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Outline on an
Intro to Sexuality & Society
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Human sexuality is how people experience & express themselves as
sexual beings |
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Gender is everything that distinguishes a person as either male or
female |
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Sexually, like humanity's other appetites, is fundamentally the same
across cultures, & yet it's expression varies widely btwn as well as
w/in societies |
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Human beings are born male or female, & the physical differences
of the sexes play an important role in determining our sexuality |
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Sexuality also involves our inner sense of our self, that is, our very
identity, including being a male or female, as well as ways of behaving |
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A wide variety of factors shape a person's sexuality which can be broadly
grouped as (a) biological, (b) psychological, & (c) social/cultural |
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Biologically, sexuality encompasses sexual intercourse & sexual
contact in all its forms, as well as medical concerns about the physiological
or even psychological aspects of sexual behavior |
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Sociologically, sexuality encompasses cultural, political, & legal
aspects |
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Philosophically, sexuality encompasses the moral, ethical, theological,
spiritual or religious aspects |
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Sexuality influences how we behave, experience, feel, & think in
a wide range of situations |
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Sexuality affects how we view our roles in life, especially in family
relationships, at school, in the workplace, & in our community |
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Our sexuality helps define our attitudes about love & sexual relationships |
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Our sexuality partially determines who we are sexually attracted
to & how we express ourselves sexually w/in a relationship |
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The sex ratio is the proportion of males to females in a population |
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Studies of birth records for human beings & other animals indicate
that many species have more individuals of one sex than of the other |
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Among human beings, for example, 103 to 107 boys are born for every
100 girls |
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In the adult population, however, women outnumber men from adolescence
on because men die young more frequently from unnatural causes throughout
life & because women, on the average, live longer |
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Horses give birth to about 98 males for every 100 females & chickens
have about 95 males to every 100 females |
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FOUCAULT ON SEX |
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Michel Foucault pointed out in The History of Sex (1976) that
the concept of the activities & sensations we consider to be "sexual"
are historically, regionally & culturally determined |
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For Foucault, sexuality, because of its development across time &
cultures, is part of a changing "discourse" |
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In many historical eras, recovered art & artifacts help to portray
human sexuality of the time period |
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Modern society in the US today has become so eroticized that the viewing
of female breasts, as for example in the public Victoria's Secrets ads,
is sexual, & thus breast feeding which was until the 18th C not a sexual
activity, is now controversial in the US w/ some advocating that it should
only be done in private |
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The sexual meanings, i.e. the meanings of the erotic dimension of the
human sexual experience, are social & cultural constructs |
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Erotic expressions are made subjective, i.e. imbued w/ sexual / secret
meaning, only after cultural & social mediation |
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Being the main force conditioning human relationship, sex is essentially
political, i.e. the personal is political, the body is political |
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In any social context, the construction of a "sexual universe" is fundamentally
linked to the structures of power |
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The construction of sexual meanings, is an instrument by which social
structures, e.g. peers, family, religion, econ, govt, military, charity,
ed, media, leisure, as well as social institutions such as marketing, psychiatry,
etc. control & shape human relationships |
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According to Foucault, sexuality began to be regarded as a concept
part of human nature since the 19th century; so sexuality began to be used
as a means to define normality |
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Like Durkheim, Foucault noted that to estb the boundaries of "normal
sexual behavior" is to conceive everything outside those boundaries in
the realm of psycho pathology |
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For Foucault, in the 20th century, w/ the theories of Freud & of
sexology, the "not normal" was seen more as a "discontent of civilization" |
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SOCIETY & SEX |
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Psychological, social, & cultural factors that influence our sexuality
include personal beliefs, emotions, & feelings |
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As young children, we develop a concept of ourselves & a large
part of that self concept is defined as either male or female |
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We also learn how a person of our sex is expected to act in society |
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Parents, friends, teachers, television & other forms of mass communication,
religious teachings, & many other sources help shape how we feel about
our sexuality |
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Sexual attitudes & behavior often involve intense emotions &
attractions |
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Feelings of sexual desire may begin during the biological changes of
puberty, but they are influenced by social learning |
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Both our conscious & unconscious thoughts influence how we respond
sexually to another person |
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Every society has its own beliefs about the ways that males & females
should behave & as a result, attitudes about sexuality vary widely
from culture to culture |
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The people of one culture may regard legs, earlobes, & the back
of the neck as sexually attractive |
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But people of another culture may find nothing at all sexual about
the legs, earlobes, & the back of the neck |
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Similarly, such body decorations as tattoos or cosmetics might be considered
appropriate in one culture but not in another |
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Ideas about the roles of the sexes also vary widely from society to
society |
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For example, in most of Italy, it is common for men to express affection
for each other w/ big, emotional hugs |
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In the US, a public display of affection btwn men is less common |
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Human sexuality is also understood as part of the social life of humans,
governed by implied rules of behavior & the status quo |
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From a social pt of view, sexual norms are determined by not only society,
but more specifically by the norms of the groups one belongs to, in that
for example, one may come from a "normal family" w/ modern / traditional
norms that accept / expect pre marital sex, & then become part of an
absentence only peer group |
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The socio cultural aspect examines influences on & from social
norms, including mediums such as politics & the mass media |
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The mediums of politics, the media, peer pressure, religion etc. are
able to bring about massive changes in the social norms as seen in the
examples of the sexual revolution & the rise of feminism |
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SEX EDUCATION |
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Sex education is the introduction of sexual topics w/in an educational
context |
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Almost all western countries have some form of sex education, but the
nature varies widely |
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In some countries, such as Australia & much of Europe, "age appropriate"
sex education often begins in pre school, whereas other countries, notably
the USA, leave sex education to the teenage years & even the late teenage
years |
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Sex education covers a range of topics, including the physical, mental,
& social aspects of sexual behavior |
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PSYCHOLOGICAL VIEWS ON SEXUALITY ARE DIVIDED BASED ON THE PSYCHL
PARADIGM |
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Psychl views on sex are quite different for the psycho dynamic, behaviorist,
cognitive, humanistic, etc. psychl paradigms |
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Early psychological analysis were carried out by Freud, who believed
that Eros, the sex / life drive, was a fundamental motivator of human behavior |
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Freud developed the concepts of erogenous zones, psycho sexual development,
& the Oedipus complex, among others |
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Behavior theorists such as Watson & Skinner examined the actions
& consequences & their ramifications |
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These theorists would, for example, study children who were punished
for sexual exploration & see if they grew up to associate negative
feelings w/ sex in general |
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Social learning theorists use similar concepts, but focused on cognitive
activity & modeling |
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Gender identity is a specific psychological aspect of human sexuality
that can be affected by the social env |
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Internal
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Outline on Sex
vs. Gender
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External
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Many people use the terms sex & gender interchangeably, however,
social scientists consider the two terms to have different meanings |
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SEX |
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Sex is the biological categorization of male, female, "other" |
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Sex refers to the physical characteristics that make a person male
or female |
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When social scientists talk of sex differences btwn females & males,
they usually refer to biological characteristics, such as hormonal, anatomical,
& physiological differences that define them |
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Less than 1 % of the population has major physical characteristics
of both male & female |
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Much of the population has minor physical characteristics of both males
& females such as seen in the TV show "He's a Lady" |
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GENDER |
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Gender is the social category of male, female, other |
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Gender socially learned traits associated w/, & expected
of men or women |
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Gender refers to the personal traits & social positions that members
of a society attach to being female & male |
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Gender refers to a sense of being male or female or having the recognizable
traits of one's sex |
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Gender differences refer to the socially & culturally constructed
definitions of what it means to be female & male |
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The social construction of gender in a particular society or subculture
shapes norms & expectations for appropriate behaviors, roles, &
appearance for males & females |
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Biologically, men & women differ in limited ways, but culture can
define the two sexes in dramatically different ways |
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Social indicators of gender have changed over time:
Long/short hair
Skirts/pants
What are some other social indicators? |
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Biological indicators of sex have changed as, for example, women are
now over 1 inch taller than 30 yrs. ago |
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It is important not to think of social differences btwn the sexes exclusively
in biological terms |
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The appropriate roles, behaviors, & expectations for males &
females have modified considerably over time |
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THE SOCIAL SCIENCES, GENDER, & SEX |
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Sociology of gender is the study of socially constructed female
& male roles, relations, & identities |
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Feminist theory is the study of woman centered patterning of
human experience |
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Today there is a growing sociology of gender on masculinity |
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Characteristics & behavior generally associated w/ being a male
are called masculine |
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Characteristics & behavior generally associated w/ being a female
are called feminine |
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The development of sexuality is influenced by two major forces related
to gender: gender identity & gender role |
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Gender identity is a personal sense that "I am a male" or "I am a female" |
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Gender identity develops partly from biological influences, such as
body shape & genitals, & partly from cultural influences, including
clothing & hairstyle |
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Gender role refers to a society's expectations for males & females,
including values, attitudes, & behavior |
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Individuals develop these expectations w/ the influence of parents,
friends, & teachers, as well as television, motion pictures, &
other sources |
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Men are stereotypically considered to be more aggressive & action
oriented while women are thought ot be more capable of nurturing &
caring behavior that makes them better able to take care of family &
household needs |
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In a now classic study Margaret mead noted that among the Arapesh,
the Mindugumor, & the Tchambuli tribes in the So Pacific, masculinity
& femininity were socially constructed differently in each |
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Among the Arapesh, women as well as men displayed inaggressive, cooperative,
& caring behaviors |
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Among the Mundugumor, both sexes exhibited aggressive behavior |
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Among the Tchambuli, the men displayed more passive & dependent
behavior than women |
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Among the Aka, a hunting & gathering tribe in central Africa, Hewlett
notes the close bond btwn infants & fathers, & the open display
of affection & nurturing behavior by men is in sharp contrast to the
'rough & tumble' play characteristic of interaction btwn American fathers
& infants |
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Recent studies show varied definitions of masculinity & femininity
in the US, & variations in behavior among women & men |
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When men take on the primary parenting role & share in household
responsibilities, they display close emotional & nurturing ties to
their children & are capable of developing 'maternal thinking' |
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WOmen & men are now taking on roles & responsibilities that
were considered quite inappropriate one or tow generations ago |
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SEX & THE BODY |
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Primary sex characteristics refer to the organs used for reproduction,
namely the genitals |
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Secondary sex characteristics are bodily differences, apart from the
genitals, that distinguish biologically mature females & males |
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The term inter sexual people refers to people whose bodies (including
genitals) have both female & male characteristics |
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An older term for inter sexual people is hermaphrodite |
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Transsexuals are people who feel they are one sex even though biologically
they are the other |
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Internal
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Each of us develops general beliefs about males & females, including
assumptions about appropriate attitudes & behavior for each gender |
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These general beliefs about maleness & femaleness are part of the
wider culture, & are transmitted via the processes of socialization |
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See Also: Culture |
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See Also: Socialization |
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Our concepts of masculine & feminine gender roles profoundly affect
our sexuality & our relationships |
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The terms masculinity & femininity usually refer to a combination
of physical traits, such as body shape, voice, & facial hair, &
acquired characteristics such as hairstyle, clothing, body movements, &
display of emotions |
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When we meet people for the first time, most of us quickly note the
person's gender based on these traits & characteristics |
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We tend consciously or unconsciously to judge the masculinity or femininity
of people by how closely they correspond to our expectations for each gender |
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Gender role expectations are often formed by male or female stereotypes |
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A stereotype refers to oversimplified characteristics applied as a
generalization to a group of people |
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A stereotype represents a form of pre judgment applied to all individuals
of a certain age, gender, physical appearance, ethnic group, or occupation |
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See Also: Social Injustice based on Social Differentiation |
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CULTURAL INFLUENCE ON GENDER ROLES |
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All societies have cultural guidelines for each gender's proper role
& personality |
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In the past, most societies in Europe & the Americas associated
masculinity w/ being independent, aggressive, & competitive |
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Most Europeans & Americans also considered it masculine to serve
as the family's main financial provider & to take initiative in contacts
w/ women |
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Traditional feminine characteristics included being warm, emotional,
dependent, & noncompetitive |
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Feminine individuals were also expected to nurture (take care of or
"mother") men & children |
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ANTHROPOLOGICAL VIEWS OF GENDER ROLES |
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Anthropological studies demonstrate that contrary to most people's
believes, a wide variety of gender roles are possible |
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Different cultures often have different ideas about what defines masculinity
or femininity |
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The American anthropologist Margaret Mead found wide cultural variety
in relation to gender & sexuality in her studies of the peoples of
New Guinea during the 1920s & 1930s |
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Mead noted that among the Mundugumor, both sexes are gentle, nurturing,
& non aggressive |
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Gentle, nurturing, & non aggressive behaviors would have been regarded
as feminine in American society at that time, & now |
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Among the Tchambuli, Mead observed a reversal of traditional American
gender roles |
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Tchambuli men were quiet, understanding, & emotionally dependent
while Tchambuli women were lively, businesslike, & independent |
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In all societies, individuals learn rules governing gender roles from
a variety of sources, including their family & church |
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Three other important sources of gender roles are (1) peer groups,
(2) school, & (3) the mass media |
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PEER INFLUENCES |
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Peer groups are people of the same age, background, occupation, or
social status |
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Most people interact socially & become friends w/ people who are
in their peer group |
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Peer influence on gender roles begins at an early age |
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Even 3 year olds have ideas about "what boys do" & "what girls
do" & put pressure on one another to act according to those ideas |
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When children engage in behavior stereotyped as typical of the other
sex, their peers may criticize them |
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For example, a boy who wears a frilly, pink shirt or a ponytail may
be ridiculed by classmates |
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In addition, many children tend to select playmates of the same sex,
which reinforces traditional gender roles |
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During adolescence, the approval & acceptance of peers can be more
important than the approval of parents |
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In high school, peer groups have sharply defined gender roles w/ rules
about proper behavior for males & females |
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Individuals who do not meet the group's expectations for behavior may
be subjected to ridicule, teasing, being left out of group activities,
or other forms of pressure |
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SCHOOL INFLUENCES |
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Schools teach far more about gender roles than is apparent in the formal
curriculum |
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A teacher's values, attitudes, & behavior all influence those of
students |
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A teacher who holds stereotyped gender role expectations may give boys
more encouragement than girls w/o realizing it |
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For example, the stereotyping teacher may praise boys for the intellectual
content of their work, while girls may be praised for neatness |
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In the 1980s & 1990s, many schools began to provide training to
help teachers ensure equal treatment for boys & girls |
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THE MEDIA 'CONSTRUCTS' A WIDE VARIETY OF GENDER ROLES INCLUDING
UNREALISTIC & IDEALIZED ROLES, PROGRESSIVE ROLES, ETC. |
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The media 'constructs' roles in the sense that it intentionally creates
them based on commercial interests, artistic interests, progressive &
conservative interests, etc. |
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The Western media is 'conflict terrain' in that a plethora of interests
use it to advance their own, divergent agendas |
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The strength of the Western media is that there is a wide variety of
view pts available |
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The mass media include the various forms of mass communication:
television, newspapers, magazines, radio, motion pictures, & the internet |
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TV plays a particularly large role in shaping a person's values, attitudes,
& behavior |
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Many children spend long hours watching TV |
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Evidence indicates that people, especially young people, pattern their
behavior after what they see or hear in the mass media |
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A style of clothing or hairstyle that becomes trendy on TV or in motion
pictures quickly becomes trendy at school |
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Until the 1980s, television traditionally portrayed mostly stereotypical
gender roles |
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Characters who appeared in nontraditional gender roles were frequently
portrayed as silly or ineffective |
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For example, a male character who took care of a baby or a female character
who attempted to fix an automobile might fail miserably at these tasks |
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Such portrayals of non stereotypical roles reinforced ideas about how
a male or female was "supposed" to act |
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Television has increasingly portrayed women & men in non stereotypical
roles |
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Many female characters now are shown as assertive & independent
w/ nontraditional careers, such as surgeons, military officers, or police
officers |
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In addition, many male characters are shown as caring, nurturing husbands
& parents |
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This trend is considered highly significant because the media's images
of men & women have a major impact on our views of gender roles |
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ANDROGYNY |
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Many people view masculinity & femininity as opposites, that is,
if a certain trait is considered feminine, its opposite will be viewed
as masculine |
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Yet many characteristics traditionally regarded as masculine &
feminine are not opposites, they are just different |
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It is unusual for a person to have exclusively masculine or feminine
characteristics |
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Most people have a combination of both types of traits |
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This combination of masculine & feminine traits in one person is
called androgyny |
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The term comes from the Greek words andros, which means man, &
gyne, which means woman |
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Research indicates that highly androgynous people adapt well to a wide
range of situations |
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For example, they feel at ease being independent, forceful, warm, or
nurturing, whatever the situation demands |
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Some studies suggest that androgynous men & women have fewer psychological
problems than those who adopt the old, traditional gender roles |
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Internal
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Outline on Gender
Identity
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External
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Gender identity is an expansive set of roles that together comprise
a person's sense of maleness or femaleness |
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A person's sex is distinguished from their gender identity |
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Gender identity is a more expansive set of roles than sexual identity |
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A person's sense of maleness or femaleness is set early in life, probably
by the age of four |
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Human physiology & gender molding make certain forms of sexual
expression possible or even likely, but it is not possible to predict that
future sexual behavior will be regarded as 'gender appropriate' by society |
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Even if one takes on mainstream roles of sexuality & gender, gender
