The phrase “vagina dentata” makes the boys and girls squirm. Understandably. Translating from the Latin as “toothed vagina,” this multi-cultural myth can be said to articulate the male fear of castration. Bloody, surprising and painful castration. One could also say that it expresses the dread of female sexuality in general. This goes not only for the males who seek sexual intercourse with multiple female partners but for the women who might possess such a fearful abnormality as well. He who encounters such a woman will be labeled as less than a man, and she who has the “dentata” will be labeled a monster.
Not much to be surprised about in our culture, but there is a film that imagines this scenario taking place in Middle American suburbia. It’s called Teeth, and it’s quite the little nasty horror piece directed by Michael Lichtenstein. The main character, Dawn, a pretty and proper blonde haired, blue-eyed teenager, has always had suspicions that something is a bit “off” down there. It all started when she was a little girl and her stepbrother cut his finger when he attempted to touch her between the legs in the kiddy pool. Though the true specifics of this encounter are hazy and curious. She doesn’t like to remember that.
Nor has Dawn done any exploring of her own in the region. With a shining chastity ring on her finger, she gives rousing addresses on the importance of remaining “pure” until marriage. The other young people in the Promise Ring group look to up to Dawn, and she is enraptured with her choice and the attention it gives her. But refraining from sexual intercourse is a bit more complicated than simply wearing a ring. The cute, nice-seeming male group member who Dawn has a huge crush on takes her swimming in a beautiful natural pool with a cascading waterfall. It’s idyllic and sweet. Soon, their obvious desire for each other leads the young man to believe that this is the moment when he will have sex whether Dawn is a willing participant or not. But he’s in for a bloody surprise when he attempts to force himself on her body. There’s a loud snap and, when he pulls back, not all of him comes away in its proper place.
It’s a shocking scene for both male and female viewers. The act of castration in such an unexpected way is definitely gruesome, and the image of it will cause nearly everyone to gag in horror. But for me, I was more horrified by the near rape of Dawn when she’d been so happy and infatuated with this seeming-perfect boy a moment before. After that snap, however, he certainly is shown to be less of a perfect male specimen than previously believed.
The film plays with us in its swift oscillations from intense earnestness to facetious cheekiness throughout. At first terrified by the knowledge of her “condition,” Dawn fears she will never be able to function as a normal young woman. But then, after a few more unwanted encounters, she begins to realize the power she has to take revenge on those men who believe, in some conscious way or not, that “No” is not the right answer. Dawn embraces this gift and goes from naïve “Promise Keeper” to someone with quite the sense of personal agency. It’s at once a fun and frightening transformation to watch happen on screen. And it’s easy to feel sorry for every one involved in the mayhem that ensues, no matter how much he might deserve it.
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