Lena Dunham is no stranger to talking about sex for her work. In her new book of personal essays, Not That Kind of Girl, Dunham talks about her sexual encounters, recalling the times where she was curious about sex. But some of the stories involving her younger sister Grace have drawn criticism from right-wing media outlets. Allegations have been made that Dunham molested her little sister during their childhood.
"The right wing news story that I molested my little sister isn't just LOL— it's really fucking upsetting and disgusting," Dunham tweeted in response to the allegations. "Usually this is stuff I can ignore but don't demean sufferers, don't twist my words, back the f-k up bros."
In her essays, Dunham describes her battle with constant loneliness and her need for love and affection. In one story, she writes about a time her baby sister kissed her on her nose. She then describes bribing her sister with candy as she grew older, giving her "three pieces of candy if I could kiss her on the lips for five seconds."
"Basically, anything a sexual predator might do to woo a small suburban girl I was trying," she writes jokingly.
In another passage, Dunham recalls masturbating while her sister was asleep next to her. But the story that drew the most attention was a story about a time when a seven-year-old Dunham was curious about the female body.
Asking her mother about uteruses, Dunham describes wondering what her one-year-old sister's anatomy looked like and takes a peak. A portion of the passage found on pages 158-159 of the book goes as following:
"Does her vagina look like mine?"
"I guess so," my mother said. "Just smaller."
One day, as I sat in our driveway in Long Island playing with blocks and buckets, my curiosity got the best of me. Grace was sitting up, babbling and smiling, and I leaned down between her legs and carefully spread open her vagina. She didn't resist and when I saw what was inside I shrieked.
My mother came running. "Mama, Mama! Grace has something in there!"
My mother didn't bother asking why I had opened Grace's vagina. This was within the spectrum of things I did. She just got on her knees and looked for herself. It quickly became apparent that Grace had stuffed six or seven pebbles in there. My mother removed them patiently while Grace cackled, thrilled that her prank had been a success.
While sexual assault is no joking matter, those who have read Not That Kind of Girl know that Dunham makes jokes about just about everything in her essays. Her stories throughout the book feel honest and relatable, but she cites herself as an "unreliable narrator" who does change names and details in some stories.
Dunham's stories may sway on that fine line, but after reading the book in its entirety, the reader will find that the author is not coming from a malicious or threatening place.
"I told a story about being a weird 7 year[s] old. I bet you have some too, old men, that I'd rather not hear. And yes, this is a rage spiral," Dunham added in a Twitter rant. "Sometimes I get so mad I burn right up. Also I wish my sister wasn't laughing so hard."
Having sexual curiosity is normal childhood behavior. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, touching their genitals or masturbating, or looking at new sibling genitals are all normal behaviors for children ages two to six. According to the National Child Traumatic Stress Network, common behaviors for children ages seven to 12 would include a similar situation that Dunham describes.
Fans of Dunham know the writer is an open book. Her work of essays prove that no subject matter is off limits for Dunham, even the ones that make us uncomfortable.
And by the way, if you were a little kid and never looked at another little kid's vagina, well, congrats to you.
— Lena Dunham (@lenadunham) November 1, 2014
Photo Credit: Getty Images