identity is wider in that it encompasses other gender related roles such
society's views of gender & nurturing, recreating, friendships, occupation,
fashion style, friendships, way of talking & walking, & more |
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Typical gender identities in a society follow stereotypes, such as
in the movie "North Country" where the daughter tells her dad she wants
to work in the mines. The father replies w/ a look of disbelieve,
& quite seriously asks, "Are you a lesbian?" |
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GENDER IDENTITY & BIOLOGICAL FACTORS |
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Research indicates that gender identity develops partly from the way
a person is raised & partly from biological factors |
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Before birth, a human being's sex is determined at conception, also
called fertilization |
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Both the egg & the sperm each contain 23 chromosomes (threadlike
strands that carry genetic information), including one sex chromosome |
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The sex chromosome carried by the egg is called an X chromosome &
the sperm contains either an X or a Y chromosome |
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If an X bearing sperm fertilizes the egg, the sex chromosomes form
an XX pair, which results in a female baby |
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If the egg is fertilized by a Y bearing sperm, the sex chromosomes
form an XY pair, resulting in a male baby |
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After conception, the development of the gonads results in the production
of hormones particular to being male or female, & if this hormone production
is altered, it impacts ones sex, gender, & gender identity |
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GENDER IDENTITY & PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS |
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Freud concluded that many childhood memories dealt w/ sex |
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See Also: Freud |
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Freud's conclusions on sexuality were extremely controversial in his
time, the 1800s, which were dominated by Victorian morality |
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Freud believed that his patients' reports of sexual abuse by a parent
were fantasies reflecting unconscious desires |
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Freud theorized that sexual functioning begins at birth, & that
a person goes through several psychological stages of sexual development |
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Freud believed the normal pattern of psychosexual development is interrupted
in some people |
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People w/ abnormal psychosexual development become fixated at an earlier,
immature stage |
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Freud felt that a fixation at an early or immature stage could contribute
to mental illness in adulthood |
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GENDER IDENTITY & EARLY SOCIALIZATION |
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Gender is molded by the social env to which one is exposed as a child,
e.g. an authority figure giving a little boy a toy truck to play w/, &
a girl a doll |
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In early childhood, gender identity is influenced greatly by one's
parents |
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Later in life other agents of socializaiton such as peers, one's education,
the media, etc. influence our gender identity |
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Traditionally, parents raised boys much differently than girls |
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Parents often encouraged boys to hold back emotions & to be independent,
self reliant, & competitive |
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Girls were expected to have the opposite characteristics of boys:
dependent & non competitive |
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Adults encouraged children to play w/ toys that helped prepare them
for traditional male or female roles |
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For example, girls commonly received tea sets & dolls as gifts,
while boys received trucks, toy guns, & footballs |
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Some parents gave their children home chores that reinforced their
gender identity |
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Girls worked in the kitchen & helped w/ laundry, while boys did
outdoor or mechanical jobs |
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These gender distinctions are still practiced to some extent |
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However, increasing numbers of parents try to raise their children
w/ the best characteristics of both genders |
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Both boys & girls are encouraged to be independent & self reliant |
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Girls do mechanical jobs, & boys help care for other children |
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Nevertheless, most parents still treat boys & girls differently |
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For example, parents may dress boys & girls differently & decorate
their rooms in contrasting ways, choosing plainer styles for boys &
frillier ones for girls |
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SPECIAL CASES OF GENDER IDENTITY |
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A small number of males & females believe they should have been
born a member of the other sex |
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Such individuals, called transsexuals, believe they have the wrong
body for their feelings & emotions |
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They feel "trapped" in the body of the wrong sex |
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Some transsexuals have surgery to change their anatomy to match their
feelings |
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Estimates of the number of transsexuals in the United States range
from 10,000 to 25,000 |
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The cause of transsexualism is unknown |
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See Also: Transexualism |
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Transsexualism differs from transvestism |
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A transvestite enjoys dressing in the clothes of the other sex |
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But transvestites have the gender identity of their biological sex |
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Most transvestites are males who prefer sexual relationships w/ women,
but who find it satisfying to dress in women's clothing |
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EXPRESSION OF LOVE & SEX |
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The expression of love & sex is a large part of one's sexual identity |
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The relationship btwn love & sex is complex because love typically
involves strong feelings |
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The feelings of love may exist w/o sexual desire or sexual expression |
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For example, people may love their parents, children, grandparents,
friends, or even their pets |
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Likewise, sex may occur w/o feelings of love |
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Some couples, both married & unmarried, have sexual relations w/o
being in love w/ each other |
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Nevertheless, the feelings of being in love w/ & sexually attracted
to another person are frequently intertwined |
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Expressing Sexuality |
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Every individual develops distinctive sexual values, needs, interests,
fantasies, & preferences, all of which define the person's sexual identity |
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Our sexual identity determines how we express ourselves sexually |
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Forms of sexual expression vary from holding hands & hugging to
more intimate sexual contact, such as kissing & sexual intercourse |
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Sexual expression also can have many different meanings |
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For example, sexual intercourse can express love & indicate the
deep intimacy w/in a relationship |
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For some couples, having a baby may be the primary reason for sexual
intercourse while others may have sex mainly for pleasure |
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People also use sex to try to feel more secure in a relationship or
to prove their worth to the other person |
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American society holds conflicting attitudes about sexuality |
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On the one hand, people learn the importance of sexual attractiveness
from such sources as family, peers, school, & the mass media |
|
|
From the same sources, however, people often pick up underlying feelings
of anxiety & guilt about actually expressing their sexuality |
|
|
In addition, many individuals & religious groups consider certain
sexual behavior, such as homosexuality & sex outside marriage, to be
morally wrong |
|
|
Each person must decide how she or he wants to express sexuality |
|
|
Most people are influenced in their decision by values learned from
their family, church, or peer group |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on Culture
& Sexuality
|
|
External
Links
|
|
- Video: Kinsey |
Link
|
|
SEXUALITY & CULTURE STRUCTURE EACH OTHER |
|
|
Human sexuality must be understood as part of the social life of humans,
governed by implied rules of behavior & the status quo culture |
|
|
Sexuality influences social norms & society in turn influences
the manner in which sexuality can be expressed |
|
|
Human intelligence & complex societies have produced among the
most complicated sexual behaviors of any animal |
|
|
Since the development of the mass media, sexuality has had a larger
impact on the wider social environments in which we live |
|
|
Through it's portrayal in the mass media, sexuality comes to be distilled,
often into stereotypes, & then repeatedly expressed in the commercialized
forms of print, audio, film, etc. |
|
|
Human sexual choices are usually made using contemporary cultural norms |
|
|
For example; some may choose to abstain from sex before marriage because
their religion forbids such actions |
|
|
Human sexual behavior, like many other kinds of activity engaged in
by human beings, is generally governed by social rules called norms
that are culturally specific & vary widely |
|
|
These social norms, which in their totality are referred to as sexual
morality by the public, define what can & can appropriate, what is
& is not expected |
|
|
In some cultures it may be acceptable for a man to have many wives,
while in others bigamy or polygamy is frowned upon or illegal |
|
|
Those who wish to express a dissident sexuality often form subcultures
w/in the main culture |
|
|
Most societies have defined some sexual activities as inappropriate
or even illegal such as having sex w/ the wrong person, engaging in the
wrong sexual activity, having sex at wrong place, having sex at the wrong
time, etc. |
|
|
Most people experiment w/ a range of sexual activities during their
lives, though they tend to engage in only a few of these regularly |
|
|
Some people enjoy many different sexual activities, while others avoid
sexual activities altogether for religious or other reasons via practices
called chastity, sexual abstinence, etc. |
|
|
Historically, many societies & religions have viewed sex as appropriate
only w/in marriage & yet sexual activity has always occurred at a relatively
hi rate outside of marriage |
|
|
Industries enabling sex or sexual communication include nightclubs,
singles bars, personal want ads in newspapers & on the web, dating
services, & brothels, among many others |
|
|
Many orgs & clubs sponsor events that bring people w/ similar interests
together |
|
|
Religious & family connections provide another way for people to
meet |
|
|
SEXUAL ATTITUDES IN THE US |
|
|
The 1800s witnessed the wanning of Puritanical morality which impacted
the social construction of gender, sexuality, the self, marriage, divorce,
etc. |
|
|
The 1800s were a period of major transformations in Am society during
which debates around issues of sexually defined sexual roles, sexual practices,
& sexual identity all shaped the institutions of the state, tested
our democracy, & brought into question the values & vision of America |
|
|
The 1800s were characterized by widespread prostitution, the emergence
of obscene literature & pornography, an epidemic of hysteria around
sexuality & other issues, & a nationwide panic about solitary sex,
i.e. masturbation |
|
|
The 1800s were also a period in which powerful groups in our society
shifted focus to the private arena of sex & desire |
|
|
The heated & much larger debates during the 1800s concerned efforts
to subordinate the labor, pleasure, desires, & reproduction of the
body of whole populations not only in relation to sexuality but also in
relation to drug use, alcohol use, vacations, the 40 hr work week, sports,
& so on |
|
|
Preachers, prostitutes, journalists, feminists, union bosses, free
thinkers, medical doctors, & judges led the discussion on sexual matters
representing the conflicting interests & visions of class, gender &
racial groups in their struggles to define what is right or wrong, what
is healthy or sick, what is newsworthy or not, & what is defined as
lawful or obscene in the larger society |
|
|
The greater secular approval by the general population of sexuality,
sexual freedom, & the general pleasure of the working class was paralleled
by the view of powerful people that these trends also represented a troubling
moral, medical & social problem |
|
|
The conflict btwn those seeking modernized views of sexuality &
pleasure & those seeking to control such desires occurred at the time
when industrial capitalism was experiencing major successes, & when
America's democratic institutions were strengthened |
|
|
While Americans were experiencing greater freedom, the relationship
btwn the individual body & the newly emerging social system became
problematic |
|
|
Solitary sex, hysteria, obscenity, prostitution, pornography, night
life, etc. became major threats to patriarchal society |
|
|
Patriarchal society defined sexuality & the new technology of sex,
i.e. pornography, night clubs, etc., & the modern self as being deviant
& in need of regulation |
|
|
The stories of these social "illnesses" as developed in the 1800s are
substantially related & had a lasting imprint on society, sexuality
& the self |
|
|
Competing perspectives on the body, constructed definitions of sexualities,
& the changing roles of gender are each a product of a particular society
at a particular time in history |
|
|
The cultural orientation toward sex in the US has been inconsistent
since the "sexual revolution" |
|
|
Alfred Kinsey published a study of sexuality in the US in 1948 which
depicted the changes in Am sexuality which prefaced the sexual revolution |
|
|
Child sexuality has historically been severely limited in western societies;
in the late 19th century |
|
|
The hysteria surrounding what was then often called "self abuse" (masturbation)
among children reached its peak in the late 19th C & in the US led
to the widespread adoption of circumcision |
|
|
It was not until medical science proved in the 1950s that masturbation
was not harmful, & that it was normal in that most people did it, that
the taboo on masturbation disappeared for the middle class |
|
|
Throughout history there have been many different techniques &
devices utilized to control sexuality, restrain masturbation, cure
hysteria, imprison the body, & subordinate desire, as well as, the
strategies, knowledge & devices used to encourage the exploration of
our erotic potential |
|
|
THE SEXUAL REVOLUTION MADE 'RECREATIONAL SEX' AN AMERICAN VALUE |
|
|
The sexual revolution came of age in the late 1960s when youth culture
dominated public life & a new freedom about sexuality prevailed |
|
|
The introduction of the birth control pill in 1960 both prevented pregnancy
& made sex more convenient |
|
|
The sexual revolution legitimated pre marital sex |
|
|
THE SEXUAL COUNTER REV PRESERVED SOME OF THE VALUES OF THE SEXUAL
REV AS WELL AS TRADL FAM VALUES |
|
|
The sexual counterrevolution began in 1980 as a conservative call for
a return to "family values" by which sexual freedom was to be replaced
by sexual responsibility |
|
|
Although general public's attitudes remain divided on premarital sex,
this behavior is broadly accepted among young people |
|
|
The frequency of sexual activity varies widely in the U.S. population |
|
|
It is married people who have sex w/ partners the most & report
the highest level of satisfaction |
|
|
EXTRA MARITAL SEX |
|
|
Extramarital sex is widely condemned, but this type of activity is
more common than people say it should be |
|
|
SEX OVER THE LIFE COURSE |
|
|
Patterns of sexual activity change w/ age |
|
|
The picture begins to change by about age 50, after which advancing
age is linked to a decline in the share of people who are sexually active |
|
|
Contrary to popular stereotypes, sexual activity is a
normal part of life for most older adults |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on Romance,
Love, etc.
|
|
External
Links
|
|
WHILE MODERN PEOPLE OFTEN ACT AS IF LOVE & ROMANCE FLOWED THROUGHOUT
THE AGES, IT HAS CHANGED / DEVELOPED THROUGHOUT HISTORY |
|
|
Romance is being involved in love, a love affair as in a strong attachment
or enthusiasm for a significant other, in interest in the adventure of
love |
|
|
Love is an emotion where one experiences & displays a strong, passionate
& personal affection, or liking for a person or a thing such as a love
of books or one's country |
|
|
Thus love is something that a person does & experiences |
|
|
As common sense tells us, the more we experience love, the more we
behave like we are in love & thus love is almost seen like a external
force that takes us over & makes us behave in a particular manner |
|
|
Contrary to common sense, as symbolic interactionists demonstrate via
their concept of the social construction of the self & the social construction
of reality, the more we act as if we are in love, the more we experience
being in love |
|
|
Romance evolved from the middle ages when society took note of 'commoners'
& their heroic adventures, chivalrous devotion, unusual experiences,
worldly/historical events, or matters of a kind to appeal to the imagination |
|
|
In the middle ages, romance / love / humanity became available to individuals
of all classes & not just to the aristocrats |
|
|
LOVE IS AN EMOTION W/ MANY DIMENSIONS
THAT ARE ONLY PARTIALLY UNDERSTOOD |
|
|
Emotion is usually considered to be a feeling about or reaction to
certain important events or thoughts |
|
|
An emotion can be either pleasant or unpleasant & an individual
may have a mixture of both pleasant & unpleasant emotions at the same
time as when one is pleasant in love but is reluctant to acknowledge /
behave as if they are in love |
|
|
People enjoy feeling pleasant emotions such as love, happiness, &
contentment & try to avoid feeling unpleasant emotions, such as loneliness,
worry, grief, & unrequited love |
|
|
In general, people are often not fully aware of their own emotions |
|
|
Although most people believe they know what an emotion is, social scientists
have not agreed on a definition that applies to both human beings &
animals |
|
|
The concept of the social construction of the self implies that individuals
communicate most of their emotions by means of words, a variety of other
sounds, facial expressions, & gestures, & that the very act of
presenting an emotion to others increases our experience of that emotion |
|
|
People learn ways of showing & recognizing their emotions from
members of their society, though heredity may determine some emotional
behavior |
|
|
Research has shown that different isolated peoples show emotions by
means of similar facial expressions & even children who are born blind
have facial expressions like those of sighted children |
|
|
Several American psychologists, including Izard, Plutchik, & Tomkins,
have independently developed the theory that there are eight basic emotions |
|
|
The 8 basic emotions, which can exist at various levels of intensity,
are:
1. anger
2. fear
3. joy
4. sadness |
5. acceptance
6. disgust
7. surprise
8. interest or curiosity |
|
|
|
The 8 basic emotions combine to form all other emotions, just as certain
basic colors produce all others |
|
|
Love is generally accepted to be a combination of surprise (at the
beginning), joy, acceptance, & interest |
|
|
RESEARCHERS HAVE DEVELOPED MANY SCHEMAS TO FOSTER UNDERSTANDING
OF THE MANY DIMENSIONS OF LOVE INCLUDING ATTACHMENT, CARING,
INTIMACY,
COMMITMENT,
& OTHERS |
|
|
Rubin's "love scale" holds that the 3 components of love include:
- attachment
- caring
- intimacy |
|
|
For Rubin, passionate love, aka infatuation, includes:
1. intense psychological feelings
2. physiological arousal
3. strong sexual desire |
4. the avoidance of conflict
5. feelings of completeness
6. a short lived time period |
|
|
|
For Rubin, compassionate love includes:
1. friendly affection
2. deep attachment
3. familiarity
4. tolerance for short comings |
5. nurturance
6. problem solving
7. a more enduring time frame
than passionate love |
|
|
|
Sternberg's triangular theory is similar to Rubin's theory, & holds
that love is composed of the 3 components of:
- commitment
- passion
- intimacy |
|
|
Sternberg's love triangle includes the 3 components of love, &
the various kinds of love as reflected in different combinations of the
3 components
Note: Non love is the absence of all 3 of Sternberg's components of
love |
|
|
Chart: Sternberg's Love Triangle
The Chart on the Sternberg's Love Triangle demonstrates that the 3 components
of love & the various kinds of love as reflected in different combinations
of the 3 components combine to form a modern form of love often called
true love |
|
|
Intimacy includes the feeling of liking someone & respecting them
intellectually |
|
|
Passion includes that unnamable "clicking" or magic that people feel
as well as sexual attraction & fulfillment |
|
|
Commitment includes the exclusivity one needs as well as the amount
of time people like to spend together |
|
|
For Sternberg several types of affection exist including:
1. liking, which is intimacy alone
2. infatuation, which is passion alone
3. empty love, which is commitment alone |
4. romantic love which is intimacy & passion
5. companionate love which is intimacy & commitment
6. consummate love, which is intimacy, passion, &
commitment |
|
|
|
Like Rubin, for Sternberg, non love is the absence of all of the 3
components of love |
|
|
According to Sternberg's triangular theory of love, passion builds
then fades while intimacy & commitment continue to build |
|
|
Chart: Sternberg' s Love Triangle
Over Time
The Chart on the Sternberg's Love Triangle Over Time theorizes that
the passion component of love peaks early in a relationship & then
declines, whereas the other 2 components, intimacy & commitment, continue
to build gradually over time |
|
|
FALLING IN LOVE IS A FUNCTION OF PHYSICAL FACTORS
SUCH AS NEUROTRANSMITTERS, & SOCIAL FACTORS SUCH AS SIMILARITY
OF SOCIAL CHARACTERISTICS |
|
|
The chemistry of love includes the interaction of:
1. neurotransmitters
2. norepinephrine
3. dopamine |
4. phenylethylamine (PEA)
5. endorphins
6. loss & neurotransmitter w/drawal |
|
|
|
Because it is difficult to fall in love w/ those w/ whom we are not
near (though it does occur), proximity, the mere exposure effect, is an
important factor in love |
|
|
For love, proximity is important because familiarity breeds predictability
& greater comfort; it allows us to experience each of the components
of love |
|
|
Greater proximity often reflects shared interests |
|
|
Similarity is important in love in that strong lovers:
a. share similar interests & activities
b. communicate better
c. are able to confirm each other's views &
experiences w/ their lover
d. are supportive of each other's values & beliefs |
|
|
Reciprocity is present for lovers in that:
a. when someone shows they like us, we tend to like them
back
b. both demonstrate similar positive reactions to flattery,
compliments, & attention
c. there is a lower likelihood of rejection |
|
|
Physical attractiveness is important in romantic relationships in that
each person has their, probably unrecognized, specific tastes in relation
to beauty |
|
|
'Similar' beauty is more important that 'absolute' beauty in that we
tend to choose & are happier w/ those who have about the same level
of beauty that we have |
|
|
Beauty is important because:
- of the general belief that "what is beautiful is good"
- of status by association
- it may be an indices of physical health
- our culture socializes us to believe it is important |
|
|
Like passion, beauty is the most important in the early stages of the
relationship |
|
|
Physical attractiveness is an important component of love for everyone,
& heterosexual males place the greatest value on it |
|
|
SOCIOBIOLOGY HOLDS THAT SOCIAL BEHAVIOR, INCLUDING
LOVE,
CAN BE EXPLAINED BY EVOLUTIONARY NEEDS |
|
|
Sociobiology holds that behavior can be explained by evolutionary needs |
|
|
For socio biologists, evolutionary pressure favors men who are attracted
to young attractive females because it maximizes their own reproductive
success |
|
|
For socio biologists, if a man fathers children throughout his entire
life, which he can only do by choosing a series of child bearing age women,
then he has greater evolutionary success than the man who remains committed
to one woman throughout her life span |
|
|
For socio biologists, evolutionary pressure favors women who are attracted
to older, established men because the older man's wealth allows them to
maximize their reproductive success by carefully nurturing & providing
for the few children they may have |
|
|
For socio biologists, because women bear relatively few children, they
need a good provider making older, wealthier men more attractive because
they are able to provide support for children |
|
|
Sociobiology states that the best evolutionary strategy, i.e. the highest
level of procreation, include those of the pairing of the older man &
the younger woman & thus younger & less successful men & older
women often find themselves squeezed out of the mate market |
|
|
THE PROCESS OF FALLING IN LOVE HAS SOME UNIVERSALS
ACROSS CULTURES SUCH AS ESTBING RAPPORT, DISCLOSURE, EXPRESSING
DEPENDENCY,
INTIMACY
& OTHERS |
|
|
According to Psychology Today about 4 % of people are love prone
in that they fall in love often, at first sight, & may love several
people at the same time |
|
|
The love prone have more love & sex, but are less satisfied |
|
|
The love prone may be the true romantics among us in that they feel
love feelings more intensely than the general population |
|
|
For the general population love may develop as intensely as the love
prone, but it generally takes longer & develops through 4 stages |
|
|
Ira Reiss (1960) holds that love develops is in four stages, including: |
|
|
a. rapport |
|
|
b. self revelation: we called this self disclosure |
|
|
c. mutual dependency: this develops because you
do things that require the other person to be present |
|
|
d. intimacy need fulfillment |
|
|
Each of Reiss' stages must be experienced or completed, then the stage
is set leading to the next stage |
|
|
Reiss' stages are all interdependent |
|
|
When one's intimacy needs are not met, [or the others] the other processes
of love are likely to be reduced |
|
|
When one's intimacy needs are not met, this leads to breakdown of rapport,
disclosure, dependency, & even intimacy itself |
|
|
HIS & HER FALLING IN LOVE VARIES ALONG PRACTICALITY
& EMOTIONALITY |
|
|
In general, men are more concerned w/ work than w/ love, though there
is evidence that this relationship is reversing |
|
|
In general, women are more concerned w/ relationships, though it is
clear they are becoming more concerned w/ work |
|
|
In many love relationships women require more emotional closeness while
men require practical help & sex |
|
|
In general, women fall in love more easily & fall out of love more
quickly than men because they compare more... do more "shopping" |
|
|
Men will try to hang on to a failing relationship more than women |
|
|
AN EPISODE OF LOVE IS BASED ON EMOTIONAL,
PHYSICAL,
& MENTAL EXPERIENCES |
|
|
Two component theory of love: emotion & a physical state
to match it |
|
|
The two component theory of love says it is possible to attribute the
wrong emotion to a state of physical arousal |
|
|
Experiments have shown that subjects may mistake physical arousal,
from drugs, exercise, or almost any reason, for a variety of emotions,
including love |
|
|
Mistaken emotional experiences are called the misattribution of arousal |
|
|
Mistakenly attributing a physical state to an emotion is the misattribution
of arousal |
|
|
When men's body states have been physically stimulated by running in
place for several minute, they are likely to be more attracted than usual
to attractive women |
|
|
Men also had an increased ability to be attracted when they were threatened
w/ the drawing of blood |
|
|
THE DEVELOPMENT OF INTIMACY VARIES DEPENDING ON CONDITIONS
& THE PARTICIPANTS CAPACITY FOR INTIMACY |
|
|
The strongest intimacy w/ another is established by those who also
have the greatest self esteem, or as it was known in the past, self love |
|
|
A genuine interest, concern, respect for oneself is a prerequisite
for a satisfying relationship w/ others |
|
|
The phases of an intimate relationship include:
- inclusion, which is an invitation to relate
- response, which is agreeing to relate
- care, which is concern for other's welfare
- trust:, which is support & care for each other
- affection, which is warmth & attachment; desire
- playfulness, which is delight in each other
- genitality, which is decision to engage in sex |
|
|
RESEARCHERS HAVE SOUGHT TO QUANTIFY EMOTIONS SUCH AS LOVE BY DEVELOPING
TESTS TO DETERMINE THE DEPTH OF LOVE FROM FOLK WISDOM TO PSYCHL SCALES |
|
|
Peele & Brodsky (1976) came up w/ six questions to help you
decide if what you are feeling is love, including:
