Female orgasm: Who be Marie Bonaparte, di princess wey torchlight sex research for women?

Marie Bonaparte na royalty wey get plenty money and sabi important pipo. But how she take become ogbonge pesin for di study of female sexuality?

For some she na leader of female sexuality; for odas, na just rich woman with wey get connections.

Di truth be say Marie Bonaparte (1882-1962) – great-niece of former Emperor of France Napoleon l and aunty of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh – na pesin wey history no fit forget.

Even though she be princess herself, one of di main tin she pursue for her life na female orgasm.

Portrait of Marie Bonaparte sitting at a table, with a vase of flowers.

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Marie Bonaparte dey lonely when she dey young and as teenager, she get strong head

Di Princess

Dem born Marie Bonaparte for Paris, into famous and rich family but tragedy hit her life from di beginning as she nearly die during birth.

One month later, her mama die. As no oda children dey around, she come dey lonely.

One day, one of di many women wey dey care for am, ‘catch’ Marie dey masturbate.

“Na sin! na bad tin! If you do that you go die!” Marie write for her 1952 diary say di woman tell her.

“Bonaparte claim say she stop to dey do use her clitoris masturbate around di age of eight or nine for fear say she go die like dem warn am,” Nellie Thompson write inside her essay The Theory of Female Sexuality of Marie Bonaparte: Fantasy and Biology.

Portrait of Marie Bonaparte

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Even though she be princess, dis one no stop her to torchlight female sexuality

Explore female sexuality

Afta she born two pikin wit her husband – wey she spend 50 years wit – only to discover say who her husband really get feelings for na im uncle Prince Valdemar of Denmark, Marie decide say she go focus on study of women sexuality and female pleasure.

For 1924 she publish one essay about how some women no dey respond to sexual pleasure, but instead she use fake name – A.E. Narjani.

Marie Bonaparte

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“Frustration catch am because she never reach orgasm during sex before,” (wit penetration sex), tok Kim Wallen, professor of behavioural neuroendocrinology for Emory University, Georgia (USA).

“She no accept di belief say na only through clitoris woman fit get orgasm,” Prof Wallen tell di BBC.

So she come develop one theory: di shorter di distance between woman clitoris and her vagina, di more di chance say she go get orgasm during penetration sex.

To support her theory she do experiment wit more than 240 women for 1920s Paris.

Bonaparte believe say if woman do operation to move di clitoris nearer to di vagina, then di orgasm go come.

Unfortunately, she dey wrong.

An official portrait of Marie Bonaparte and her husband, Prince George of Greece and Denmark.

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Marie Bonaparte and her husband, Prince George of Greece and Denmark

“Di surgery na disaster. Some women no come dey feel anything. But Bonaparte get assurance for her theory sotey she sef do di surgery – three times!, but e no work for her,” Prof Wallen tok.

“Wen you cut plenty nerves around di clitoris, your bodi no go begin ginger well-well, but na di opposite, because you dey cut very important nerves,” Dr Lloyd, wey be professor of History and Philosophy of Science for Indiana University bin explain.

Free woman

Professional maturity later make Marie Bonaparte to do u-turn ontop her theory on female sexuality.

“She publish one new book for 1950: ‘Female Sexuality’, wia she cancel everything about her before-before study.

A portrait of Marie Bonaparte, dedicated to Sigmund Freud.

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1925 Marie Bonaparte travel go Vienna wia she meet wit Sigmund Freud

“Inside am she say di way body be no relate [wit orgasm], and for pein mind everything dey.” says Prof Wallen.

For Professor Dr Lloyd, Marie Bonaparte na “ogbonge pesin. She na one of my heroine.”

“She advance well-well pass anybody for her time when e concern knowledge and understanding” of sexual sexuality, tok Dr Lloyd, even though las las “she sef no happy wit her own body.”