On Loneliness Quotes

“Pictures of nude men do not arouse me or women I know. First, it is surprising to see a man in what is traditionally considered a female pose: passive and receptive. He becomes an object of curiosity rather than of sexuality. Furthermore, many women have been conditioned to respond to male aggression, and the male bodies that are undressed, motionless, and vulnerable with all parts showing are simply not that appealing. People have written PhD theses and won research grants analyzing why this is so for many heterosexual women. If we hetero women could respond sexually by ogling pictures of nude men and using those images for fantasy and masturbation, it could help some of us through lonely times.”
― Terri Laxton Brooks, On Loneliness: How to Feel Less Alone In an Isolating World

“Oscar M., who had raped thirteen women, told me: “The rapes weren’t sexual. I could have had better orgasms if I had gone into the bathroom and taken care of myself. I just hated myself and wanted someone else to hate me.”
― Terri Laxton Brooks, On Loneliness: How to Feel Less Alone In an Isolating World

“The pros and cons of sex without love have been debated without end—both in cities, where it can be hard to meet people, and in the countryside, where everyone knows everyone else. As a result, the question is so muddied that it is hard to see at all. In the cheering corner are some enlightened liberals, feminists, swingers, and chauvinists. In the booing corner are parents of daughters, romantics, every established religion, and idealists.”
― Terri Laxton Brooks, On Loneliness: How to Feel Less Alone In an Isolating World