1. Do you believe in your personal value/self esteem?
2. Has the relationship improved both of you?
3. Do you maintain separate interests?
4. Is the relationship a central part of your life, or
a side interest?
5. Can you respect growth in the other w/o jealousy?
6. Are you friends & would you stay friends if divorced? |
|
|
Lee's styles of loving include:
romantic |
eros |
game playing |
ludus |
possessive |
mania |
compassionate |
storge |
altruistic |
agape |
pragmatic |
pragma |
|
|
|
The folk wisdom of love is ancient & ranges from the nature of
'love at first sight,' to 'It's in his kiss,' |
|
|
THERE ARE A WIDE VARIETY OF LOVER RELATIONSHIPS THAT
VARY BY DEMOGRAPHICS, NEEDS, CONDITIONS, CULTURES, ETC. |
|
|
The three types of romantic attachment include:
- secure
- avoidance
- anxious / ambivalent |
|
|
The three styles of attachment that adults exhibit in their
romantic relationships are hypothesized to come from the type of attachment
they formed w/ their mothers |
|
|
The secure lover finds it easy to be close to others |
|
|
The secure lover has little worry about getting too close or termination |
|
|
Secure lovers are the most common type at about 56 % |
|
|
The avoidance lover doesn't trust others |
|
|
The avoidance lover is unwilling to depend on others |
|
|
The avoidance lover may get nervous when someone gets too close |
|
|
The anxious/ambivalent lover sees others as reluctant to get close |
|
|
The anxious/ambivalent lover wants to merge totally w/ a partner |
|
|
Both avoidance & anxious/ambivalent lovers are likely to have trouble
w/ jealousy |
|
|
JEALOUSY IS LESS VARIED THAN LOVE, BUT UNIVERSAL, WHILE HIGHLY VARIED,
ACROSS SOCIETIES |
|
|
The jealousy prone person generally
- has low self esteem
- puts a high value on wealth & popularity
- is more likely to precipitates partner violence
- is more likely to stifles relationship development
- raises anxiety, depression, anger in the relationship |
|
|
Jealousy generally has negative consequences but low levels are normal
& may:
- be seen as a demonstration of endearment
- precipitate an increase in closeness
- allow the addressing of other issues in the relationship |
|
|
LOVE & SEX ARE NOT
EQUALLY CONJOINED IN ALL RELATIONSHIPS OR CULTURES |
|
|
See Also: Sexuality & Society |
|
|
The relationship between love & sex is complex because both experiences
typically involves strong feelings & these love may exist w/o sexual
desire or sexual expression & vice versa |
|
|
For example, people may love their parents, children, grandparents,
friends, or even their pets (When Leona Helmsly died in 2007, she left
$12 mm to her dog) |
|
|
Some couples, both married & unmarried, have sexual relations w/o
being in love w/ each other |
|
|
Nevertheless, the feelings of being in love w/ & sexually attracted
to another person are frequently intertwined |
|
|
In general, sexual intimacy often, but not always, deepens a love relationship |
|
|
Sexuality accompanied w/ intimacy / true love does deepen a love relationship |
|
|
Humans are quite capable of casual sex which may maintain, deepen,
or lessen intimacy depending on other factors in the relationship |
|
|
Highly intimate relationships are possible w/o sex |
|
|
In general, today women are more concerned w/ intimacy & less concerned
w/ sex in a relationship |
|
|
In general, today men are more concerned w/ sex & less concerned
w/ intimacy in a relationship |
|
|
In healthy relationships the variation btwn men & women in their
concerns w/ intimacy & sexuality is like any other variation in interests,
it must be understood & negotiated w/ both partners being willing to
give more than they 'naturally' feel like giving & being satisfied
w/ what they can get |
|
|
Too large of a gap btwn giving & getting intimacy or sex signals
incompatibility or the need for personal or professional therapy |
|
|
Homosexual men more likely to separate love from sex |
|
|
Lesbians more likely to postpone sex until intimacy has been established |
|
|
Falling in love w/ a same sex person often helps in gay or lesbian
identity |
|
|
While any intimate relationship require giving & receiving, it
is also important to recognize that there are limits & that sex &
a relationships must be on one's own terms, i.e. w/in one's own limits |
|
|
Given the necessity of boundaries in a relationship sexual expression
is an individual decision |
|
|
The steps to take to maintain one's own boundaries as well as the the
giving necessary in any intimate relationship include:
- knowing & asking for what you want
- saying "not yet" to sex
- ending a relationship when incompatibility becomes apparent |
|
|
WE HAVE BEGUN TO UNDERSTAND THE INGREDIENTS IN A LASTING LOVE
RELATIONSHIP |
|
|
STRONG RELATIONSHIPS HAVE SEXUAL VARIETY & SEXUAL INTIMACY |
|
|
As noted by Sternberg, in most relationships, commitment & intimacy
increases & remains high over time, while passion / sexual passion
declines |
|
|
An increase in intimacy creates an ability to understand & respond
to the needs of the romantic partner & thus intimate partners are open
to sexual variety |
|
|
For sexual variety to occur it is help to
a. maintain communication about sex
b. be spontaneous
c. plan for intimate time
d. not worry about frequency "standards" |
|
|
STRONG RELATIONSHIPS DEVELOP PERSONAL / EMOTIONAL INTIMACY |
|
|
Ingredients in lasting love relationship include: |
|
|
- self acceptance
- an appreciation of each other's qualities
- commitment
- good communication
- realistic expectations & shared interests
- ability to face & deal w/ conflict |
|
|
STRONG RELATIONSHIPS ALLOW FOR INDIVIDUAL GROWTH |
|
|
Long term relationships are not simply stable, they change & grow |
|
|
Growth in relationships includes both individual & relationship
growth |
|
|
Growth & change maintain relationship |
|
|
Long term relationships learn to
a. overcome obstacles
. view problems as challenges
c. negotiate & renegotiate wants
d. accept each other as unique |
|
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on the Origin of
the Family, Private Property & the State
by Friederich Engels & Karl Marx, 1884
|
|
External
Links
|
|
- Project: Analysis of
the Continuing Development of the Family |
Link
|
|
- Project: The Development
of the Family & Patriarchy |
Link
|
|
- Project: The Origin of
the Family, Private Property & the State |
Link
|
|
Engels agrees w/ Morgan on the etiology of the development of patriarchy
after the dawn of civilization, & then Engels goes on the explore
the development of patriarchy through early historical periods |
|
|
Henry Lewis Morgan was a pioneering 19th Century anthropologist whose
work provided the anthropological background for Marx & Engels |
|
|
HUNTER GATHERER SOCIETIES WERE NOMADIC, HAD NO ECON SURPLUS,
MATRILINEAL, & NOT WAR LIKE |
|
blank
|
Hunter gatherer societies, were semi nomadic & had
little or no accumulation of wealth, & therefore status
was awarded through achievement in traditional roles, rather than through
the accumulation of wealth as is done today |
|
|
Hunter gatherer gender roles were differentiated, but essentially equal
in terms of equal access to resources, status, & power |
|
|
Male hunter gatherer roles included hunting, mentoring, teaching, making
war, & raising boys to be men |
|
|
Female hunter gatherer roles included gathering food, home management,
defending the home, raising babies; i.e. baby girls all the way to be women,
& raising baby boys to boy status, & then turning them over to
men to raise to men |
|
|
There was little or no wealth or 'surplus' accumulation in hunter
gatherer society because the primitive technology only allowed for subsistence
living |
|
|
In hunter gatherer society, it is estimated that females brought in
70% of the food, but the 30% of the food produced by men's hunting was
also essential |
|
|
Males & females could take on leadership or high status roles such
as leader, doctor, shaman, protector, etc. |
|
|
During the hunter gatherer era, none of the roles of leader, doctor,
shaman, protector, etc. had "gender," but they all do today |
|
|
The societal form of hunter gatherer society was used by Cro Magnon,
Homo Erectus & earlier, & so it is an ancient form that is still
in practice today by some humans today |
|
|
Engels believed that in hunter gatherer society, pre- 15,000
BC,
- there was a sexual division of labor
- that primitive societies were primarily matriarchal
- the male role in conception was unknown until the end of this
era
- there was no strict monogamy, though some did adhere to it |
|
|
CIVILIZATION EMERGES CIRCA 11 K BC ESTBING THE PRE EMPIRES
ERA, SUPPLANTING H-G SOC & ESTBING AG |
|
|
"Civilization" emerges circa 13 K yrs. BP during the Pre Empire
Era in the transition from hunter gatherer society to early agricultural
society |
|
|
See Also: The Pre Empire Era |
|
|
With the dawn of civilization, the beginning of agriculture, a surplus
of wealth could now be accumulated |
|
|
Increases in population & the end of the last ice age forced
social change |
|
|
Circa 11,000 BP, agriculture develops |
|
|
See Also: The Ag Revolutions |
|
|
See Also: The First Ag Revolution |
|
|
The development of animal husbandry & agriculture allowed
villages to emerge |
|
|
Circa 15 to 7,000 BC, in the early forms of society, family forms change,
at least partially as a result of increased productivity |
|
|
As herds grew, tending the animals became man's work |
|
|
The prehistoric warrior took second place in the home, but the
shepherd gained a new source of wealth & pushed himself ahead of woman
to be able to pass on that wealth to his children & also at this time
became aware of the male role in conception |
|
|
Ag, including the domestication of animals, & the development of
markets, both creating increased productivity, & the first surplus
of goods for humanity |
|
|
This surplus of wealth & inheritance allowed for inequalities
to develop |
|
|
Among anthropologists, there is an argument over who developed husbandry
& agriculture, men or women?
But what would it prove? |
|
|
ENGELS BELIEVES THAT CIVILIZATION BECOMES A SOCIETY DIVIDED AGAINST
ITSELF BASED ON CLASS & SEX |
|
|
The old communal system of hunter gatherer society was broken
up & replaced by full private ownership, first of herds, &
later of land |
|
|
In early society, there were changes in the family as well as in agriculture,
war, & slavery as a result of new knowledge & technologies |
|
|
The amount of work also increased to take advantage of these technologies |
|
|
Additional labor was gained as prisoners of war were turned
into slaves |
|
|
The conversion of prisoners of war to slaves created the master
& slave societies of prehistory & antiquity |
|
|
During the Pre Empire Era, the world population increases from 10 to
300 mm |
|
|
Circa 7,000 BC, the first villages, that we know of; emerged in the
middle east |
|
|
Uruk is the first known city, which existed in southern Mesopotamia,
circa 5,500 BP, had 20,000 people, slavery, armies, administration, etc. |
|
|
The cities, city states & the civilizations of antiquity begin
during the Pre Empire Era along w/ the origin of the modern family, private
property, & the state |
|
|
By 5,000 BP, agriculture & irrigation are established; the digging
stick is replace by the wooden plow w/ a draft animal |
|
|
Circa 5500 BP, writing develops |
|
|
THE 1st STRAT OF STATUS, WEALTH, POWER, ETC., I.E. THE 1ST
INEQUALITY OCCURRED WHEN CIVILIZATION BEGAN, DURING THE PRE EMPIRES ERA,
CIRCA 10 K BC |
|
|
Non production workers emerged resulting in the creation of status,
wealth, power, inequality, exploitation because one person could
produce more than he/she could consume |
|
|
Non production workers include artisans, crafts workers, traders, etc. |
|
|
Religious & political leaders gained power |
|
|
Burial practices & housing structures became common & began
to show inequality |
|
|
During civilization, the strongest or smartest have generally dominated |
|
|
Men ruled other men & women w/ absolute authority |
|
|
CONTEMPORARY FAMILY STRUCTURES DEVELOPED FROM RETINUES /
"GANGS" OF THE EARLY MID AGES |
|
|
In the Family, Private Property & the State, Marx &
Engels examined the family & economic structures of the Iroquois Native
Americans |
|
|
The Iroquois Native Americans had no patriarchy, no private
property in land or other resources, no classes, no state, as we recognize
them today |
|
|
The Iroquois Native Americans are known for their sophisticated tribal
democratic system of governance |
|
|
Peace prevailed w/in the Iroquois tribe, but they were warlike w/ other
tribes |
|
|
Marx & Engels hypothesized that many prehistoric societies were
similar to Iroquois, & then examined how this communal democratic structure
transformed into patriarchal, authoritarian, exploitative economic systems |
|
|
Engels went to Greeks, Romans, Celts, & Germans to see later stages
of development |
|
|
Engels found that the early Germans were organized into clans |
|
|
In the German clans, kinship between the maternal uncle & nephew
(a mother's brother & her son) was more sacred & binding than between
father & son, demonstrating
matrilineal dissent |
|
|
But in the clans of the Pre Empire Era & later, the mother right
of inheritance had already given way to father right of inheritance |
|
|
But in the clans of the Pre Empire Era & later, communal ownership
had already given way to private ownership |
|
|
Before the Pre Empire Era, land was owned communally & collectively
cultivated, but 150 years later the land was individually cultivated |
|
|
Retinues, i.e. war clans or gangs in Europe, were the basis
for feudal aristocracy |
|
|
American Indians demonstrated a pattern of war making similar to that
of the Germans in that the clans, a.k.a. retinues, were bound together
to make war |
|
|
Quasi private & private associations formed to make war |
|
|
For the Germans, the retinues developed similarly & later
became the basis for monarchies |
|
|
In Caesar's time, the retinues were subordinate to the clans,
but this changed |
|
|
150 years after the Roman Empire, the retinues became independent
of the community |
|
|
The retinues no longer turned over the plunder to the clan,
but kept it for themselves |
|
|
Retinues could only be kept together by frequent wars & plundering
expeditions, which became ends in themselves |
|
|
When the Roman Empire disintegrated, it was from it's manors
that the retinues formed which eventually created the social order of the
nobility |
|
|
Thus, while early communally oriented clans had little private property,
as the more war oriented retinues developed, they created private property
that at first belonged only to the sub-class of the retinues, & eventually
to each individual warrior |
|
|
FOR CONFLICT THEORISTS WOMEN'S
LIBERATION CAN ONLY OCCUR WHEN THERE IS ECON LIBERATION |
|
|
The solution to patriarchy, for Engels, lies in socialism, where:
- housekeeping would become a communal effort again.
