Resumo

MADDEN ARIAS, Rose Mary  e  HIDALGO SOLIS, Ana Lorena. Menopausia: una nueva forma de neocolonialismo Ideológico y economico. Med. leg. Costa Rica [online]. 2004, vol.21, n.1, pp.23-30. ISSN 2215-5287.

The word menopause comes from the Greek meno (month) and pausis (pause) and refers strictly to the physiological phenomenon of the ending of the menstruations in women, and in a wider sense, to a whole phase in the life of them. The interpretation and contents of this concept -and even its own existance- has been changed historically and culturally with an impact that has also changes in the lives of women. The purpose of this essay is to find a preliminary answer to the following questions: From where does the concept of menopause originate and to what type of need does it respond?, What are the myths or assumptions about the menopause in dominant discourses and practices? Do cultural and historical differences exist about the perceptions on this period of women’s life?, Do alternative discourses about the menopause exist, what are the assumptions and the contents of them?, What is the social, cultural, psychological, and physical impact of this discourses and practices in the lives of women?

Palavras-chave : Women; sexuality; sexual health; reproductive health; sexual violence; menopause; population; population politics.