush her spirit. She will boldly move on until she finds men who appreciate her.
In a broader sense I think it's about misogyny in general. Much hate and scorn is casually thrown at women for no other reason than their gender. For example, they're judged way too much on their appearance and If they're strong willed they're called bitches. If they want to be single they're accused of being selfish- but if they want to get married they're teased for "trying to trap a man." There's no winning. Women should be celebrated and treated as equally important to men, and men who treat women badly should be left lonely.
In a broader sense I think it's about misogyny in general. Much hate and scorn is casually thrown at women for no other reason than their gender. For example, they're judged way too much on their appearance and If they're strong willed they're called bitches. If they want to be single they're accused of being selfish- but if they want to get married they're teased for "trying to trap a man." There's no winning. Women should be celebrated and treated as equally important to men, and men who treat women badly should be left lonely.
To me this is a song about the Christian perversion of sex- turning it from a natural celebration into something dirty and repulsive. Sheela Na Gig is an uninhibited pagan fertility Goddess. She is depicted as sitting spread eagle, using her hands to pull her vaginal lips apart; a welcoming enticement into carnal pleasure and the miraculous creation of life that results.
It's not easy being a pagan fertility goddess in a culture of Puritan repression. It's pathetic that too many men have been taught to find such open sexuality as filthy and wrong.
The song triumphantly declares she will not hide or conform- she will not let derision crush her spirit. She will boldly move on until she finds men who appreciate her.
In a broader sense I think it's about misogyny in general. Much hate and scorn is casually thrown at women for no other reason than their gender. For example, they're judged way too much on their appearance and If they're strong willed they're called bitches. If they want to be single they're accused of being selfish- but if they want to get married they're teased for "trying to trap a man." There's no winning. Women should be celebrated and treated as equally important to men, and men who treat women badly should be left lonely.
In a broader sense I think it's about misogyny in general. Much hate and scorn is casually thrown at women for no other reason than their gender. For example, they're judged way too much on their appearance and If they're strong willed they're called bitches. If they want to be single they're accused of being selfish- but if they want to get married they're teased for "trying to trap a man." There's no winning. Women should be celebrated and treated as equally important to men, and men who treat women badly should be left lonely.