- education will become public
- money, wealth, & power would not influence the marriage
partner choice
- marital unions would become voluntary rather than arranged |
|
|
For Engels, women's liberation would come about as socialism
developed |
|
|
Engels correctly predicted that as women's role increased in the
public sphere, women's home work & child care would decrease as
they gained more power |
|
|
For Engels the origin of the family, private property, & the
state are integrally related, in that: |
|
|
- patriarchy develops, as Morgan saw it, as a result of the development
of the first, minimal surplus, fueling men's desire to control their bequeathal |
|
|
- private property develops as society develops even more surplus allowing
warriors to become independent of the community & keep plunder for
themselves |
|
|
- the state develops as a means of ensuring private property in a system
outside of might makes right, allowing those w/ the most wealth to enforce
stratification, & preserve their wealth, based on the law rather than
power |
|
|
CRITICAL OBSERVATIONS INCLUDE THE QUESTION OF WHO DEV & CONTROLLED
ANIMAL HUSBANDRY & HORTICULTURE? |
|
|
Why did men control the herds & agriculture? |
|
|
Men may have controlled the herds & agriculture because men were
the hunters & were more likely to deal w/ animals |
|
|
Men may have controlled the herds & agriculture because men traditionally
saw their power in hunting as linked to animals |
|
|
Even if women domesticated animals, men may have seen it as
their domain |
|
|
Men may have controlled the herds & agriculture because men &
the animals had to roam more, while women & children stayed in the
encampment |
|
|
Why should herds differ from other forms of property? |
|
|
Herds were not a unique kind of property that caused patriarchy, rather
it was the fact that now society was producing a surplus that allowed for
the institution of private property to develop. Herds were integral
in the creation of the surplus value |
|
|
For Zeitlin, it is the growing power of the retinues that represents
men's great rise to power |
|
|
It is in the retinues where young warriors consolidated power
& became kings |
|
|
It is the rulers of the retinues who estbed themselves in power &
changed the power relations btwn the commune & the state & allowed
men to control patterns of descent & inheritance |
|
Marx, Engels, & Marx's Family
|
Marx
|
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on a Socio
Historical Analysis of Romance, Love, etc.
|
|
External
Links
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|
INTRODUCTION |
|
|
Over the ages various cultures have held different views of romance,
love, & related emotions such as sexual desire |
|
|
In general, the expression of the emotion of love has evolved from
one where romance was less prevalent to our present expression of love,
where romance is quite common |
|
|
Paralleling the increase in romance in love relationships is an increase
in the equality btwn men & women |
|
|
The development of love & romance often supported, & sometimes
challenged the patriarchal conventions of arranged marriages, celibacy,
the control of marriage for political reasons, the control of marriage
for economic reasons, etc. |
|
|
The various components of love we recognize today can be seen in their
embryonic forms & expressions in various societies throughout history |
|
|
EMPEDOCLES |
|
|
Empedocles (495? - 435? BC), was an Greek philosopher who became
the first to argue that what exists can be reduced to 4 elements:
air, earth, fire, & water |
|
|
Empedocles said that all other substances result from temporary combinations
of these elements which are eternal & unchanging, but their combining
& separating appear as change |
|
|
Empedocles said that a force called love causes the elements
to come together as compounds, & that a force called strife
causes the compounds to break up |
|
|
Empedocles believed that the universe undergoes a continuous cycle
from complete unification of the elements under the domination of love
to complete separation of the elements under strife |
|
|
For Empedocles, the world we live in occurs btwn these two extreme
states of love & strife |
|
|
The Greeks also developed a distinction among types of love |
|
|
a. Storge (store-gay) love occurs btwn parents &
children |
|
|
Storge is least the discriminating kind of love |
|
|
Storge is love in spite of the lack of qualities we "love" in a romantic
partner |
|
|
b. Philia refers to love btwn two friends |
|
|
For the Greeks philia was the highest form of love |
|
|
Philia is an intense sharing btwn two people who have similar perspectives
on life |
|
|
Philia is very similar to "neighborly" love |
|
|
c. Eros is erotic love including sexual love as well as
the longing to be in each other's presence |
|
|
d. Agape (a gah pay) love is independent of the feeling's,
or knowledge of, another |
|
|
Agape literally means to gap or have the mouth wide open, wonder, amazement |
|
|
Agape is seen in god's love for people, which was seen in Greek religions,
pagan & Christian |
|
|
Agape is seen in Christian love, & literally means that early Christians
ate together, but metaphorically referred to the Christian belief of 'love
one another' |
|
|
Agape & storge do not depend on the attractiveness of the other |
|
|
CUPID |
|
|
Cupid was the god of love in Roman mythology & was also
called Amor |
|
|
Cupid was identified w/ the Greek god Eros |
|
|
The Romans portrayed Cupid as a son of the goddess Venus |
|
|
Cupid had both a cruel & a happy nature in that his cruelty
appears in his treatment of his wife, the beautiful princess Psyche |
|
|
Cupid forbade Psyche ever to try to see what he looked like |
|
|
Cupid refused to be w/ Psyche except at night in the dark |
|
|
One night while Cupid was asleep, Psyche lit a lamp so she could look
at him |
|
|
Cupid awoke & fled in anger |
|
|
But other myths describe Cupid as a happy lad who united lovers |
|
|
The earliest images of Cupid show him as a handsome, athletic young
man |
|
|
By the mid 300s BC, Cupid was portrayed as a chubby, naked infant
w/ wings, holding a bow & arrows |
|
|
A person shot w/ one of Cupid's gold tipped arrows supposedly fell
in love, & his lead tipped arrows made people fall out of love |
|
|
MIDDLE AGES: ETIQUETTE: KNIGHTS: CODE OF CHIVALRY |
|
|
Early civilizations, such as those of ancient Greece & Rome, developed
rules for proper social conduct |
|
|
Rules regulating romance became more formal during the Middle Ages,
a period that extended from about the AD 400s to the 1500s in Europe |
|
|
During the Middle Ages, boys training to become knights learned a code
of conduct called chivalry |
|
|
According to this code, a knight was devoted to the Christian church
& his country & treated women w/ great respect |
|
|
Some aspects of chivalry, particularly the special treatment of women,
became a traditional part of manners |
|
|
The behavior of all fighting men gradually came to be governed by a
system called chivalry |
|
|
Chivalry required that a man earn knighthood through a long & difficult
training period |
|
|
A knight was supposed to be courageous in battle, fight according to
certain rules, keep his promises, & defend the church, women &
the feeble |
|
|
Chivalry also included rules for gentlemanly conduct toward women |
|
|
In times of peace, a lord & his knights entertained themselves
by practicing for war |
|
|
They took part in jousts (combat btwn two armed knights) & in tournaments
(combat btwn two groups of knights) |
|
|
Chivalry was the knight's code of behavior |
|
|
The code of chivalry grew w/ the songs of the minstrels in the 1000s
& 1100s |
|
|
Their poems show that a true knight had faith & a deep love of
the Christian religion |
|
|
He gave generously to all, defended the church, loved the land of his
birth & was ready to die for it |
|
|
The knight's strength served to protect women & the feeble |
|
|
A knight championed right against injustice & evil, & never
surrendered or flinched in the face of the enemy |
|
|
In real life, a knight did not always resemble the ideal knight of
the minstrels |
|
|
His code of honor & loyalty was sometimes applied only to members
of his own class, & he often acted brutally toward people of low birth |
|
|
The violent life of the Middle Ages made it difficult to prevent violations
of the code |
|
|
Even dedicated knights were also soldiers interested in conquest &
plunder |
|
|
A knight who was proved guilty of cowardice or other serious misconduct
was disgraced by having his sword & his spurs broken |
|
|
However, "serious misconduct" usually meant violations against other
knights & their families |
|
|
ROMANCE |
|
|
The meaning of the term romance has changed many times since the first
romances appeared in Greece almost 2000 years ago |
|
|
In ancient Greek literature, most fiction dealt w/ either love or war |
|
|
War stories were called epics, & love stories were called romances,
& the word romance is still used for a love story |
|
|
Today a romance is a long work of fiction that is less realistic than
a novel |
|
|
Many romance novels use fantastic & supernatural plots & characters |
|
|
English is the only language in which the words novel & romance
distinguish btwn realistic & unrealistic fiction |
|
|
By about the 1200s, most Western Europeans spoke a Romance language
(language based on Latin), such as French, Italian, or Spanish & all
fiction written in Romance languages was called romance |
|
|
The first important romance was Daphnis & Chloe, (AD 100s or 200s)
by a Greek named Longus |
|
|
The greatest romances were written by medieval authors from the 1100s
to the 1400s often written in verse, these romances mingle knightly combat,
adventure, & courtship |
|
|
Many describe the adventures of King Arthur & his knights of the
Round Table, others tell about the ancient conqueror Alexander the Great;
the Spanish hero The Cid, & the emperor Charlemagne & his devoted
knight, Roland |
|
|
Elements of romance continue to appear in popular novels about courtship
as well as in novels about the American frontier, in Western films, &
in science fiction |
|
|
COURTLY LOVE |
|
|
In courtly love, the lover (idolizer) accepts the independence
of his mistress & tries to make himself worthy of her by acting bravely
& honorably (nobly) & by doing whatever deeds she might desire |
|
|
Sexual satisfaction may not have been a goal or even end result, but
the love was not entirely Platonic either, as it was based on sexual attraction |
|
|
Courtly love had its origins in the castle life beginning about the
time of the First Crusade in the 11th C finding its expression in the lyric
poems written by troubadours |
|
|
Eleanor of Aquitaine brought ideals of courtly love first to the court
of France, then to England, where she was queen to 2 kings |
|
|
Her daughter Marie, Countess of Champagne brought courtly behavior
to the Count of Champagne's court |
|
|
The rules of courtly love were codified by the late 12th C in Andreas
Capellanus' highly influential work De Amore ("Concerning Love") |
|
|
The troubadour's model of the ideal lady was the wife of his employer
or lord, a lady of higher status, usually the rich & powerful female
head of the castle |
|
|
When her husband was away on Crusade or other business she dominated
the household & cultural affairs; sometimes this was the case even
when the husband was at home |
|
|
The lady was rich & powerful & the poet gave voice to the aspirations
of the courtier class, for only those who were noble could engage in courtly
love |
|
|
This new kind of love saw nobility not based on wealth & family
history, but on character & actions; thus appealing to poorer knights
who saw an avenue for advancement |
|
|
Courtly love saw a woman as an ennobling spiritual & moral force,
a view that was in opposition to ecclesiastical sexual attitudes |
|
|
Rather than being critical of romantic & sexual love as sinful,
the poets praised it as the highest good |
|
|
Marriage had been declared a sacrament of the Church, at the Fourth
Lateran Council, 1215, & w/in Christian marriage, the only purpose
was procreation w/ any sex beyond that purpose seen as non pious |
|
|
The ideal state of a Christian was celibacy, even in marriage |
|
|
By the beginning of the 13th C the ideas of courtly tradition were
condemned by the church as being heretical |
|
|
The church channeled many of these energies into the cult of the Virgin;
it is not a coincidence that the cult of the Virgin Mary began in the 12th
C as a counter to the secular, courtly & lustful views of women. Francis
of Assisi called poverty "his Lady" |
|
|
Courtly love had a civilizing effect on knightly behavior, beginning
in the late 11th C; it has been suggested that the prevalence of arranged
marriages required other outlets for the expression of more personal occurrences
of romantic love |
|
|
New expressions of highly personal private piety in the 11th C were
at the origins of what a modern observer would recognize as a personality,
& the vocabulary of piety was also transferred to the conventions of
courtly love |
|
|
At times, the lady could be a princesse lointaine, a far-away
princess, & some tales told of men who had fallen in love w/ women
whom they had never seen, merely on hearing their perfection described,
but normally she was not so distant |
|
|
As the etiquette of courtly love became more complicated, the knight
might wear the colors of his lady: blue or black were the colors of faithfulness;
green was a sign of unfaithfulness |
|
|
Salvation, previously found in the hands of the priesthood, now came
from the hands of one's lady |
|
|
In some cases, there were also women troubadours who expressed the
same sentiment for men |
|
|
In 1936 C.S. Lewis wrote the influential The Allegory of Love
further solidifying courtly love as "love of a highly specialized sort,
whose characteristics may be enumerated as Humility, Courtesy, Adultery,
& the Religion of Love" |
|
|
LOVE IN THE MODERN ERA |
|
|
As the idea of love evolved into the modern conception of the emotional
intersection of liking, intimacy, sexuality, commitment, etc., the traditional
views & norms of love slowly faded away in the modern era to be replaced
by what modernists call true love |
|
|
True love is the romantic love that is unhindered by traditional conceptions
of love which often included political or economic alliances btwn families,
patriarchal control of women & the process of procreation, or patriarchal
control of sexuality which usually attempted to maintain the availability
of sexual release for men |
|
|
During the end of feudalism & colonial agriculturalism, traditional
love / marriage relations began their transition from traditional, patriarchal
relations to the more open, romantic relationships of today |
|
|
Early Americans did not consider love a requirement for marriage, &
couples assumed that love would follow marriage |
|
|
Relations btwn spouses tended to be formal |
|
|
Husbands & wives treated each other w/ correct, serious manners
rather than the relaxed, friendly way families interact today |
|
|
The role of housewife & the parallel love / marriage relationships
which typifies the dominant role of middle class Am women in the early
& mid 20th C is a rather recent invention |
|
|
At first, the housewife role & the parallel love / marriage relationships,
as it developed historically, was largely the realm of white middle class
women |
|
|
The housewife role fit well w/ the Victorian morality that reigned
through much of the Industrial Revolution |
|
|
The housewife role is a product of Industrial Revolution which
created the ideology of women as a frail consumers, replacing their co
worker roles of prairie wife & merchant wife |
|
|
The housewife role fit w/ Victorian morality that women are fragile
& more moral |
|
|
In early America & earlier, men & women were equal in what
they produced & brought value to the home such as during the hunter
gatherer society & the Little House on Prairie society of the pre industrial
era |
|
|
The Industrial Revolution separated family members from each other |
|
|
Beginning w/ the Indl Rev, men went out of the home to work |
|
|
Beginning w/ the Indl Rev, women stayed in home to have kids &
keep house, but not to "work" |
|
|
The Indl Rev created the role of the breadwinner & the family wage |
|
|
Henry Ford is credited w/ coining the concept of the family wage, &
institutionalizing it in modern industrial society, although the concept
was in widespread use before Ford |
|
|
Many industrial leaders in the US & Europe believed that it was
their responsibility to develop the morals of their workers, & they
generally advocated conservative, traditional family values |
|
|
Beginning w/ the Indl Rev, men became responsible for production &
women became responsible for consumption |
|
|
These changes in the the econ structure had an impact on the family
& love, leaving the basic patriarchal relationships in place, but setting
the stage for women entering the workforce & the development of more
equitable love |
|
|
The development of true love, love btwn equals parallels the increasing
power of women as they move into the economic realm & gain equal power
to men |
|
|
As Marx & Engels noted in the Origin of
the Family, Private Property & the State, true love can only occur
among equals, those equal in political, economic, etc. power |
|
|
For Engels, true love will only occur w/ womens' liberation, the latter
which will come primarily as women gain economic power |
|
|
The attainment of econ power means that women no longer depend on men
for a livelihood, & thus they are free to enter into relations w/ men
not as an econ relationship, but because of romance |
|
|
For men, womens' equality means they benefit by having an equal partner
in love as opposed to a dependency based, unequal relationship |
|
|
The direction of society is toward equal romantic relationships, but
there is still a long way to go |
|
|
In today's popular culture, the liking, intimacy, sexuality, &
commitment of love are often raised to an ecstatic level unseen even in
the Middle Age's era of chivalry & courtly love |
|
|
Love today, like in the middle ages, is often portrayed as a relationship
which has absolute necessity & is capable of bringing fulfillment /
salvation to the lovers |
|
|
Modern pop culture is as vehement in its adulation of the love relationship
as were the chivalrous troubadors, raising love relationships to a nearly
unattainable state of human cohabitory, romantic perfection |
|
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
|
External
Links
|
|
Marriage is a legal relationship, usually involving economic cooperation
as well as sexual activity & childbearing |
|
|
Marriage is the relationship btwn a man & a woman who have made
a legal agreement to live together |
|
|
Marriage is also an important religious ceremony in many of the world's
religions |
|
|
Most couples decide to marry because they love each other & want
to spend the rest of their lives together |
|
|
People who marry, ususally a man & woman, marry usually hope to
share a special sexual relationship & a permanent romantic attraction
& each hopes the other will always be a close friend as well |
|
|
In marriage, each partner also expects the other to help w/ many problems
& to share certain responsibilities |
|
|
Responsibilities in marriage include earning a living, budgeting money,
paying bills, preparing meals, & taking care of a home |
|
|
Most couples who marry plan to have children & to raise them together
the husband & wife are required by law to protect & care for their
children |
|
|
Marriage thus serves as the basis of family life |
|
|
DEMOGRAPHICS ON MARRIAGE |
|
|
Nine out of ten people in US marry |
|
|
Ann Landers, the popular advice columists reports that 1 marriage in
20 is wonderful, 5 in twenty are good, 10 in twenty are tolerable, &
the remaining 4 are “pure hell” |
|
|
On the average, men & women stay single longer than they once did,
i.e. we are marrying later |
|
|
In 1950, men married at an average age of 23, & women married at
an average age of 20, but by the mid 1990s, the average marriage age was
about 26 1/2 for men & about 24 1/2 for women |
|
|
In the US, about 2.5 million couples marry each year |
|
|
Some people are involuntarily single because of the marriage squeeze |
|
|
The phrase marriage squeeze refers to the demographic imbalance in
which the number of potential brides & grooms |
|
|
When not everyone has an opportunity to marry, some will be squeezed
out of the marriage mkt |
|
|
An excess of eligible women is called a female marriage squeeze; an
excess of eligible men is called a male marriage squeeze |
|
|
In the 1980s & earlier, there was an excess of women, so there
was a female marriage squeeze |
|
|
In the 90s & 2000s, men in their 20s are the victims of a marriage
squeeze, i.e. there are more men & fewer women than men, leaving an
excess of men available |
|
|
The tradition has been that the man should be older, though this norm
is lessening, it will make the squeeze on men worse |
|
|
The probability of marriage increases for each year after age 15 but
declines after age 24 |
|
|
In 1986 a Harvard & Yale study reported that women w/ 4 or more
yrs of college had nearly no chance of marriage if they were over 45 yrs
old |
|
|
But subsequent studies to the Havard & Yale study have reported
the 45 yr old female marriage squeeze to be overstated; the chances are
around 10 % |
|
|
The US Census shows that married couple households, the dominant cohort
since the country's founding, have slipped from nearly 80% in the 1950s
to just 51% today |
|
|
That means that the US's 86 million single adults could soon define
the new majority |
|
|
Already, unmarrieds make up 42% of the workforce, 40% of home buyers,
35% of voters, & one of the most potent, if pluralistic, consumer groups
on record |
|
|
What many once thought of as the fringe, i.e. the unmarried adult,
is becoming the new normal |
|
|
Families consisting of breadwinner dads & stay at home moms now
