Sexuality

Question 1

Prehistoric era

Answer 1

Gender roles are very rigid
◦ Men hunt
◦ Women take care of children and gather food
◦ The ability to have children is highly valued
◦ It is possible that the link between sex and pregnancy is not
understood
◦ When the first sedentary societies appeared, the link was made between sex and pregnancy by observing livestock.
◦ The concept of fatherhood and phallic symbols appear

Question 2

Les anciens Hébreux

Answer 2

Sex within marriage is highly valued spiritually according to religious commandments
* Homosexuality is seen as immoral since it does not allow reproduction
* The woman is the property of her husband, the man can divorce at his
own will, he can have several concubines
* A man who has sexual relations with a married woman must “compensate” her husband

Question 3

Ancient Greece

Answer 3

Family remains highly valued
◦ The well-developed and sculpted male body is admired ◦ A healthy mind needs a healthy body
◦ The men were all considered bisexual
◦ Sexual content found in Greek theatre
◦ Sex and seduction are heavily involved in Greek mythology
◦ Prostitutes could belong to all classes of society ◦ Women are not much more than slaves

Question 4

Ancient Rome

Answer 4

We find a lot of marginal sexual behavior within the upper class (bestiality, orgies, sadism)

Homosexuality is seen as a threat to the family which is the strength of the empire

Question 5

Interspecies perspective

Answer 5

By observing other species, we can draw conclusions about sexuality.
One of the conclusions is that “simpler” species act sexually by instinct while experience and learning is more present in more complex species.

Question 6

Psychoanalytic theory

Answer 6

The mind operates both consciously and unconsciously
◦ Sexual desire is in the unconscious and the conscious part “protects” us from these desires.
◦ Certain objects can symbolize sexual desire…
◦ For Freud, the development of the child is erotic and is governed by the
erogenous zones (oral, anal, genital)

Question 7

Feminist perspective

Answer 7

Theories that question:
◦ The role of man and woman
◦ The role of men in creating laws that only affect women
◦ The idea that men are aggressive and are not good parents ◦ The idea that women are irrational and emotional
◦ Questioning the very concept of masculinity and femininity

Question 8

Queer perspective

Answer 8

Challenge the concept of gender and sexual orientation
Raises inconsistencies that may be present between anatomical sex, gender roles and sexual desire
Considers society to be organized through a heterosexual male hegemony which tends to minimize the legitimacy of other sexual experiences

Question 9

Evolutionnary perspective

Answer 9

Traits that increase the chances of reproducing are more likely to survive at the species level.
This explains why men and women are a good ‘’fit’’ sexually

Question 10

Biological perspective

Answer 10

we only look at human biology