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[NOTE: This is a slightly-modified version of my previous post: https://www.boychat.org/messages/1599098.htm] Intimate Matters--D'Emilio,Freedman (2012) [link]Posted by Manstuprator on 2022-October-8 12:11:28, SaturdayIntimate Matters: A History of Sexuality in America by John D'Emilio, Estelle B. Freedman University of Chicago Press PUBLISHER'S DESCRIPTION: As the first full-length study of the history of sexuality in America, Intimate Matters offered trenchant insights into the sexual behavior of Americans from colonial times to the present. Now, twenty-five years after its first publication, this groundbreaking classic is back in a crucial and updated third edition. With new and extended chapters, D’Emilio and Freedman give us an even deeper understanding of how sexuality has dramatically influenced politics and culture throughout our history and into the present. Hailed by critics for its comprehensive approach and noted by the US Supreme Court in the landmark Laurence v. Texas ruling, this expanded new edition of Intimate Matters details the changes in sexuality and the ongoing growth of individual freedoms in the United States through meticulous research and lucid prose. Praise for earlier editions: “The book John D’Emilio co-wrote with Estelle B. Freedman, Intimate Matters, was cited by Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy when, writing for a majority of court on July 26, he and his colleagues struck down a Texas law criminalizing sodomy. The decision was widely hailed as a victory for gay rights—and it derived in part, according to Kennedy's written comments, from the information he gleaned from this book.”—Julia Keller, Chicago Tribune “Fascinating. . . . D’Emilio and Freedman marshal their material to chart a gradual but decisive shift in the way Americans have understood sex and its meaning in their lives.” —Barbara Ehrenreich, New York Times Book Review “With comprehensiveness and care...D’Emilio and Freedman have surveyed the sexual patterns for an entire nation across four centuries.” —Martin Bauml Duberman, Nation 2012 edition: University of Chicago Press 3rd ed. EPUB, 9.63 MB ____ Some goodeads.com reviews (seem to be of various editions): ------- Thorough and wide ranging, Intimate Matters charts with incredible detail the history of sexuality in the United States, from the colonial era to the present. As expansive as the scope is, a few core themes comprise the book’s thesis: since the start of the nation sexuality has become separated from reproduction and marriage; sex has been commercialized and politicized, by the right and left alike; and the state has maintained class and racial hierarchies through regulating sexuality. The authors draw upon an astounding level of archival research and embed engaging stories of everyday people within the history, though the text can at times be dry and repetitive. The work complicates the commonplace understanding of sexuality’s history as one of gradual liberation, and lucidly details how different social groups have experienced sex, marriage, and romance across centuries. ------- Despite getting quite a number of raised eyebrows when people caught sight of me reading this, it's not at all prurient or salacious. It's actually rather fascinating, despite the fact that the title really ought to be (A Mostly Heterosexual) History of Sexuality in America. There is very little in here about asexuality, bisexuality, homosexuality, which are mostly mentioned only in passing or in opposition to the prevailing heterosexual norm. I can understand why, to a certain extent, as the overwhelming majorities of studies to this point have focused on heterosexuality, and the relatively recent rise of gay liberation and the GLBTQ movement has meant that attention is really only now beginning to focus on social studies of homosexuality. This book charts the evolution of sexuality throughout America's history: from the colonial period, where sex was firmly rooted to reproduction within the context of marriage, men and women had clearly defined and very separates spheres of existence, and the community, church and government took a firm role in regulating people's behaviour; through the nineteenth century, when sex began to take on associations not just with reproduction, but with concepts such as spiritual union, romantic love, emotional satisfaction, and personal identity, still all within the context of marital union, however, and sex began to be commercialised through prostitution and the nacent pornography industry; to the twentieth century, when birth control meant that sex could almost be entirely detached from reproduction, the importance of sex to personal identity and happiness meant that it began to be divorced from the concept of marriage, and the growth of the economy led to the commercialisation of sex and the sexualisation of commerce. What I found interesting is that the history of sexuality in America is very much a story of evolution and progress all the way