account for just 10% of all households |
|
|
Married couples w/ kids, which made up nearly every residence a century
ago, now total just 25%, w/ the number projected to drop to 20% by 2010,
says the Census Bureau |
|
|
By 2010 nearly 30% of homes will be inhabited by someone who lives
alone |
|
|
Although marriage & fertility rates are at their lowest point in
history across the industrialized world, an estimated 85% of Am will still
marry at least once in their lives, even though that is a huge drop from
the historic high of 95% in the 1950s |
|
|
54% of female hi school seniors say they believe that having a child
outside of marriage is a worthwhile lifestyle, up from 33% in 1980, according
to the U of MI Survey Research Ctr |
|
|
40% of female 20 somethings would consider having a baby on their own
if they reached their mid 30s & hadn't found the right man |
|
|
MARRYING THOSE LIKE OURSELVES |
|
|
Endogamy is marriage btwn people of the same social category |
|
|
People have always tended to marry w/in their class, race, status,
etc. |
|
|
Homogamy is marriage btwn people w/ the same social characteristics |
|
|
People also tend to marry someone who is about at the same level of
beauty, as defined by that society |
|
|
The rationalization of intimate relationships is seen in the new, popular
trend of internet dating |
|
|
Common programs on the internet such as Match.com & EHarmony.com
match people on having like characteristics on a number of dimensions |
|
|
While common knowledge holds that 'opposites attract,' in relationships
this is the exception rather than the rule |
|
|
In relationships, 'birds of a feather flock together,' in that we are
both most like, & more likely happy w/ those like ourselves |
|
|
Endogamy & homogamy limit marriage prospects |
|
|
Exogamy is marriage btwn people of different social categories |
|
|
NUMBERS OF MARRIAGE PARTNERS |
|
|
See Also: Non Traditional Marriage |
|
|
Monogamy is marriage that unites two partners; this is the most
common form of marriage around the world, though there are many variations
of it |
|
|
Strict monogamy is monogamous marriage w/ no divorce & in
some societies, no remarriage if the spouse dies |
|
|
Serial monogamy is monogamous marriage where people marry one person
for a period of time, then divorce them & marry another, possibly repeating
this cycle a number of times |
|
|
Adulterous monogamy is where people are married but frequently
have affairs w/ others |
|
|
Cohabitation is the sharing of a household by an unmarried couple
who live as married spouses |
|
|
If a man & woman wish to avoid marriage, they may decide to live
together w/ no formal obligations to each other via cohabitation, but in
some states if a couple cohabitates for a particular length of time, usually
7 yrs, then they become under the law in what is known as a common law
marriage |
|
|
Cohabitation is more common among young adults, but some couples of
all ages live together w/o marrying |
|
|
Cohabitation appeals to more independent minded people & those
who favor gender equality |
|
|
Evidence suggests cohabitating may discourage marriage |
|
|
Partners become used to low-commitment relationships |
|
|
In separation, involvement of both parents, especially w/ respect to
financial support, is highly uncertain |
|
|
Cohabitators are as likely to practice serial monogamy or adultuerous
monogamy as are married couples |
|
|
The US primarily practices serial monogamy, adulterous monogamy, &
cohabitation |
|
|
Polygamy is the term used in common language to indicate a man
w/ more than one wife; however the term actually is gender neutral &
refers to anyone w/ two more spouses |
|
|
Polygyny refers to a man w/ more than one wife |
|
|
Polyandry refers to a woman w/ more than one husband |
|
|
Polygyny is not common but occurs mostly in lower income nations |
|
|
Polyandry is extremely rare & is found in Tibet |
|
|
There is a historical preference for the varous forms of monogamy because
supporting several spouses is expensive, because it ensures, more than
polygamy, that there are adequate prospectice spouses for the young, &
because of traditional religous mores |
|
|
TRADITIONAL MARRIAGE |
|
|
See Also: Non Traditional Marriage |
|
|
An arranged marriage is one where the spouses are chosen by others,
usually their families of origin |
|
|
Alliances btwn two extended families of similar social standing &
usually involve an exchange not just of children but also of wealth &
favors |
|
|
The frequency of arranged marriages have eroded & weakened by industrialization |
|
|
Throughout much of history, arranged marriages were the most common
form of marriage |
|
|
It has only been in the last few centuries where people have been able
to marry w/o the permission of the family |
|
|
SEXUALITY & MARRIAGE |
|
|
US culture gives idealized picture of marriage, but intimacy, commitment,
compatibility, & sexuality may all be a source of disappointment, as
well as a joy |
|
|
The frequency of marital sex declines over time |
|
|
Another area where reality does not match the ideal infidelity, sexual
activity outside marriage, is occurs w/ increasing frequency |
|
|
Sex Also: Sexuality |
|
|
ETHNICALLY & RACIALLY MIXED MARRIAGES |
|
|
Interracial marriage was illegal in 16 states |
|
|
The proportion of mixed marriages is 10 % of all marriages |
|
|
The small & of mixed marriages & the conflict it causes shows
that race still matters in social relations |
|
|
The single most common mixed marriage is btwn the white
husband w/ the Asian wife, making up 14% of mixed marriages |
|
|
The white / Asian couple is most likely to live in the West, HI, AK,
CA, NV, & OK |
|
|
GENDER, POWER, & MARRIAGE |
|
|
Few marriages have two equal partners |
|
|
Because of the patriarchal nature of our culture, many people expect
the husband to be older, taller & have a more important, better paid
job |
|
|
Our society maintains the positive stereotype of the carefree bachelor,
in sharp contrast to the negative image of the lonely spinster |
|
|
However, the negative image of the lonely spinster is giving way to
the cougar, i.e. the sexy older woman |
|
|
While men have many labels which positively label their sexuality,
such as stud, women have had only negative labels, such as slut, &
it is therefore noteworthy that the image of the cougar is the first 'all
positive' cultural icon of a sexually aggressive female |
|
|
Patriarchal notions of marriage, love, & sexuality suggest that
women are fulfilled only through being wives & mothers |
|
|
Married women actually have poorer mental health, less happiness, &
more passive attitudes than single women |
|
|
Men are more eager after divorce to find a wife than a widow is in
finding a husband |
|
|
SINGLEHOOD |
|
|
An increasing number of people choose not to marry |
|
|
1 out of 10 people in US never marry |
|
|
Singlehood seen as a temporary stage of life |
|
|
There is a rising number of single young women |
|
|
Women have greater participation in the labor force today, more than
men |
|
|
Women who are economically secure view a husband as a matter of choice
rather than a financial necessity, marry later or not at all |
|
|
By midlife, many unmarried women accurately sense a lack of available
men |
|
|
Older, more educated, better job; the more difficulty finding a husband
because men marry younger women & die earlier |
|
|
Today, it is becoming more acceptable for an older woman to choose
a younger man, ending the double standard where it was acceptable for men
to choose younger women, but not acceptable for older women to choose younger
men |
|
|
STRUCTURAL FUNCTIONALISM ON MARRIAGE |
|
|
SF sees the family as the backbone of society |
|
|
For SF, the family is the primary socializer of children, w/ education
being the next most influential |
|
|
For SF, the family socializes children to their social placement in
society |
|
|
For SF, the family provides the regulation of sexual activity, enforcing
the incest taboo, a norm forbidding sexual relations or marriage btwn certain
relatives |
|
|
For SF, the family provides material & emotional security |
|
|
CRITICAL REVIEW OF STRUCTURAL FUNCTIONALISM ON MARRIAGE |
|
|
The SF approach glosses over the diversity of US family life |
|
|
The SF approach ignores how other social institutions could meet at
least some of the same human needs |
|
|
The SF approach overlooks the negative aspects of family life, including
patriarchy & family violence |
|
|
CONFLICT THEORY ON MARRIAGE |
|
|
Conflict theory considers the family as central to our way of life |
|
|
Conflict theory points how the family perpetuates inequality through
the elite family's control of wealth, & through the socialization of
children to take their place in the class system |
|
|
Families & corporations re the two primary institutions controlling
property & inheritance in society |
|
|
Socilaization in families perpetuates patriarchy, racial & ethnic
discrimination |
|
|
CRITICAL REVIEW OF CONFLICT THEORY ON MARRIAGE |
|
|
Friedrich Engels noted in the 1800s that the family is part & parcel
of capitalism w/ the husband filing the role of provider while the wife
fill s the role of consumer |
|
|
Noncapitalist societies also have families & family problems as
a result of patriarchy, religion, etc. |
|
|
The family may be linked to social inequality but it carries out societal
functions not easily accomplished by other means |
|
|
SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM ON MARRIAGE |
|
|
The family offers the all critical opportunity for primary relationships
& intimacy |
|
|
Marriage builds emotional bonds |
|
|
Parents are authority figures are are the primary socializers &
role models for children |
|
|
The Social Exchange Approach |
|
|
The social exchange approach describes courtship & marriage as
forms of negotiation |
|
|
Dating allows the assessment of advantages & disadvantages of a
potential spouse |
|
|
The song "You better shop around" by the Captain & Tenile, the
saying that you 'have to kiss a few frogs, the saying that 'there are many
fish in the sea, all embody our cultural understanding of shopping for
a mate |
|
|
The terms of exchange are converging for men & women |
|
|
CRITICAL REVIEW OF SYMBOLIC INTERACTIONISM ON MARRIAGE |
|
|
Micro level analyses of marriage are important in that most of us experience
the highs & lows of love & marriage on a very personal level |
|
|
At best the micro level analyses of marriage can help one understand
& deal w/ the personal issue of love & marriage |
|
|
But micro level analyses of marriage cannot help one deal w/ the structural
problems of love & marriage, only structural level theories such as
SF & conflict theory can fill that gap |
|
|
SF & conflict theory are better than micro level theories in helping
one understand, & setting the table for dealing w/ such problems as
the marriage squeeze, a culture of serial monogramy, etc. |
|
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on a Socio
Historical Analysis of Marriage
|
|
External
Links
|
|
Societies have always regulated mate selection & where a couple
may live, but there is a wide variety of love, marriage, & reproductive
values, norms, & practices |
|
|
In non industrial societies couples are more likely to live w/ one
set of parents for protection, support, & assistance |
|
|
Patrilocality refers to the practice where a couple lives w/ or near
the husband's family |
|
|
Patrilocality is the most frequent practice in non industrial societies
today |
|
|
Matrilocality refers to the practice where a couple lives w/ or near
the wife's family |
|
|
Neolocality refers to the practice where a couple lives apart from
both sets of parents, & this practice is the most common in industrial
societies |
|
|
ANCIENT FAMILIES |
|
|
Ancient families had strict arrangements of higher & lower ranking
persons |
|
|
In ancient Roman society, which flourished around 2000 yrs ago, the
male head of the family, or paterfamilias, had absolute authority |
|
|
Under Roman law, the father could sell his children, abandon them,
or even put them to death |
|
|
Male heads of families arranged marriages in most ancient societies |
|
|
Fathers often contracted daughters to marry at young ages |
|
|
In ancient Greek culture, which reached its height during the mid 400s
BC, the average marriage age of women ranged btwn 12 & 15, while many
men married at about age 30 |
|
|
THE MIDDLE AGES |
|
|
The Reformation, the religious movement of the 1500's that gave rise
to Protestantism, also encouraged a reassessment of women's roles |
|
|
Protestant leaders permitted ministers to marry & began to picture
marriage as a mutual relationship of spiritually equal partners |
|
|
Husbands had less control over the lives of their wives |
|
|
Protestants also began to view marriage & divorce as matters of
individual choice rather than as the fulfillment of obligations to such
authorities as parents & the church |
|
|
TRADITIONAL VS. MODERN MARRIAGE |
|
|
Almost every society has certain traditional ideas about marriage;
for example, most societies expect men & women to marry |
|
|
In addition, most cultures have traditions about the role & the
main duties of a husband & a wife |
|
|
Traditionally, the husband is expected to earn a living, & the
wife is expected to manage the household & raise children |
|
|
Many Americans today disregard traditional marriage patterns |
|
|
A large number of married couples share responsibilities that have
been traditionally handled by either the husband or the wife |
|
|
An increasing number of married women have paying jobs & help support
their families financially |
|
|
In 1940, about 15 percent of all married women earned money |
|
|
In the early 1990's, about 60 percent of women held a full or part
time job |
|
|
More & more husbands share responsibilities traditionally handled
by women, such as cooking, doing housework, & caring for the children |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on Sexual
Orientation
|
|
External
Links
|
|
SEXUAL ORIENTATION IS THE MANNER IN WHICH PEOPLE EXPERIENCE
SEXUAL AROUSAL & ACHIEVE SEXUAL PLEASURE |
|
|
A person's sexual orientation determines whether that person is sexually
attracted to individuals of the opposite sex, to those of one's own sex,
or to both sexes |
|
|
Sexual orientation refers to a person's preference in terms of sexual
partners |
|
|
A person's primary sexual attraction is called sexual
orientation |
|
|
People who are primarily attracted to the opposite sex are called heterosexuals |
|
|
The norm in all societies is heterosexuality, meaning sexual attraction
to someone of the other sex |
|
|
Homosexuality refers to sexual attraction to someone of the same sex |
|
|
Bisexuality refers to sexual attraction to people of both sexes |
|
|
Individuals who feel attracted to people of both sexes are bisexuals |
|
|
Asexuality means that a person has no, or extremely low, sexual attraction
to people of either sex |
|
|
People, esp men, who are homosexual are also called gay while any female
homosexuals call themselves lesbians |
|
|
Since the late 1940s, various estimates suggest that 1 to 10 % of men
& women are attracted chiefly to people of their own sex |
|
|
HOMOSEXUAL EXPERIENCES ARE VARIED & MOST PEOPLE HAVE
SOME HOMOSEXUAL EXPERIMENTS / PLAY |
|
|
Many people are not entirely homosexual or heterosexual, sexually attracted
chiefly to the same or other sex, respectively |
|
|
Kinsey developed a scale measuring sexual orientation now known as
the Kinsey Scale which ranks a persons' sexuality from 0 to 6, where 0
is exclusively heterosexual & 6 is exclusively homosexual |
|
|
Very few people rate at the extremes of Kinsey's scale connoting that
most people are not exclusively hetero or homo sexual |
|
|
Some individuals have homosexual experiences but marry people of the
other sex & have children |
|
|
Many people who consider themselves heterosexual have participated
in homosexual acts at some time in their lives |
|
|
Young people may explore their sexual development w/ members of their
own sex |
|
|
For example, many young people masturbate (pleasurably handle their
own sex organs) |
|
|
Boys may sometimes handle the sex organs of other boys & girls
may also stimulate each other |
|
|
Adolescent masturbatory group activity rarely develops into a homosexual
orientation |
|
|
Some homosexual experiences results from unavailability of the other
sex |
|
|
For example, people in prison who spend long periods separated from
the other sex may turn to same sex partners |
|
|
Such homosexual interest may not continue once other partners become
available |
|
|
Opportunistic homosexuality is the sexual practice of engaging in homosexuality
only when no partners of the opposite sex are available for periods of
time |
|
|
THE ORIGIN OF SEXUAL ORIENTATION IS UNCLEAR BUT MOST SCIENTISTS
BELIEVE IT IS BIOLOGICALLY / PHYSICALLY DETERMINED & 'KEYED'
BY SOCIAL FACTORS, AS ARE MOST HUMAN CAPACITIES |
|
|
Despite considerable research, the origins of sexual orientation are
not completely understood |
|
|
Scientists are not sure how many people are homosexual but estimates
range from 1 to 10 % being primarily homosexual, w/ even higher numbers
for bisexuality & occasional experimentation |
|
|
Some experts believe all people are born w/ a potential to be bisexual,
but most people develop a strong attraction primarily for sexual partners
of one sex |
|
|
The arguments in answer to the question of sexual orientation cluster
around two general, opposite positions: the influence of society
& / or biology on sexual orientation |
|
|
SEXUALITY, HOW WE EXPRESS OUR ORIENTATION, IS A PRODUCT
OF SOCIETY |
|
|
One argument is that sexual orientation is a product of society, especially
early socialization / experiences |
|
|
This approach argues that people in any society construct a set of
meanings that lets them make sense of sexuality |
|
|
Some people have misinterpreted this sexuality as a product of society
point of view to mean that people choose their orientation |
|
|
No social scientists who emphasize the importance of early socialization
/ experiences hold that this means that people choose their sexuality |
|
|
According to one theory, children learn through pleasurable sexual
experiences to become increasingly attracted to one of the sexes or to
both sexes |
|
|
Different & same sex sexual practices are limited by laws in many
places, but such laws have no impact on sexual orientation though they
may limit overt or public homosexual displaces of affection |
|
|
US marriage laws may serve the purpose of encouraging people to only
have sex (& children) w/in marriage |
|
|
Sodomy laws were seen as encouraging different sex sexual practices |
|
|
Laws also ban adults from committing sexual abuse, committing sexual
acts w/ anyone under an age of consent, performing sexual activities in
public, & engaging in sexual activities for money (prostitution) |
|
|
Though these laws all cover the same sex sexual activities, they may
differ w/ regards to punishment, & may be more frequently (or exclusively)
enforced on those who engage in same sex sexual activities |
|
|
Laws also control the making & viewing of pornography, including
pornography which portrays different sex sexual activities |
|
|
Different moral & political movements have waged for changes in
different sex sexual practices including courting & marriage, though
in all countries, changes are usually made only at a slow rate |
|
|
Especially in the US, campaigns around sexuality & sexual orientation
have often sparked & been fueled by moral panic |
|
|
In the US, mvmts to discourage same sex sexual practices often claim
to be strengthening different sex sexual practices w/in marriage, such
as Defense of Marriage Act & the proposed Fed Marriage Amendment |
|
|
There is no scientific evidence to support the belief that legislation
can affect sexual orientation or sexual practices other than limiting their
public demonstration |
|
|
SEXUALITY IS PROBABLY MOSTLY A PRODUCT OF BIOLOGY, BUT AS
IS TRUE W/ ALL CAPACITIES, ENVL FACTORS ALLOW OR DISALLOW DEVELOPMENT |
|
|
The argument that sexual orientation is a product of biology is the
view that sexual orientation is innate, that is, it is rooted in human
biology |
|
|
Most people report that they just feel or have a direct attraction
to one sex or another |
|
|
As of yet, no direct biological keys, genetic or otherwise, have been
found to determine sexual orientation, though several biological factors
have been determined to be involved in sexuality |
|
|
One such factor may be the effect of hormones on the developing brain
of a fetus before birth |
|
|
Some scientists also think particular genes (units of heredity) may
be involved |
|
|
Sexual orientation is most likely derived from both society & biology |
|
|
Most scientists believe that sexual orientation is largely manifested
biologically & then it finds a proper outlet given the societal norms |
|
|
Thus, in the past, homosexuality was more in the closet than today |
|
|
DEMOGRAPHICS ON SEXUAL ORIENTATION EST 10 % HAVE A
HOMOSEXUAL
ORIENTATION, & LESS THAN 10 % ARE BISEXUAL |
|
|
Social scientists estimate that 1 to 10 % of the population is homosexual,
but that depends on how one "operationalizes" homosexuality in that, for
example, it does not include those who have experimented w/ homosexuality |
|
|
While scientists estimate that 1 to 10 % of American adults are homosexuals,
a smaller percentage consider themselves bisexual |
|
|
While the statistics on number of homosexuals have not changed since
the sexually conservative days of the Kinsey studies, it is possible that
that more people admit to being homosexual, or bisexual as it becomes more
acceptable to do so |
|
|
ATTITUDES TOWARD HOMOSEXUALITY ARE MORE ACCEPTING |
|
|
Homosexuality has existed in most societies throughout history |
|
|
Various cultures have differed in their attitudes toward same sex relationships |
|
|
For example, some people of ancient Greece not only accepted male homosexual
relationships but considered a partnership btwn a young man & an older
