Sexuality and Its Discontents: Meanings, Myths, and Modern Sexualities

by Jeffrey Weeks

Few topics evoke so much anxiety and pleasure, pain and hope, discussion and silence as sexuality. Throughout the Christian era it has been a major moral preoccupation. Since the eighteenth century it has also been the focus of 'scientific' exploration and political activity. But, despite this obsessive concern, we are still as baffled as our predecessors about the 'true' meaning of sex. In this book Jeffrey Weeks unravels the dense web of historical, theoretical and political forces that have culminated in the contemporary crisis of sexual meanings and values. The book begins with a powerful evocation of our present discontents and their potent the rise of the New Right, the retreat of progressive forces and a wave of moral panics around sex. It argues that this crisis is rooted in a tradition which has ascribed an inflated importance to sexuality, whilst claiming a privileged access to truth. The author then examines radical debates of recent years, and asks whether they contain the potentiality for taking us beyond the existing boundaries of sexuality. From this analysis emerges a controversial 'radical pluralist' approach to sexuality built on an acceptance of diversity and choice. By linking our present discontents to a clear understanding of the past, Jeffrey Weeks presents a rational, optimistic and challenging vision of a realizable future.

Genres: Queer, Sexuality, Nonfiction, LGBT, Gay

324 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1985

About the author

Jeffrey Weeks OBE (born 1945) is a gay activist and an historian and sociologist specialising in work on sexuality.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeffrey...


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There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

Reviews

[Siobhán Swatton · Rating 2 out of 5]

read for class

[Saggi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fácil de leer y entender el concepto de la sexualidad en diferentes ejes

[Duncan Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed this book and found it imperative to understanding the sociohistorical narrative of sexuality and it's study. However, I did struggle with this book. sometimes the language obfuscated its message and I felt this made it less accessible; which is a shame as it is a subject so many people have little understanding of.