th
Sociology 2U06: Family Sociology Nov. 24 2011
Lecture 21: Sexuality
Topic:
- Sexuality
- Fox Chapters 13, 14, 15
Sexuality
- Social organization of sex and ideas about sex are not static
o Conditions under which sexual contact and behaviours are acceptable vary by
individuals, by social context, by historical context
i.e. 19 Century: sexuality as a means for reproduction only, any sexual conduct
outside of the realm of trying to have a baby was seen as wrong/deviant
Sexuality not as a means of who you are (gay, straight etc.) but only as a means
of reproduction
Even married people were to restrain themselves from intentionally non-
reproductive sex
- Brainstorm examples of how ideas about sex vary over time and place, and may be situation al
or specific
o Is sex clearly tied to marriage today? Or has this connection disappeared?
o To what extent do we continue to label certain sexual behs or experiences? (I.e. as
heterosexual, homosexual etc.)
- Many of the social changes that took place following industrialization impacted family life and
sexuality
o More constraints pre-industrial in terms of sexual relationships, choice of sexual
partners, choice of sexual timing
o Under industrialization
Wage work and move to urban centres gave them more autonomy, more
privacy
Young people living away from parents, away from scrutiny of them and
their community members
Could engage more freely in sexual activity that was not confined to marriage
Sexual exploration more possibly - Both hetero and homosexual
Emergence of clearly defined gay communities in some urban centres
Literation on sex research, sex scholarship
Some of these labelling homosexuality as deviant
o Home might some of the contemporary trends in family life, such as delayed home
leaving and boomerang kids or the sandwich gen or transnational fams, impact our
sexualities, our sexual relationships? How choices about sex? Our choices of sexual
partners? o How might sexual practices be affected by other trends in family life? Or broader social
trends and social change?
o Try to imagine what sexuality in Canada will look like in a few years. What might family
life and sexuality look like in the future?
o To what extent is non-heterosexual sex seen as deviant in contemporary Canadian soc?
- 1900s characterized by a growth in materialism and consumerism, one of the things being sold
was heterosexual romance
o Effort aimed to connect heterosexuality to marriage
o Is hereto romance enforced by the products we buy?
Heterosexuality: contested ground
- Argues that heterosexuality is socially constructed
- Critiques long-standing ideologies about sex, men, women & desire
- Examines widely held view that hetero is natural and that there is a fundamental attraction btw
men and women that is based on differences in physiology
o Critique:
More
Less