man ideal |
|
|
Men of ancient Greece may have idealized homosexuality because they
believed that only another male could fulfill the role of true friend &
lover |
|
|
Other cultures have permitted homosexuality but have not encouraged
it. Still others have forbidden it, & some have punished homosexuals |
|
|
Today, political, religious, & personal attitudes about homosexuality
vary throughout the world |
|
|
Some people try to change their homosexual orientation through psychotherapy |
|
|
But many experts believe that learning to accept one's feelings &
to create a satisfying life may be more realistic goals |
|
|
Some gay men & women hide their homosexuality, but others
are more open about it |
|
|
Many join gay or lesbian groups |
|
|
Sometimes two homosexuals establish a long term relationship that is
similar to marriage |
|
|
In some countries & some states of the US, homosexual acts are
illegal |
|
|
Other nations, including Canada, France, the Netherlands, & the
UK, have no laws against homosexual acts btwn consenting adults |
|
|
Some countries grant long term gay partnerships the same legal rights
as marriage |
|
|
Many medical & legal professionals & social scientists oppose
laws that prohibit or punish homosexuality |
|
|
They believe such laws penalize homosexuals unfairly for ways of life
that do not directly affect others |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on
Transsexualism
|
|
External
Links
|
|
TRANSSEXUALS WANT TO BE OR BECOME THE OTHER SEX |
|
|
A transsexual is a person w/ an overwhelming desire to become the other
sex, or a person whose sex has been changed through hormonal therapy &
/ or surgery |
|
|
Transsexualism is a condition in which a person experiences persistent
discomfort about his or her sexual designation |
|
|
Transsexuals want to remove their body's sexual characteristics &
obtain the characteristics of the opposite sex |
|
|
HERMAPHRODITES ARE GENETICALLY ONE GENDER, BUT HAVE
SIGNIFICANT PHYSICAL SEXUAL CHARACTERISTICS OF THE OTHER GENDER |
|
|
Hermaphrodites are those individuals of one gender who display physical
sexual characteristics of the other gender |
|
|
Hermaphrodism occurs because of problems w/ sexual development |
|
|
Hermaphrodites are not transsexuals though they experience many of
the same problems because they appear as one sex, but desire to be the
other |
|
|
As far as science can tell, transsexuals are truly one sex & desire
to be the other while hermaphrodites are truly one sex, appear to be the
other, & desire to be the sex which they truly are |
|
|
TRANSVESTITES DESIRE TO DRESS & ACT AS THE OTHER GENDER |
|
|
Transvestites are those who desire to, or dress in the clothes of the
opposite sex |
|
|
Transvestites are heterosexual & are have no transsexual or hermaphroditic
characteristics & thus their primary characteristic is that they enjoy
dressing in or are aroused by dressing as the opposite sex, i.e. cross
dressing |
|
|
THE CAUSES OF TRANSSEXUALITY ARE UNKNOWN |
|
|
Transsexuals feel a need to act like & be treated as a member of
the opposite sex |
|
|
Transsexualism occurs more in males than in females |
|
|
Transsexualism's cause is unknown |
|
|
Some behavioral scientists think it results from an early disturbance
in the mother infant relationship & a lack of proper identification
w/ the same sex parent |
|
|
There is no evidence of hormonal abnormalities in transsexuals though
this as well as genetic abnormalities cannot be ruled out |
|
|
SEXUAL REASSIGNMENT IS A PROCESS WHERE ONE SWITCHES SEX VIA
SURGERY, HORMONE TREATMENTS, & COUNSELING |
|
|
Transsexuals sometimes seek sexual reassignment surgery to permanently
change their external anatomy to that of the opposite sex |
|
|
Patients should receive careful psychiatric evaluation before the surgery
because various psychiatric disorders can lead to unhappiness w/ one's
sex type |
|
|
In addition, psychotherapy is needed to explore the motivation for
a sex change operation |
|
|
People considering sexual reassignment surgery are advised to live
& dress as a member of the opposite sex for up to 2 years |
|
|
By living & dressing as the opposite sex, people considering sexual
reassignment surgery can demonstrate their ability to function as members
of the opposite sex |
|
|
During the 'new sex trial period,' potential sexual reassigners can
take hormones of the opposite sex to obtain the secondary sexual characteristics
of that sex |
|
|
For example, a woman taking male hormones will grow facial hair, &
a man taking female hormones will develop breasts |
|
|
Some transsexuals have undergone sexual reassignment & gone on
to marry & live out their lives w/ their new gender |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on the
Gay Rights Movement
|
|
External
Links
|
|
- Video: Philadelphia |
Link
|
|
In 2004, Massachusetts ruled that gay couples had a right to marry |
|
|
The trend is toward greater acceptance of homosexual relationships |
|
|
Most gay couples w/ children are raising offspring of previous heterosexual
unions & others adopt or conceive them using alternative methods |
|
|
Gay parenting challenges traditional ideas |
|
|
Gay parenting shows that gay couples value family life as highly as
heterosexuals & the desire for a family life is now one of the main
impetuses for the gay rights mvmt |
|
|
In recent decades, the public attitude toward homosexuality has been
moving towards greater acceptance due to the gay rights mvmt that arose
in the middle of the 20th C |
|
|
The gay rights mvmt also began using the term homophobia to describe
the dread of close personal interaction w/ people thought to be gay, lesbian,
or bisexual |
|
|
An effort to win full civil rights for homosexuals, often called the
gay rights mvmt, arose during the 1950s in Europe & No America |
|
|
In 1961, IL became the first US state to abolish its laws against private
homosexual acts |
|
|
In 1969, a group of male homosexuals resisted arrest at a gay bar in
NYC called the Stonewall Inn |
|
|
After this resistance, commonly known as Stonewall, the gay rights
mvmt grew rapidly |
|
|
Since 1970, several US states & a number of US & Canadian cities
have passed laws banning discrimination against homosexuals |
|
|
These laws forbid discrimination in employment, in housing, & in
other activities |
|
|
A growing number of employers also grant the same benefits to same
sex "domestic partnerships" as to conventional marriages |
|
|
During the 1980s, however, the gay rights mvmt suffered a setback as
the AIDS epidemic swept Europe & No America |
|
|
In those regions, the disease first occurred mainly among gay men,
& thus was known initially as the gay disease before it was understood
& known as AIDS |
|
|
Although AIDS also occurs among, & is transmitted by heterosexual
men & women, many people blamed homosexuals for its spread |
|
|
Many homosexuals feared & indeed have experienced increased discrimination
as a result of the AIDS crisis |
|
|
In 1986, the Sup Ct of the US ruled in Bowers v. Hardwick that states
could enact laws forbidding private homosexual acts |
|
|
Such laws are rarely enforced, but gay leaders feel that these laws
express society's disapproval of homosexuality |
|
|
In 1996, the US Sup Ct ruled in Romer v. Evans that states may not
ban laws that protect homosexuals against discrimination |
|
|
In 2000, Vermont passed a law that grants same sex couples living in
civil unions the same legal rights & responsibilities as married couples
in the state |
|
|
Since 2000 several states have passed laws allowing gay marriage &
/ or civil unions |
|
|
The issue of gay marriage & / or civil unions has created a backlash
like no issue since gay sex education in schools was proposed |
|
|
Many states have passed laws banning gay marriage & / or civil
unions |
|
|
There are several court cases in process testing the legalization &
the banning of gay marriage & / or civil unions |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
|
External
Links
|
|
- Supplement: USA Today:
Divorce |
Link
|
|
- Supplement: US Census:
Divorce Rates, 2006 |
Link
|
|
- Supplement: Associated
Press: Divorce Rates, 1998 |
Link
|
|
- Supplement: Time Magazine:
Should You Stay Together for the Kids? |
Link
|
|
- Supplement: Time Magazine:
States w/ the Highest Divorce Rate |
Link
|
|
- Project: Divorce |
Link
|
|
DIVORCE IS COMMON TODAY BECAUSE PEOPLE EXPECT MORE
OUT OF MARRIAGE |
|
|
Divorce is the legal ending of a marriage |
|
|
The laws of most nations, including the US & Canada, permit divorce
only under certain circumstances |
|
|
Divorce is restricted chiefly because it breaks up a family, the basic
unit of society |
|
|
Some countries, including the Philippines, prohibit divorce |
|
|
Most men & women who seek a divorce do so because they cannot solve
certain problems in their marriage |
|
|
Marriage problems may include differences in goals, financial difficulties,
or a poor sexual relationship |
|
|
In the US, a person seeking a divorce generally must appear in court
to explain why he or she wants to end the marriage |
|
|
A judge then decides whether to grant a divorce |
|
|
A few states prohibit remarriage for a certain period after a divorce |
|
|
But in general, a man & woman may marry again, each other or someone
else, after their divorce becomes final |
|
|
DIVORCE, ANNULMENT, SEPARATION, ABANDONMENT ARE SOME OF THE COMMON
CUSTOMS OF ENDING MARRIAGE |
|
|
Divorce differs from annulment, in which a court declares that a marriage
has been invalid from its beginning |
|
|
A person whose marriage has been annulled may remarry |
|
|
Divorce also differs from legal separation, in which a court authorizes
a husband & wife to live apart |
|
|
Spouses (a husband & wife) who are legally separated may not remarry
until there separation legally becomes a divorce |
|
|
Abandonment occurs when one spouse breaks their obligations to the
marriage through physically leaving, or not fulfilling childcare obligations,
not filling financial obligations, etc. |
|
|
Abandonment is defined legally through state law & thus the exact
qualifications to establish abandonment vary from state to state |
|
|
A spouse who is abandoned may sue for divorce after a period of time |
|
|
THE INCIDENCE OF DIVORCE HAS RISEN FROM THE TIME WHEN
IT WAS ILLEGAL, & HAS NOW STABILIZED |
|
|
Divorce is a sizable problem in the US & many other countries |
|
|
Each year, more than a million couples divorce in the US |
|
|
In many divorces, the couple had children under 18 years old |
|
|
About a fourth of the children in the US live w/ only one parent |
|
|
Divorce affects many young children deeply |
|
|
But many experts believe that living w/ one parent is less harmful
to a child than living w/ both parents in an unhappy environment |
|
|
Most divorced men & women remarry, & many such marriages are
successful |
|
|
However, second marriages present special problems of adjustment, especially
for couples who have children from a former marriage |
|
|
Families that include children from one or more previous marriages
are called step families, reconstituted families, or blended families |
|
|
Blended families have become more & more common as the divorce
rate rises |
|
|
A SOCIO HISTL ANALYSIS OF DIVORCE SHOWS THAT IT WAS PRACTICED
IN ANCIENT TIMES, BECAME PROHIBITED IN THE WEST AFTER CHRISTIANITY
DOMINATED, & IS AGAIN PRACTICED SINCE WW 2 |
|
|
Ancient cultures permitted easy divorce & often practiced polygyny
& concubinage, which is the practice of a husband living w/ a woman
who was not his legal wife |
|
|
Polygyny & concubinage enabled a powerful or wealthy family to
have children when the first wife failed to produce an heir, thus lessening
the need for divorce |
|
|
The first written divorce regulations were incorporated in the ancient
Babylonian Code of Hammurabi |
|
|
Many early societies permitted only the husband to get a divorce |
|
|
The early Christians taught that marriage was permanent until death,
& they abolished divorce in the areas they governed |
|
|
Early Christians also established special church courts to deal w/
marriage matters |
|
|
Beginning in the AD 1500s, Protestant reformers successfully worked
to have matters of marriage & divorce placed under govt jurisdiction |
|
|
Divorce rarely occurred in the American Colonies |
|
|
Some colonies made no provision for divorce at all, but by the mid
1800s, almost every state had a divorce law |
|
|
Today, the US divorce rate is about 16 times as high as it was in 1867,
the first year for which the Bureau of the Census published divorce figures |
|
|
In the early 1900s, NV had passed laws that made it easy to get a divorce |
|
|
A person had to live in NV for only six months to get a divorce there |
|
|
In 1927, the NV Legislature passed a law allowing persons to obtain
a divorce if they lived in the state for only three months & in 1931,
the period was reduced to six weeks |
|
|
During the mid 1900s, thousands of people went to NV each year to get
divorces quickly & easily |
|
|
THE CUSTOMS OF ENDING MARRIAGE INCLUDE ANNULMENT, FAULT DIVORCE,
& NO FAULT DIVORCE |
|
|
Each state of the US has its own divorce laws |
|
|
All the states recognize a divorce granted by the state in which one
or both of the spouses are legal residents |
|
|
State laws set forth the grounds for divorce, that is, the reasons
for which a divorce may be granted |
|
|
Depending on the kind of grounds, a divorce can be classified as a
fault divorce or a no fault divorce |
|
|
ANNULMENT ENDS A MARRIAGE BY ASSUMING THAT THE MARRIAGE NEVER
REALLY EXISTED |
|
|
Annulment is the declaration that a marriage never really existed,
or was void from the beginning |
|
|
Most states of the US, as well as many religious groups, have strict
laws saying that first cousins may not marry each other |
|
|
If 2 persons are found to be w/in the forbidden degree of consanguinity
(blood relationship) their marriage can be annulled |
|
|
Annulments are sometimes granted for other reasons, such as fraud or
undue force exercised against one of the parties |
|
|
A marriage can also be annulled if either party is under age, or if
both parties declare that they considered the ceremony a joke at the time
it was performed |
|
|
An annulment differs from a divorce, which has the effect of dissolving
a valid marriage for some cause arising after the ceremony |
|
|
Except in special cases, the Roman Catholic Church does not recognize
divorce, but it does recognize annulment |
|
|
FAULT DIVORCE IS RARELY INVOKED BECAUSE IT ATTEMPTS TO ASSIGN
BLAME, & THIS IS PROBLEMATIC |
|
|
Courts traditionally have granted divorces chiefly on fault grounds |
|
|
Grounds for divorce vary, but the common ones are adultery, alcoholism,
desertion, drug addiction, failure to support, imprisonment for felony,
& mental or physical cruelty |
|
|
A person seeking a divorce on a fault ground must prove that his or
her spouse committed the fault |
|
|
For example, a woman seeking a divorce on the ground of desertion must
prove that her husband deserted her |
|
|
The husband may contest (argue against) the divorce action |
|
|
Many divorces are uncontested |
|
|
If the wife's proof is accepted, the judge grants her a divorce |
|
|
But if the husband can prove that his wife consented to or encouraged
his action, the judge may refuse to grant a divorce |
|
|
The judge also may rule against the wife if the husband can prove that
she committed a legal fault |
|
|
NO FAULT DIVORCE DOES NOT ASSIGN BLAME IS &
THE MOST COMMON TYPE TODAY |
|
|
A person seeking a divorce on a no fault ground does not try to prove
that the spouse committed a wrong. |
|
|
The person simply testifies that their marriage has failed |
|
|
In many cases, the judge grants a divorce even if the person's spouse
objects |
|
|
In 1969, CA became the first state to enact a no fault divorce law |
|
|
The CA law provides only two grounds for divorce, including: |
|
|
a. irreconcilable differences, that is, disagreements
that cannot be settled & have led to the breakdown of the marriage |
|
|
b. the incurable insanity of one spouse |
|
|
Generally, a person may not tell the judge about any misconduct of
the spouse, so adultery is not grounds for a no fault divorce |
|
|
Some states have replaced all traditional grounds for divorce w/ the
single no fault ground of marriage breakdown |
|
|
Other states have added this to their traditional grounds |
|
|
Several states allow a couple to obtain a divorce on the ground that
they have been separated for a certain period |
|
|
Some states grant divorce on the ground of incompatibility (being unable
to get along together) |
|
|
THE ARGUMENTS FOR NO FAULT DIVORCE ARE THAT USUALLY BOTH PARTIES
ARE RESPONSIBLE & EVEN IF ONE IS MORE RESPONSIBLE, LEGALLY PLACING
BLAME
IS PROBLEMATIC |
|
|
People who favor no fault divorce argue that many marriage failures
result from causes other than one spouse's misconduct |
|
|
Therefore, they declare, a divorce should be granted for reasons other
than a fault |
|
|
In addition, these people believe that relations btwn spouses remain
friendlier in no fault cases than in fault cases |
|
|
Supporters of no fault laws also point out that traditional divorce
laws lead many couples to lie in court |
|
|
For example, a couple may want a divorce because they cannot get along |
|
|
But they live in a state that grants divorces only on a few fault grounds |
|
|
To obtain a divorce, the couple might lie to the judge that one spouse
has been physically cruel to the other |
|
|
A related argument for no fault laws is that traditional divorce laws
lead some people to seek a divorce in another state |
|
|
For example, a person who lives in a traditional divorce state may
go to a no fault divorce state that has a short residency requirement |
|
|
After living in this state for the required period, the person might
falsely claim to be a permanent resident of the state |
|
|
The person would then obtain a divorce & return to his or her own
state |
|
|
If the spouse disputes the validity of the divorce, a court may decide
that residence was not truly established in the state that granted the
divorce |
|
|
As more states liberalize their laws, fewer people seek a divorce in
such a state as NV, which has a residency requirement of only six weeks |
|
|
Arguments against no fault divorce |
|
|
Some people oppose no fault divorces because they believe such divorces
can be obtained too easily |
|
|
They fear that judges may grant a divorce to anyone who says the marriage
has broken down, whether it actually has or not |
|
|
Others believe restrictions should be added to no fault laws to prevent
premature or unnecessary divorces |
|
|
In some states, courts direct couples planning divorce to consult a
marriage counselor |
|
|
Some states require a waiting period to give a couple time to reconsider
their decision |
|
|
The divorce process may be simpler under no fault laws than under fault
laws |
|
|
Therefore, in some no fault states, some couples can obtain a divorce
w/o hiring lawyers |
|
|
Some judges oppose this practice, called do it yourself divorce, because
they believe a lawyer is needed to protect the rights of spouses &
children. |
|
|
DIVORCE PROVISIONS IN MOST
STATES ARE SET BY THE LAW & IMPLEMENTED & INTERPRETED BY THE COURTS |
|
|
A husband & wife planning a divorce must make arrangements
for alimony, child custody & support, & division of their property |
|
|
They may reach agreement on these arrangements through their lawyers |
|
|
In some states, courts offer divorce counseling to help couples resolve
disagreements |
|
|
If the judge considers the agreement fair, the judge approves it, but
if the spouses cannot agree, the judge decides on the arrangements |
|
|
DIVORCEE'S FINANCIAL ARRANGEMENTS IN MANY STATES ORDER THE
SPLITTING OF ALL ASSETS; & IN SOME STATES, THE SPLITTING OF FUTURE
INCOME |
|
|
In the past, the judge ordered many divorced men to pay considerable
alimony |
|
|
They also had to give up some of their property & bear most of
the responsibility for supporting their children |
|
|
There were two chief reasons for this situation |
|
|
First, large numbers of divorced women had no job outside the home
& needed money to support themselves & their children |
|
|
Second, traditional fault laws provided that the "guilty" spouse could
not receive alimony |
|
|
In many cases, the husband was the legally guilty spouse because his
wife filed for the divorce, even though both might have wanted it |
|
|
Today, courts base their decisions on financial arrangements primarily
on the financial condition of each spouse |
|
|
Judges realize that many women have the qualifications to work outside
the home & need not be fully supported by their former husband |
|
|
Therefore, if both spouses can earn enough income to support themselves,
the court may order that no alimony be paid |
|
|
If the wife has a higher income than her husband, she may have to pay
alimony to him |
|
|
In addition, the parents may share responsibility for child support |
|
|
The court may also divide a couple's property on the basis of financial
circumstances |
|
|
Under the community property laws of a few states, property acquired
during a marriage belongs equally to both spouses |
|
|
This property is divided equally in most cases |
|
|
CHILD CUSTODY ARRANGEMENTS HAVE MOVED FROM MALES KEEP THE
CHILDREN, TO FEMALES KEEP THE CHILDREN, TO THE 'BEST PARENT' KEEPS THE
CHILDREN, TO SPLIT CUSTODY |
|
|
In the early & middle 1900's, judges granted custody of the children
to the wife almost automatically in the majority of divorce cases |
|
|
They believed that children should not be separated from the mother |
|
|
But today, many judges realize that some children might be better off
living w/ the father |
|
|
Therefore, the court may grant custody to either parent |
|
|
The judge also determines each parent's rights to visit the children |
|
|
The judge may ask the children w/ which parent they would prefer to
live |
|
|
Some divorced parents return to court several times because one or
both of them wants to challenge the child custody decision |
