The Sexuality Of Female Sexuality

During the early 1800s into the nineteenth century it was believed that men and women came from two separate spheres. These spheres influenced the way gender roles were shaped and perceived. Suggesting that women belonged in the household, apart of the private sphere and men belonged in the economic world, apart of the public sphere. Men and women were understood to be polar opposites and because of this, women were oppressed. Female sexuality was defined as “passionlessness,” and only for the purpose of reproduction. We learn that women were considered “voracious” for expressing their sexuality however, men were encouraged to express their sexuality as part of maintaining power, prestige, and masculinity. (Cott, 1978, 222). Men

Sexuality is a particularly perplexing topic for young women. Bell notes that “Their (women’s) twenties ought to be a decade of freedom and exploration. But… I have found them to be more confused than ever about not only how to get what they want, but what they want.” (Bell 26) Yes, they are young and has so many opportunities in front of them. Yes, most of them have a college degree and are highly educated. Yes, there are too many choices and they are condemned whichever way they choose.

Thoughts regarding sexual orientation contrast were gotten from traditional thought, Christian belief system, and contemporary science and pharmaceutical. Men and ladies were thought to occupy bodies with various physical make-ups and to have generally unique qualities and excellencies. Men, as the more grounded sex, were thought to be clever, gallant, and decided. Ladies, then again, were more administered by their feelings, and their temperances were relied upon to be celibacy, humility, empathy, and devotion. Men were thought to be more forceful; ladies more uninvolved. These distinctions were reverberated in the issues to which each sex was thought to be inclined. Men were inclined to brutality, tenacity, and narrow-mindedness, while ladies' wrongdoings were seen as the consequence of their propensity to be administered by their bodies and their feelings, outstandingly desire, over the top energy, and

For years, many scholars have provided many discussions over the topic of gender and sexuality. However, one needs to ask themselves: Are these two topics, gender and sexuality, useful as a category for historical analysis? The articles written by both Joan W. Scott and Afsaneh Najmabadi, answer such a question. By critically examining and assessing their two article, can the usefulness of gender and sexuality as a category for historical analysis be proven.

An overarching theme in the 19th century was the ideology of passionlessness. This claimed that women were incapable of experiencing sexual pleasure, and had no sexual desire. It was prevalent throughout the early 19th century, but middle class reformers shifted this view in the 1830s. Male lecturers used to only give men talks about their own sexual bodies, but the reform was headed by these lecturers as well. They began to speak about woman’s sexual bodies, emphasizing that women have as much sexual desire as men, and could achieve orgasm through hetrosexual sex. Women from the middle class, and lower middle class, attended these lectures to gather information on their own bodies. 19th century women did not know about their own bodies as they did in the past, which attracted women to these lectures, in an attempt to re-obtain this held knowledge. The popularity of these lectures not only caused a reform against the ideology of passionlessness, but

Throughout the course of history, the consensus regarding traditional gender norms has changed immensely. Just the thought of going against these morals was unthinkable and shamed. However, as times have come to change, the challenging of these norms has become more accepted along with the notion that there are no

Everything had changed by then due to influences such as alcohol, fashion, film and music which are believed to be inhibitors in sexuality. The terms “necking” and “petting” had become the adolescent norm in the backseat of cars. While virginity symbolized morality in the Victorian era, it simply had become a social category by then. The term “sexually active” was used by doctors to establish rapport with this new set of patients describing them as “a social state without reference to morality” as opposed to terms such as ruined or wayward which were offensive to both parents and clergy because these young woman felt the need to explore their sexual freedom. This sexual freedom has also led to homosexuality between women which has become acceptable since the Victorian era.

Known as the Two Sex theory, devised by historian Thomas Laqueur, female sexuality would be characterized purely by a woman’s reproductive potential, where the concept of an innate maternal instinct would become the new prioritized ideal. The female orgasm was renounced by a new essence of masculine superiority. This notion can be asserted with the Phallocentric inclination of the late 18th century, examined by historian Tim Hitchcock, as period characterized by penetration and precedence of the phallus. This “both encouraged and made possible the denigration of female sexuality and perceived passivity.” Consequently this caused the de-emphasis of female sexual pleasure and desire. However, female sexual identity would reemerge with potency, attributed to social flux, the emerging field of sexology and disposition of the interwar years.