up to the twenteith century, when the pendulum of liberalism and conservatism begins to swing back and forth, as one generation reacts to the excesses or prudishness of the other. The 20s were a more permissive era; the 40s and 50s swung back to early marriage, large families and social conservatism; the 1960s moved back to liberalism and social rights movements; the late 1970s and 80s heralded the rise of evangelicalism and conservatism, permeated with interludes of hysteria about homosexuality, AIDS, teen pregnancies and sex education. ------- A thorough overview of the main trends in America's tortured ideas about s*e*x*---not so much the down & dirty but concepts of gender, permissiveness, gaydom, and youth. As with most histories than span several centuries, the narrative goes broad rather than deep; occasionally you sense some repetition of ideas, which is inevitable, I suppose. Yet I found the final section on the 20th century, "The Rise and Fall fo Sexual Liberalism," fascinating. There's a great section on Margaret Sanger, the mother of modern birth control, and her (and her husband's) battles with Anthony Comstock, one of the most famous blue meanies of all time. I also liked how---unlike VH-1's current documentary, Sex: The Revolution, this study doesn't go gaga congratulating baby-boomers for breaking taboos of virginity and monogamy in the 60s. Instead, a lot of the hypocrises of that revolution are pointed out---including the predatory opportunism it encouraged among supposedly enlightened white progressive men. The book is best read in short stretches---it's too much to assimilate at once. ------- This is a dry, academic study of sexual behavior in what is now the USA from the colonial period until the time of publication (1988). Among its virtues are efforts to distinguish between regions, races and classes. Among its deficits are the introductions and conclusions appended to its sections and subsections, all of which are yawningly abstract summaries of what is to come or of what has just happened. This may be in accord with any number of style books, but the way these authors handle it gives their book the freshness of a textbook. In broadest strokes, the thesis of the book is that sex has become increasingly divorced from reproduction. Although written at the height of the Reagan backlash against what they term "sexual liberalism", the exigencies of capitalism make this movement well nigh irresistible. ------- Should be required reading for anyone interested in human sexuality. Really challenged some misconceptions. ------- I recognize how difficult it could be to write a book about sexuality and not have it seem lurid or sensational. Unfortunately, this book seems too determined to let everyone know it is a scholarly text, and the prose is overly dry and formal. in some places, it feels more like a college paper that ballooned into a book, with many chapters starting with a "this is what this chapter will cover" beginning and ending with a "this is what this chapter has covered" conclusion. There is some fascinating but of data here along with some well documented accounts of sexuality hundreds of years ago, but it's something of a slog to get through. It's a broad survey of sexual attitudes and behaviors In the US, starting with the colonial era (and ending in the 1980's, since that is when it was written). It seems that things were much different than what we imagine, back then. The Puritans were not nearly as staid as you might think! (The opinion I seem to hear a lot is that basically everyone lived in a 1950's style family unit with 1950's style morals for ever and ever from the beginning of time until the hippies shook things up. Not true, but I can see why that is an attractive fantasy for some.) The overlooked bits of history are fascinating, but what engaged me the most was the way you can see in this book the roots of a lot of the really ugly things that still exist in our current culture, especially regarding race and how sex workers are treated. The authors don't draw these parallels, and I think the lack of moralizing or editorial comment makes this a stronger book, but seriously, these issues didn't just spring out of nowhere. The sections on race are particularly hard to read, and it's depressing that so many harmful stereotypes live on despite the advances we've made. It might be a bit dense for some readers, but anyone with an interest in the history of sex should certainly add this to their reading list. ------- A very thorough historical assessment of sexuality in what can be known about practice and the view of sexuality in American culture from the beginnings of colonization to the present day. The author does not fall into the trap of considering any type of movement or expectation as a given, as if views and perspectives about sexuality are heading toward a particular end. He assesses changes and reactions to changes; moments of "liberation," and moments of "withdrawal." And yet there is a general trajectory toward greater understanding and