|
|
If the court changes its decision, the children may have to leave the
home of one parent & move in w/ the other |
|
|
Such a move can harm children emotionally |
|
|
As a result, some courts have become reluctant to move children unless
they are in danger |
|
|
Mothers gain custody more often, but fathers earn more income |
|
|
The well being of many children depend on court ordered child support
payments |
|
|
Courts award child support in 60% of all divorces involving children |
|
|
Half of children legally entitled receive partial or no payments at
all |
|
|
There are an estimated 3.5 million deadbeat dads, i.e. those who cannot
or do not make their child support payments |
|
|
Federal legislation requires employers to withhold money from earnings
of fathers and mothers who fail to pay |
|
|
US DIVORCE RATES ARE HISTLY HIGH, BUT THEY HAVE STABILIZED,
& THERE IS STILL A BACK LOG OF OLDER MARRIED COUPLES WHO WILL DIVORCE
BECAUSE THEY AVOIDED IT WHEN IT WAS MORE TABOO |
|
|
In the US, divorce has become common |
|
|
Each year, more than a million American couples divorce |
|
|
Most couples who divorce do so in the first 10 years of marriage |
|
|
A majority of divorced people remarry, & many have a successful
marriage w/ another partner |
|
|
The divorce rate is higher in the US than in almost any other country |
|
|
Experts have suggested many reasons for this high rate, including: |
|
|
a. divorce is more socially acceptable than it once was |
|
|
b. many people expect more of marriage than earlier generations
did, & so they may be more easily disappointed |
|
|
c. more high paying jobs are open to women & these
opportunities have made wives less dependent economically on their husbands
than women |
|
|
d. changes in divorce laws have made divorce easier to
obtain |
|
|
In general, cities have a higher divorce rate than rural areas |
|
|
The rate also varies among different states & regions, partly because
divorce laws & court practices differ |
|
|
But the rates probably also differ because of variances in the cultural,
economic, racial, & religious composition of the population |
|
|
In general, people w/ nonprofessional jobs & those w/ low incomes
have a higher divorce rate than people w/ professional jobs & those
w/ high incomes. But one nonprofessional group, farmers, has an extremely
low divorce rate |
|
|
Most studies show that black couples & couples consisting of a
black & a white have higher divorce rates than white couples do |
|
|
Of the three major religious groups in the United States, Roman Catholics
have the lowest divorce rate & Protestants the highest |
|
|
The Catholic Church holds that valid marriages cannot be dissolved |
|
|
It allows its members to get a civil divorce to solve financial &
child custody problems |
|
|
But it does not believe such a divorce gives the right to remarry |
|
|
If the church has annulled a marriage by declaring it invalid, the
people involved are once again free to marry |
|
|
Judaism & most Protestant groups permit divorce |
|
|
Some surveys show that Catholic Protestant couples & Christian
Jewish couples have a higher divorce rate than couples of the same religion |
|
|
But one study showed no difference in the divorce rate of Catholic
Protestant couples |
|
Table
on Marital Status Rates |
Year
|
Married
|
Single
|
Widowed
|
Divorced
|
1910
|
62.7 %
|
28.6
|
8.1
|
0.6
|
1920
|
64.8
|
25.7
|
8.5
|
1.0
|
1930
|
65.6
|
24.5
|
8.5
|
1.4
|
1940
|
65.8
|
24.1
|
8.6
|
1.5
|
1950
|
72.2
|
16.8
|
9.0
|
2.0
|
1960
|
73.9
|
14.7
|
8.9
|
2.5
|
1970
|
71.7
|
16.2
|
8.9
|
3.2
|
1975
|
69.6
|
17.5
|
8.3
|
4.6
|
1980
|
65.5
|
20.3
|
8.0
|
6.2
|
1985
|
63.0
|
21.5
|
7.9
|
7.6
|
1990
|
61.9
|
22.2
|
7.6
|
8.3
|
1995
|
60.9
|
22.9
|
7.0
|
9.2
|
2005
|
52.7
|
29.4
|
6.0
|
9.8
|
The Table on Marital Status Rates shows that married &
widowed rates are declining while single & divorce rates are rising |
|
THE PROFILE OF WHO DIVORCES INCLUDE YOUNG COUPLES,
PREGNANT COUPLES, CHILDREN OF DIVORCEES, CAREER COUPLES, ETC. |
|
|
Young couples are at the greatest risk for divorce |
|
|
Those who had a brief courtship before marriage have a greater risk
of divorce |
|
|
A lack money & emotional maturity increase the risk of divorce |
|
|
Couples who marries after an unexpected pregnancy have an increased
risk of divorce |
|
|
People whose parents divorce have a higher divorce rate |
|
|
Divorce is more common if both partners have successful careers |
|
|
Men & women who divorce once are more likely to divorce again |
|
|
Risk factors follow from one marriage to another |
|
|
BLENDED FAMILIES ARE NOW COMMON AS DIVORCEES REMARRY |
|
|
Four out of five people who divorce remarry creating blended or step
families |
|
|
Blended families are composed of children & some combination of
biological parents & stepparents |
|
|
Blended families must define who is part of the nuclear family |
|
|
While adjustments are necessary is all families, blended families require
even more, creating more stress on the marriage & the family |
|
|
Blended families offer both the young & the old the chance to relax
rigid family roles |
|
|
THE FUNDAMENTAL CAUSE OF DIVORCE OF DIVORCE IS INDIVIDUALISM,
EXPECTATIONS
OF SATISFACTION, & THE ECONOMIC ABILITY TO DO IT |
|
|
Individualism is on the rise & people desire less compromise &
dependence in their lives |
|
|
As is documented by Sternberg & Rubin, romantic love fades leaving
commitment & intimacy to hold marriages together |
|
|
Women are less dependent on men than in the past & so are more
able to see divorce as a realistic option |
|
|
Divorce is socially acceptable & is easier to get |
|
|
Singlehood is more desirable than in the past |
|
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
|
External
Links
|
|
- Supplement: Druckerman:
No longer the kiss of death |
Link
|
|
- Supplement:
Video: Druckerman: "Lust in translation" |
Link
|
|
- Supplement: Druckerman:
"Lust in translation" |
Link
|
|
Infidelity is unfaithfulness, a breach of trust; esp, unfaithfulness
to the marriage vows which often encompasses sexual & / or romantic
liaisons w/ someone other than one's spouse |
|
|
Men are more likely to cheat, as are those in the lower income brackets |
|
|
Adultery crises in Am last longer, cost more, & inflict more emotional
torture than anywhere else |
|
|
For No Ams, marital lapses are widely perceived as the first step toward
divorce |
|
|
For Euro, infidelity is simply considered an unexpected challenge to
overcome |
|
|
While the purportedly open minded Fr are perceived as bed hopping adulterers,
they are actually just slightly less unfaithful than No Ams |
|
|
SOCIO-BIOLOGY & INFIDELITY |
|
|
There are biological reasons behind the human emotion of jealousy |
|
|
Those same biological reasons for jealousy also produce different reactions
in men & women |
|
|
The reasons for jealously & infidelity for women & men lie
in their different roles in procreation |
|
|
The primary social reason for marriage is for a woman to secure the
assistance of the male in raising first the gestating fetus, & second
the child |
|
|
The primary social reason for marriage for a man is to ensure his patronage
in his child, i.e. that he is not cuckolded |
|
|
Cuckold is an allusion to the female cuckoo's laying her eggs in the
nests of other birds, thus having other birds care for & raise her
young |
|
|
In socio biological terms, a cuckold is the husband of an unfaithful
wife, i.e. a man whose wife has committed adultery & become pregnant |
|
|
Marriage has the socio biological advantage for women that they secure
a mate to help provide for the fetus & child |
|
|
Marriage has the socio biological advantage for men in that they can
ensure their paternity, i.e. know who their child is, & help provide
for the fetus & child |
|
|
Tolerance for cheating has the socio biological advantage for men that
they can spawn many offspring w/o much investment in time or effort as
in there is only a social, & not a biological imperative than men help
provide for the fetus the child |
|
|
Tolerance for cheating has the socio biological disadvantage for men
that they can never be sure of their paternity, i.e. know for sure whether
a child is their offspring or not, & thus they are unsure of where
to invest there time & effort into parenting |
|
|
Tolerance for cheating has the socio biological advantage for women
that they are more free to mate w/ the best mate |
|
|
Tolerance for cheating has the socio biological disadvantage for women
that they may lose the support of a male in raising their child |
|
|
Men react to infidelity w/ anger towards their lover & the third
party & are more upset by sexual indiscretion than by mental infidelity |
|
|
Sexual infidelity by a woman is more important than mental infidelity
to the man because then he cannot be sure of his paternity |
|
|
Women are more upset by mental infidelity, falling in love w/ someone
else, than by sexual infidelity |
|
|
Women are more upset by mental / love infidelity because the
risk is the man may w/draw support for their child & give it to another
woman & child |
|
|
Also that women react to infidelity by w/drawing & attempting to
solve the problem, because love may be returned or "corrected" at any time
in a relationship, thus re-establishing the support by the male for the
child |
|
|
Men will react to infidelity by ending the relationship because there
is no way to fix problem of cuckolding |
|
|
SOCIO HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF INFIDELITY |
|
|
Americans had more remedies for fixing broken marriages than anywhere
else, by 2004, there were more than 50,000 marriage & family therapists
in the US |
|
|
North Americans are particularly bad at dealing w/ infidelity |
|
|
Americans have come to expect much more of their marriages & to
follow the storybook narrative to the letter |
|
|
Americans have become more liberal on practically every sexual issue,
including homosexuality, premarital sex, babies out of wedlock & cohabitation,
but cheating still remains a social taboo |
|
|
A 2006 Gallup poll found Americans believe infidelity is more morally
wrong than polygamy & human cloning |
|
|
When gender roles were more distinct, most husbands went to work while
their wives tended house, Americans were more comfortable w/ the idea that
married
couples might keep secrets from each other |
|
|
In President Kennedy: Profile of Power, Reeves wrote that few
members of JFK's inner circle had moral qualms about helping to arrange
the president's romps |
|
|
In the recent past, most American's, including JFK's inner circle,
considered philandering a harmless hobby ("It took less time than tennis,
& partners were often easier to find") |
|
|
Few people questioned why Jacqueline Kennedy soldiered on, while today
many still question Hillary Clinton's loyalty to her cheating husband |
|
|
In a 1994 survey of 24 countries, we disapproved of adultery more than
people anywhere but Ireland & the Philippines, & Russia was the
most permissive |
|
|
In 1994, more than 25,000 marriage & family therapists, up from
3,000 in 1970, were teaching us that recovering from infidelity could take
years |
|
|
Many believed that healthy couples didn't keep secrets, so the "offending
spouse" should tell the "betrayed spouse" every detail. America's new mantra
became: "It's not the sex, it's the lying." |
|
|
The fidelity rules, for presidents & for ordinary people, began
changing in the 1970s |
|
|
Most states adopted no fault divorce, transforming marriage from a
durable container for all kinds of transgressions into a disposable one |
|
|
Indiscretions that once were tolerated suddenly became grounds for
dismissal. Americans increasingly had the means to walk away, because more
women worked |
|
|
The national divorce rate doubled btwn 1967 & 1979 |
|
|
A generation of brides & grooms read one another the one strike
rule: cheat, & it's over |
|
|
Psychologists had once assumed that only one fragile psyche could be
dealt w/ at a time, but in the 1970s, they decided that "the relationship"
was itself an entity that could be studied |
|
|
The ranks of couples therapists quickly multiplied, creating an army
of people preaching that an affair isn't just about sex; it's a symptom
of other problems |
|
|
FAMOUS INFIDELITIES |
|
|
Anna Karenina |
|
|
Leo Tolstoy, 1828-1910, a Russian writer, published his second masterpiece,
Anna
Karenina, in installments from 1875 to 1877 |
|
|
Its plot concerns the open infidelity of a Russian princess, Anna Karenina,
to her husband, Karenina |
|
|
The novel examines Anna's romance w/ Count Vronsky |
|
|
Anna & Vronsky show contempt for the disapproving opinions of the
members of the high society to which they belong |
|
|
The difficulties of their relationship eventually lead to Anna's suicide |
|
|
But Anna Karenina is more than a tragic love story |
|
|
The novel explores broad social, moral, & philosophical issues
of Russia & its aristocracy in the 1870's |
|
|
These issues include the hypocritical attitude of the upper class toward
adultery & the role of religious faith in a person's life |
|
|
Many of these issues are raised through the thoughts & actions
of Konstantin Levin, the novel's second most important figure |
|
|
JFK |
|
|
When John F. Kennedy took women for a dip in the presidential pool
w/o a peep from the press, Americans didn't automatically assume that cheaters
had
personality defects |
|
|
Such behavior could be seen as glamorous or as evidence of a passionate
streak. In 1973, slightly less than 70 % of Americans said that
adultery was "always wrong," . |
|
|
Though Americans generally agreed that infidelity was bad, it was an
offense they could live w/ |
|
|
John Irving |
|
|
John Irving, 1942-..., wrote the 158 Pound Marriage, 1974, is
a kind of moral fable about marital infidelity |
|
|
In the novel, Utch marries a professor & they have 2 children &
live a relatively placid existence until, at a faculty party, they become
acquainted w/ Severin Winter, a coach of the school's wrestling team, &
his wife Edith, a WASP from a privileged background |
|
|
The couples are sharing dinners & play dates w/ their children
& as the professor becomes more attracted to Edith & Utch begins
to fall for Severin, the couples begin trading spouses for sexual encounters
at the end of their dinner date |
|
|
At first the affairs proceed smoothly, w/ emotional conflict submerged
beneath sexual curiosity, but soon enough, obsessive love rears its ugly
head, & the narrator begins to discover that the Winters have not been
entirely honest w/ him & his wife about their motives for entering
the affair |
|
|
Gary Hart |
|
|
Gary Hart, 1936-..., a Colorado Democrat, served as a United
States senator from 1975 to 1987 |
|
|
He was an unsuccessful candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination
in 1984 & 1988 |
|
|
Hart w/drew from the campaign in May 1987 after newspaper accounts
of his personal life suggested marital infidelity |
|
|
He reentered the race in December 1987, but he again w/drew in March
1988 |
|
|
Bill Clinton |
|
|
For a time, Clinton's campaign faltered over charges of marital infidelity |
|
|
The Clintons acknowledged that they had encountered some difficulties
in their relationship, but they said their marriage was strong |
|
|
Clinton also came under attack for his actions during the early 1970's,
which, his opponents charged, showed that he had sought to evade military
service during the Vietnam War (1957-1975) |
|
|
Clinton denied that he had acted improperly, & his campaign rapidly
regained ground |
|
|
Clinton overcame the claims of infidelity, & won the Presidency,
where infidelity again came into the picture |
|
|
Clinton was later impeached because of a sexual liaison w/ Monica Lewinski
in the White House |
|
|
Hillary Clinton was publicly distant from her husband after this affair,
but maintained that it was a private issue |
|
|
As Hillary Clinton enters the 2008 presidential race, her marriage
again appears strong |
|
|
There's no shortage of adultery hovering over the current race: Rudy
Giuliani's awkward transition into his third marriage, John McCain's overlapping
relationships w/ his first & second wives & potential candidate
Newt Gingrich's acknowledged "periods of weakness" |
|
|
These candidates are all making comebacks, compared w/ Gary Hart's
lost campaign despite the fact that in 2004, 82 % of American's said that
adultery was "always wrong," up from 70% in 1973 |
|
|
The survivability of these politicians is a reflection of the latest
thinking from therapists & religious groups is that affairs need not
be a marital death sentence |
|
|
Some evangelical & other Christian congregations are so alarmed
by divorce that they're counseling people to work through their problems
rather than split up |
|
|
Therapists & self appointed marriage experts are increasingly promoting
the same message. |
|
|
As children of the divorce explosion in the late 1970s now hit bumps
in their own marriages, they're rethinking the one strike rule |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on Out
of Wedlock Births
|
|
External
Links
|
|
- Supplement: An Analysis
of Out Of Wedlock Births in the United States; Brooking Institute,
August, 1996 |
Link
|
|
- Supplement: Understanding
the Rise in Illegitimacy |
Link
|
|
A SOCIO HISTL ANALYSIS OF OUT OF WEDLOCK BIRTHS SHOWS THAT
THIS PRACTICE HAS MOVED FROM TABOO TO CONVENTIONAL |
|
|
What today are commonly referred to as out of wedlock births were once
called illegitimate births, & thus the children were called illegitimate
or bastards |
|
|
Children were considered to be illegitimate or bastards even if they
were conceived out of wedlock |
|
|
A bastard is a child begotten & born out of wedlock & were
considered to be mongrel & inferior |
|
|
Illegitimacy could be conferred on the mother & child if the child
was conceived & / or born before marriage, or if they were the result
of an adulterous relationship |
|
|
Thus, illegitimacy & bastardness is slightly different than being
born out of wedlock because even if a child is born of an adulterous relationship,
today it is not considered to be born out of wedlock, but it the past the
mother & child would have been given the illegitimate label |
|
|
Generally illegitimate children were not entitled to the same rights
as legitimate children & the mothers of such children were either not
considered to be marriageable or if married, were shunned as adulterers |
|
|
The illegitimacy ratio, or the % of births that are out of wedlock,
has expanded rapidly for both whites & blacks since the beginning of
the War on Poverty in 1965 |
|
|
THE DEMOGRAPHICS OF OUT OF WEDLOCK BIRTHS SHOW THAT THEY ARE INCREASING |
|
|
The illegitimacy ratio measures the number of out of wedlock births
as a percent of all births in a year |
|
|
If there were 100 births in a society in a given year & 30 of those
births were out of wedlock, the illegitimacy rate or ratio would be 30
% |
|
|
Among whites, the out of wedlock birth rate has risen from 4 % of all
births in 1965 to 23.6 % of births 1995 |
|
|
Among blacks, the out of wedlock birth rate has risen from 28 % of
all births in 1965 to 69.9 % of births 1995 |
|
|
The percentage of non married women in their late teens, 20s &
30s has thus clearly grown over the last 3 decades |
|
|
As the number of non married women has increased, the probability that
these women will have children while unmarried has also grown |
|
|
American society is now characterized by a growing number of non married
women who as a group have an increasing tendency to bear children out of
wedlock |
|
|
In 1965 there were 23.4 births per 1,000 non married women aged 15
to 44 & by 1995, the number had risen to 45.1 |
|
|
Thus, the overall birth rate among non married women has nearly doubled
over the last 30 years |
|
|
The increase in out of wedlock births is particularly steep among young
unmarried women |
|
|
Among non married women aged 15 to 19, the birth rate per 1,000 women
rose from 16.7 in 1965 to 44.4 in 1995 |
|
|
Among unmarried women aged 20 to 24, the birth rate rose from 39.6
per 1,000 to 70.3 per 1,000 |
|
|
While the total number of births has increased since the beginning
of the War on Poverty in the mid 1960s, the number of children born to
married couples has declined, falling from 3.47 million births in 1965
to 2.65 million births in 1995 |
|
|
From the 1960s to 1995, the number of births to non married women has
quadrupled, rising from 0.29 million in 1965 to 1.25 million in 1995 |
|
|
There were approximately 1.5 million births to unmarried women in the
US during 2004 |
|
|
In the mid 2000s, the birth rate for unmarried women is 46.1 births
per 1,000 for unmarried women aged 15 - 44 yrs |
|
|
36 % of all births take place out of wedlock |
|
|
CAUSES OF OUT OF WEDLOCK BIRTHS INCLUDE SOCIAL ACCEPTANCE,
ECONLY
IND WOMEN, OUT OF WEDLOCK PATERNITY, ETC. |
|
|
There are cultural & structural causes of the increase in out of
wedlock births, including the |
|
|
1. decline in the social stigma against conception
& birth out of wedlock |
|
|
2. decline in the portion of women of child bearing
age who are married |
|
|
3. increase in the birth or fertility rate among
non married women |
|
|
4. decline in the marriage rate |
|
|
5. decline in the birth or fertility rateamong
married
women |
|
|
6. increased econ power of women, allowing them
to support a family |
|
|
7. belief that a good single life is better for
males & females & their children than a bad marriage |
|
|
8. laws & customs requiring the acknowledgment of
out
of wed lock paternity |
|
|
9. laws & customs requiring child support for out
of wedlock children from the parent not raising the child, to the parent
raising the child |
|
|
10. positive images of single parents & their children |
|
|
IMPACTS OF OUT OF WEDLOCK BIRTH INCLUDE MORE SINGLE PARENT
FAMILIES, MORE POOR SINGLE PARENT FAMILIES, & AN INCREASE
IN THE CYCLE OF POVERTY |
|
|
It is well established that single parent, female headed families
have a high risk of poverty |
|
|
Feminists have labeled the trend of single parent, female headed families