According to Halperin, “the 'sexuality' of the classical Athenians...was constituted by the very principles on which Athenian public life was organized” (Halperin 419). By this he is referring to the fact that sexuality in the Ancient Athens society was socially constructed, but not in the way that it is understood to be socially constructed in modern thought. The so-called sexuality of the Ancient Greek peoples in Athens was directly related to how the society worked, how it was built and how it was understood. Halperin provides a quote from a French anthropologist who is named Maurice Godelier in order to make this point more apparent. This quote states that “it is not sexuality which haunts society, but society which haunts the body's sexuality” (Halperin 419). This statement re-emphasizes the fact that sexuality is a socially constructed concept, entirely dependant upon the society in which it is created in order to be best understood. The history of sexuality, therefore, is a brief history in the sense that the idea of sexuality is constantly being rethought and changed. Halperin sums up the concept of sexuality very well when he says that “[it]...is not a cause but an effect” (Halperin).

Attitudes towards different issues in society are adopted depending on the prevailing beliefs in such a society. Every trending issue in a society helps shape the attitudes that people develop and greatly influences their behavior. There is no question that every society has a prejudged perception and possible reaction to any event that may occur within the realm of the society. This prejudgment and reaction is often informed by the various experiences that the society may have undergone through in the earlier instances of occurrence of specific events. Leslie Bell, the author of “Selections from Hard to Get: Twenty-Something Women and the Paradox of Sexual Freedom,” largely focuses on female sexuality detailing the often confusing situations

In the Gendered Nature of Sexual Scripts by Michael W. Weiderman, the author talks about what societal factors influence males and females view of sex and their genitalia. The perception of one’s views on their genitalia is related to the sexual script that they are assigned and how society deems they should feel about sex. If one were to deviate from their assigned sexual script, the social ramifications may be detrimental to how they are perceived not only to society, but to the opposite sex.

Throughout history, definitions of sexuality within a culture are created and then changed time after time. During these changes, we have seen the impact and power one individual or group can have over others. In the Late Nineteenth Century into the Early Twentieth Century, we see multiple groups of people and or authorities taking control over the idea of sex and how they believe society is being impacted by sex. At this point in time, society had groups of people who believed they had the power to control how society as whole viewed and acted upon sex. Those particular groups and ideas changed many lives and the overall definition of sexuality within that culture.

Throughout history there has been speculation about what influences sexuality in men and woman. Is sexual orientation biological or cultural in nature? There is a common misconception that sexual identity operate in parallel with gender roles( Sell, 2005 as cited in Wilkinson & Roys, 2005, p.65). Scholars have not came to an agreement regarding what actually comprise a person’s sexual orientation, however a sexual orientation has been deemed a cumulative experience and interaction of emotional and sexual feelings towards one or both genders (Wilkinson & Roys, 2005, p.65). The paper provides provides some clues as to what factors influence sexual orientation in men and woman.

“In men, in general, sexual desire is inherent and spontaneous” whereas “in the other sex, the desire is dormant, if not non-existent, till excited” (457). Greg’s terminology is extremely power-laden. “Spontaneous” has the connotation of energy and activity, whereas “dormant” and “victim” imply inactivity. An important concept is the assumption that men, the “coarser sex,” act on women, the “weaker sex” (457).

There is constantly cessation why women and men cohabitate, nurture, desire, and endure. Many shrug the similarities and differences to the side due to the complex nature that is involved in understanding the progression. Since the beginning of time, according to the bible, man was placed as the dominant sex, fending for the families well being. The woman has tended to the important jobs around the homestead as situations arose. Often in society, one will find himself in a battle depending on the views of the receiving recipients. Following is a dialogue explaining a safe and metro sexual view as a general whole.