Penis envy
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Penis envy is the desire to possess the same sexual organ as men, which Sigmund Freud believed women unconsciously possess.
Freud's teaching that women suffer from penis envy is generally attributed to the Victorian assertion that male sex organs are better than those of females. While fashionable for a number of decades, this idea is no longer regarded as a serious psychological concept except by fundamentalist Freudians.
Evolutionary psychology does support this claim and suggests that on an unconscious level, females are aware that parental investment will primarily go towards males, due to their higher levels of Sexual Fitness and ability to produce more offspring. The female is envious of the male sibling for possessing a penis and desires to have a penis to secure more resources from the parents.
Feminists generally regard this theory as sexist, and are not alone in doing so. In turn, feminists themselves have been accused of suffering penis envy, as traditionally masculine traits have been valued over feminine ones by many 20th Century and 21st Century feminists.
Penis envy in males
In recent years, some have applied the term penis envy to men who are jealous of men with larger penises. This is partly due to greater media attention to the issue of penis size and women being more vocal about their preferences. Television shows such as Sex and the City and Ally McBeal popularized the penis size issue when characters in these TV shows stated their preference for well-endowed men over more modestly-endowed men. The media image of women's preference may have had an impact on some average sized men, making them feel inadequate and jealous of larger men. In recent years, sales of penis pumps, pills, and other dubious means of penis enlargement have had increases sales. Surveys of women's actual preference have consistently shown that penis size is only a priority for a minority of women, and some women dislike large penises. The media has been criticized for making "penis envy" into a male body issue equivalent to Cosmopolitan Magazine being criticized for their coverage of women's weight.
Entertainment
Penis Envy is also the title of the third album from the famous anarchist punk band Crass.