a higher social profile of sexuality and its practices over time. The author also does well at looking at the various attitudes which existed among different classes and ethnic groups while not neglecting the overall picture that at least a few in America wanted to present about what appropriate sexuality looked like. Fully researched and documented and a useful resource if one is interested in understanding the various contours of the views and arguments regarding human sexuality in American culture. ------- The chronological span of this book is remarkable, beginning the study in Colonial America and bringing it to our contemporary culture in the recent past (2010s). This survey traces changes in perception and expression of American sexuality, as it relates to changes in politics, economy, and family structures. A strength of the book is the authors' attention to the shifting dynamics of feminine sexual politics, wherein women went from being denied their sexuality toward the sexual objectification of the female body, and ironically with the greater acceptance of birth control the loss of their social right to define their sexual life. Less strong is the book's explication of *why* change in sexuality took place when and how it did. ------- This edition ends in the '80s, so it was kinda depressing in the final chapter knowing how political conservativism, particularly its religious fundie aspects, ended up becoming dominant and rolling back many of the gains of the feminist and gay rights movements. Their ideology is so fear-based, so NOT based in rationality or factual evidence. I feel like I can breathe a little now that they have lost a lot of their power, but damn, we really gotta remain vigilent. There's no reasoning with people who operate from fear. Assholes. ------- Good synthesis. Nicely organized, and easy to read. The only reason that I wouldn't give it 5-stars is because only really highlighted mainstream sexuality and the struggle to understand/maintain those norms (though the authors are careful to include gay/lesbian history as well). I wish there had been more discussion of the taboo, juxtaposed with their discussion of the norms. I will likely hunt down a copy of the 2nd edition to fill the void left by their hasty epilogue in the 1st edition that I read. ------- This was an excellent, well researched history of sexuality in the US, from colonial times to nearly the present. D'Emilio and Freedman were a good collaborative team, and they presented what seems to be an unbiased version of sexual history. There was a great deal of information about gay and lesbian history that is not usually available. There was less information about transgender history, but what they had was informative. I was reading this for my masters degree final project, and I'm glad I spent the time to do so. Great outlay of sexual history in America and how it influenced politics and lifestyle in general. It's time for them to research the next 20 years into this new age of sex taboos beyond the 1980s and early 1990s as we've come a long way since then. Albeit, some of the motifs of sex from earlier eras covered in the book seem to still exist today as much as we've moved into an era more welcoming of sexual freedom. I'd be intetested to see what new ideas come to light in another updated copy that's more than a shallow dive of an 'Afterword'. ------- Really thorough history of marriage and sex 16th-Century thru 20th-Century. Very enlightening, especially around intersections of race and class and how control of sexuality has been used as a tool to maintain hierarchies in the United States. Also really enlightening history on the ever-changing meaning of marriage among differing groups and religions. Could have been more nuanced around some of the feminist history but all in all, really great book. Highly recommend it! THE ABOVE REVIEWS FROM: https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1880.Intimate_Matters ... AND THERE ARE MANY OTHER POSITIVE REVIEWS AS WELL. * The authors? I remember them having written somewhat positively about BoyLove. * University of Chicago Press? Publishes some good stuff. * Epub edition -- it may have OCR errors. * Amazon.com rating: 4.5 of 5 stars * www.goodreads.com rating: 4 of 5 stars * Have I reread the book since years ago? No -- I don't have time for everything. * Is it useful for us? I think so, from what I remember of the book. * Can the book be criticized negatively? What book CAN'T be? * Is the book about "pedophilia"? No. It's about the history of attitudes in America about sexuality. * Is that still useful for us? It helps to understand American attitudes about sex and their development. * Should you read this book? Probably, if you would like more info on how fucked-up Americans are when it comes to sex. DOWNLOAD VARIOUS EDITIONS -- THE LATEST, UPDATED ONE IS RECOMMENDED: https://annas-archive.org/search?q=D%27Emilio%2C+John%3B+Freedman%2C+Estelle+%282012%29.+Intimate+matters [@nonymouse] [Guardster] [Proxify] [Anonymisierungsdienst] |