having a high risk of poverty "the feminization of poverty" |
|
|
As the % of single parent, female headed families grew in the 1970s
& 80s, so did the poverty rate |
|
|
The rate of out of wedlock births is higher among people who are already
poor or grew up in poverty |
|
|
Many social scientists, including Wu (1996), found that both low
income & declining income are associated w/ out of wedlock births
for women aged 14 - 21, Black & White |
|
|
Poverty is as much a cause as a consequence of out of wedlock
births |
|
|
Poor people have less access to birth control |
|
|
Poor women have a small pool of employed, marriageable men |
|
|
Women of all income levels are equally sexually active, but
the longer time an unmarried spends in poverty, the greater their likelihood
of out of wedlock birth |
|
|
Poverty harms self image & giving birth is one way a woman can
improve her status & self image |
|
|
Poor people have less control over their lives & giving birth increases
the control a woman has, at least in that one sphere of motherhood |
|
|
Over 90% of children who live in a single parent home are likely
to live in poverty during some time in their first 10 yrs. of life |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on Teen
Pregnancy
|
|
External
Links
|
|
- Supplement: Facts &
Stats on Teen Pregnancy |
Link
|
|
- Resource: Research on
Teen Pregnancy |
Link
|
|
Teen pregnancy is described as pregnancies to women 19 yrs old &
younger & is not the same as out of wedlock births |
|
|
It is important not to confuse the issue of illegitimacy w/ teen pregnancy |
|
|
Out of wedlock births includes all women who conceive & birth children
outside of marriage including teens, but many teen births take place in
marriage & so are not included in out of wedlock births |
|
|
While teen pregnancy is very important, it is only a small part of
the overall problem of out of wedlock births & the population explosion
in general |
|
|
DEMOGRAPHICS |
|
|
The US has the highest rates of teen pregnancy & births in the
western industrialized world |
|
|
In 1997, teen pregnancy cost the US at least $7 billion |
|
|
More than 40 % of young women become pregnant at least once before
they reach the age of 20, nearly one million a year |
|
|
80 % of the pregnancies of pre 20 yr olds are unintended & 80 &
are to unmarried teens |
|
|
The teen birth rate has actually undergone a gradual decline from 1991
to 1996 w/ an overall decline of 12 % for those aged 15 to 19 |
|
|
The largest decline since 1991 by race or ethnicity was for black women
w/ their birth rate for teens aged 15 to 19 falling 21 % btwn 1991 &
1996 |
|
|
Hispanic teen birth rates declined 5 % btwn 1995 & 1996, w/ Hispanic
teens now having the highest birth rates |
|
|
Surveys indicate that while 1 million US teens become pregnant each
year, most did not intend to |
|
|
Today, most teenagers who become pregnant are not married |
|
|
It is important not to confuse the absolute numbers of illegitimacy
merely w/ the birth rate to non married women, i.e.., births per 1000 non
married women |
|
|
The % of births that are out of wedlock is determined by three factors:
the marriage rate, the birth rate of married women, & the birth rate
of non married women |
|
|
A decline in the birth rate to non married women means little if the
marriage rate & the birth rate to married women are also declining |
|
|
It is quite possible for illegitimacy to rise even as the birth rate
among non married women falls |
|
|
Only about one tenth of all out of wedlock births occur to girls under
age 18 |
|
|
Out of wedlock childbearing occurs primarily among young adult women,
w/ the largest number of births occurring w/ women aged 18 to 24 |
|
|
IMPACTS OF TEEN PREGNANCY |
|
|
Teen parents & children experience nearly all the impacts that
out of wedlock parents & children might experience because the social
ostracism is nearly the same & because even married teens generally
have the same economic problems as single adult parents |
|
|
Thus, in addition to the impacts experienced by out of wedlock parents
& children, teen parents & children have the experience that: |
|
|
- only one third of teen mothers receives a high school diploma |
|
|
- nearly 80 % of teen mothers end up on welfare |
|
|
- the children of teenage mothers have lower birth weights, are
more likely to perform poorly in school, & are at greater risk of abuse
or neglect |
|
|
- the sons of teen mothers are 13 % more likely to end up in
prison while teen daughters are 22 % more likely to become teen mothers
themselves |
|
|
THE CAUSES OF TEEN PREGNANCY |
|
|
Having a child is an age old method for the young females or males
to achieve the status of adulthood |
|
|
McLanahan & Bumpass found that the education level of the teen
& of the teen's parents was the most important factor in teen pregnancy |
|
|
McLanahan & Bumps found that, contrary to popular belief, teens
from lower income families are not more likely to become pregnant; &
instead, those teens from families w/ lower ed attainment do have a higher
rate of pregnancy |
|
|
See Also: The Social Causes of Teen Pregnancy |
|
|
Teens in the US, of all races, are more likely to have out of wedlock
births & abortions than teens in any other industrialized nation |
|
|
A high rate of out of wedlock births in the US results in more US teens
living in poverty than in any other industrialized nation |
|
|
US teens are no more sexually active than teens in other nations |
|
|
REDUCING TEEN PREGNANCY |
|
|
US teens are less likely to have access to, & use birth control
than teens in other industrialized nations |
|
|
Availability of contraceptives for teens
does not increase sexual activity |
|
|
Availability of contraceptives results in sexually active teens using
more contraceptives & having less out of wedlock births |
|
|
Contraceptives are less available in the US because of a generally
strong prohibition against sexuality & against contraceptives themselves |
|
|
Religious values do affect govt policy in all nations & hence do
affect the rate of out of wedlock births as well as the outcomes of other
social issues or problems |
|
|
Religious or moral values can reduce teen pregnancy to the extent that
they convince people to abstain from sex |
|
|
Religious or moral values can increase teen pregnancy to the extent
that teens trying to abstain, fail at that & because sex was unplanned,
they use no contraception |
|
|
The fear of contracting a sexually transmitted disease helps prevent
teen pregnancy |
|
|
The desire to have children only w/ the right person, i.e. the appropriate
partner, helps prevent teen pregnancy |
|
|
Strong emotional attachments to parents helps prevent teen pregnancy |
|
|
Being raised by both parents, biological or adoptive, from birth helps
prevent teen pregnancy |
|
|
At age 16, 22 % of girls from intact families & 44 % of girls from
divorced homes have had sex at least once |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
|
External
Links
|
|
Pornography refers to sexually explicit material that causes sexual
arousal |
|
|
Obscenity & pornography are terms used to designate written, recorded,
or pictorial material, including motion pictures, that many people consider
indecent & thus find offensive |
|
|
Pornography is obscene literature, art other media production, or other
form of communication intended to excite lascivious feelings |
|
|
The term obscenity can also refer to any language or behavior believed
to corrupt public morals |
|
|
The term pornography often refers to written or sexually explicit pictorial
material intended primarily to cause sexual stimulation, while the term
obscenity to refer to written or pictorial material that glorifies violence
against women or degrades women, though most people, in common language,
do not distinguish btwn the two |
|
|
Erotica is the term given to sexually explicit material that is meant
to stimulate, & depict men, women, & sexuality in a positive, respectful,
equal manner |
|
|
In many cases, however, the terms obscenity & pornography are used
interchangeably, & the meaning of erotica is not widely used |
|
|
THE CONFLICT OVER PORNOGRAPHY |
|
|
The nature of obscenity & pornography & the laws governing
them have been a continuing source of controversy |
|
|
Pornography is popular in the US |
|
|
Traditionally, people have criticized pornography on moral grounds |
|
|
Other critics see pornography as a cause of violence against women |
|
|
Pressure to restrict pornography is building from a coalition of conservatives,
who oppose it on moral grounds, & progressives, who condemn it for
political reasons |
|
|
Some people are convinced that the distribution of pornographic material
corrupts public morality |
|
|
Others focus on the extent to which some printed or photographic material
portrays violence against women, & the degradation of women, as appropriate
behavior |
|
|
Many critics maintain that pornography is inherently exploitative of
women even though porn actors usually enter into the production of pornography
voluntarily |
|
|
The vast majority of pornography is purchased & consumed by men |
|
|
Usually pornography is created w/ a male centered view of sex wherein
women are the objects of lust & men are the consumers of lust |
|
|
Some critics maintain that a non exploitative depiction of sexuality
is possible, & they label such material as erotica |
|
|
Some feminists, male & female, & others, believe it is possible
to depict human sexuality, love & romance in a positive, non pornography
form |
|
|
The problem w/ pornography is not in the portrayal of sex, but in the
portrayal of women as existing for the sexual satisfaction of men |
|
|
Others believe existing anti obscenity laws & proposed anti pornography
laws violate the rights of free speech & press guaranteed by the First
Amendment to the US Constitution |
|
|
PORNOGRAPHY & THE LAW |
|
|
In the US, most states & cities have laws regulating the publishing,
distributing, or selling obscene materials & many other locales prohibit
it |
|
|
There are also federal laws against the interstate sale & distribution
of such material & against the presentation of obscene material on
radio or television |
|
|
But these anti obscenity laws have been hard to enforce, in part because
it is difficult to determine what is obscene according to the law |
|
|
TARIFF ACT OF 1842 |
|
|
Congress passed the first federal law against obscenity as part of
the Tariff Act of 1842 |
|
|
This law made it illegal to bring what it called "indecent & obscene"
material into the country |
|
|
THE COMSTOCK LAWS |
|
|
The Comstock Law is a US law that prohibits the mailing of indecent
materials or of information about birth control or abortion |
|
|
The law, passed in 1873, is named for Anthony Comstock, a controversial
reformer who crusaded for its passage |
|
|
The legislators who enacted the Comstock Law probably intended that
it be used to prosecute pornography distributors in criminal court |
|
|
Instead, it was used to support a system of administrative censorship
by postal officials, w/o going to court |
|
|
For about 85 years, postal officials used the Comstock Law, sometimes
very loosely, to censor mail |
|
|
If post office inspectors decided a book, picture, or other item of
mail was indecent, they seized all copies & refused to deliver them |
|
|
Since the mid 1900's, the Sup Ct of the US has narrowed the legal definition
of pornography in the process of interpreting the First Amendment to the
Constitution |
|
|
The court also has placed constitutional limits on censorship |
|
|
The Comstock Law is still in force, but most experts think the Sup
Ct would find the system of postal censorship unconstitutional if it were
challenged |
|
|
As a result, the US Postal Service almost never uses the law to seize
mail, & the Department of Justice rarely tries to enforce the act in
criminal court |
|
|
ROTH V. THE US |
|
|
In 1957, in the case of Roth v. the US, the Sup Ct ruled that freedom
of speech & the press, as guaranteed by the First Amendment, restricted
prosecution to only those materials that a court had determined to be legally
obscene |
|
|
But the Supreme Court provided only loose guidelines for the definition
of legally obscene material |
|
|
In 1973, in the case of Miller v. California, the Supreme Court held
that material could be considered legally obscene only if |
|
|
a. the average person, applying contemporary community
standards, would find that the material, taken as a whole, appeals to the
prurient, sexually arousing, interest |
|
|
b. the material shows, in a clearly offensive way, sexual
conduct specifically described in the applicable law |
|
|
c. the material lacks serious literary, artistic, political,
or scientific value, when evaluated in accordance w/ national standards |
|
|
JENKINS V. GEORGIA, MILLER V. CALIFORNIA |
|
|
In 1974, in Jenkins v. Georgia, the Supreme Court unanimously determined
that local standards play a very limited role in the determination of what
is to be considered obscene |
|
|
Today, as a result of Jenkins v. Georgia, Miller v. California, &
other cases, obscenity prosecutions are rare |
|
|
COMMISSIONS ON OBSCENITY & PORNOGRAPHY |
|
|
A national Commission on Obscenity & Pornography reported in 1970
that it found no reliable evidence that pornography caused crime among
adults or delinquency among young people |
|
|
The commission recommended repeal of all laws prohibiting the sale
of pornography to consenting adults |
|
|
But it also recommended that each state adopt laws against the sale
of obscene pictorial material to young people |
|
|
In 1986, however, the Attorney General's Commission on Pornography
determined that a relationship existed btwn sexually violent or degrading
materials & the amount of sexual violence in society |
|
|
It also recommended increased prosecution of cases dealing w/ child
pornography, that is, pornographic materials that involve photographs of
children |
|
|
OTHER NATIONS PORNOGRAPHY LAWS |
|
|
Many nations have anti obscenity laws |
|
|
In some, including Ireland & Italy, such laws are strictly enforced |
|
|
In Canada, anti obscenity groups have fought for years for stricter
laws & stricter enforcement |
|
|
Many members of these groups seek recognition of the harm resulting
from materials that endorse sexual violence against women |
|
|
But some nations have repealed their obscenity laws |
|
|
In the late 1960's, for example, Denmark dropped all legal barriers
against pornography for adults |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
|
External
Links
|
|
- Supplement: Prostitution,
Feminism, & Critical Praxis |
Link
|
|
- Supplement: Prostitution,
Women, & NOW |
Link
|
|
- Supplement: Prostitution:
Research Male Violence |
Link
|
|
- Supplement: Prostitution
from a Youth Services Perspective |
Link
|
|
PROSTITUTION IS THE SELLING OF SEXUAL SERVICES |
|
|
Prostitution is the performance of sexual acts for payment which exists
throughout the world, largely in urban areas |
|
|
Around the world, prostitution is the most common in poor countries
where patriarchy is strong & traditional cultural norms limit women's
ability to earn a living |
|
|
Prostitutes fall into different categories, from call girls to street
walkers |
|
|
A young prostitute, generally 16 yrs of age or younger is called a
baby pro |
|
|
About 50 % of clients of female prostitutes are repeat clients |
|
|
Prostitution is against the law almost everywhere in the US, but many
people consider it a victimless crime |
|
|
About 2/3s of prostitutes are women, but prostitutes also include men
& children, who make up about 1/3 of prostitutes |
|
|
Child prostitution is illegal in every nation, but is never-the-less
all too common |
|
|
Sexual slavery is a form of prostitution that is illegal in every nation
where people are forced into sex work |
|
|
Some prostitutes work for themselves while others work for men known
as pimps or for women called madams |
|
|
In many countries, call services or houses of prostitution, often called
brothels, connect prostitutes w/ clients, set fees, & protect prostitutes
from dangerous or unwanted customers |
|
|
A house of prostitution, a place where prostitutes & customers
meet for sexual activity, is called a brothel, bordello, whore house, call
in service, etc. |
|
|
Some prostitutes seek customers on the streets & in other public
places |
|
|
Both prostitutes & their clients face a risk of contracting sexually
transmitted diseases, including AIDS |
|
|
In many Western countries, much prostitution is related to drug abuse |
|
|
In the US, for example, many prostitutes sell sexual services to support
a drug habit |
|
|
Social scientists believe that many people in developed countries become
prostitutes because they have been emotionally, physically, or sexually
abused as children or as adults |
|
|
PROSTITUTION IS LEGAL IN SOME NATIONS, BUT HAS DEFACTO
LEGALITY IN THE US BECAUSE OF LAX PROSECUTION |
|
|
In developing countries, poverty is the main reason for prostitution |
|
|
In the US, prostitution is legal only in NV, where each county has
the option of allowing houses of prostitution |
|
|
In Canada, call services are legal, but houses of prostitution are
illegal, & prostitutes may not seek customers in public |
|
|
Prostitution is also legal in parts of So America & Asia, &
many European cities have experimented w/ legal prostitution |
|
|
People in Western countries disagree about whether prostitution should
be legalized |
|
|
Some people think that the legalization of prostitution results in
a rise in the spread of sexually transmitted diseases |
|
|
But others argue that legalization controls the spread of such diseases
because it enables govts to require medical inspection of prostitutes |
|
|
MORAL ATTACKS ON PROSTITUTION ARE THE MAJOR OPPOSITION TO
ITS LEGALIZATION |
|
|
Many people oppose prostitution on moral or religious grounds |
|
|
Reflecting society's ambiguity about the legalization of prostitution
is the moral & cultural ambiguity in Western society |
|
|
Derogatory terms for prostitutes or women who are sexually active are
common, as are romantic, positive images as seen the the movie "Pretty
Woman" w/ Julia Roberts & Richard Gere |
|
|
For feminists, the label whore, & thus prostitutes, are part of
the patriarchal imagination re-appearing in fantasies both sacred &
profane |
|
|
'Whore' is also a term of abuse often hurled at women in domestic disputes,
in encounters of male violence against women & by adolescent boys unsure
or fearful of the sexuality of their female peers |
|
|
A SOCIO HISTORICAL ANALYSIS OF PROSTITUTION INDICATES IT
IS 'THE OLDEST PROFESSION' WHICH HAS ALWAYS BEEN PERSECUTED,
BUT NEVER CONTROLLED |
|
|
Prostitution has existed throughout history, & is often called
'the first profession' |
|
|
Prostitution was widespread in ancient Egypt, Greece, Rome, & China
& in European & Asian history, some prostitutes have held high
social rank |
|
|
The history of prostitution is a history framed by attempts to repress
& make morally reprehensible the women involved in prostitution whilst
accepting, even venerating the desires & fantasies symbolically associated
w/ the whore, the prostitute, the fallen woman |
|
|
The history of prostitution is then also tied to the history &
social construction of sexuality, cathexis & desire; gender relations;
masculinity; & capitalist exchange relations which increasingly commodify
everything, even love |
|
|
The history of prostitution is one of immense contradictions as the
prostitute is a figure represented in varying guises: whore/priestess,
whore/goddess |
|
|
Throughout history, prostitutes achieved a certain level of autonomy
leading to education & status w/in ancient Greek society, Chinese society,
Europe in the Middle Ages, the US in the colonial & western expansion
periods, & others |
|
|
Prostitutes thus sometimes achieved a certain amount of liberty, independence,
power, & autonomy that was not available to other women |
|
|
Whores became bad women especially as the growth of christianity &
later protestantism contrasted the ideal of the good wife & mother
w/ the fallen women & sinner |
|
|
Increasingly w/in the Victorian period, the ideals of social purity
& morality contrasted w/ dire economic poverty for working class/underclass
women involved in a prolific sex for sale market, particularly in London |
|
|
Some aspects of contemporary prostitutes' experiences are not so different
from the experiences of prostitutes in earlier centuries |
|
|
Social stigma, violence, social exclusion & reduced personal safety
are central to the lived experience of prostitutes as they have been throughout
the documented history of prostitution |
|
|
The stigma against prostitution closely relates to relationships w/
men (clients/pimps) & to paternalistic & patriarchal institutions,
mores, & regularized conduct |
|
|
Historically most societies, nearly all of which are patriarchal, have
supported values & norms which prohibited sexual relations outside
of the bond of marriage |
|
|
The situation of prostitutes is unique because while they are stigmatized
to such an extent that they are often placed in the lowest status in a
society, their clients, primarily men, are often respected members of the
community |
|
|
Prostitutes' clients in most societies retain their status, though
they may experience some stigma, while prostitutes attain a very low status |
|
|
Currently women working as prostitutes are perceived as bad girls,
contravening norms of acceptable femininity, suffering whore stigma &
increasingly criminalized by state, policing practices & the lack of
effective action taken by police & the state to address male violence
against women |
|
|
PROSTITUTION IN MODERNITY IS RISKIER THAN EVER BECAUSE OF
AIDS
& SEXUAL SLAVERY |
|
|
Current debates on modernity / later modernity / reflexive modernity
center upon the major themes of:
a. de-traditionalization
b. the relocation of authority to the self
c. the incorporation of increased self monitoring
d. reflexive modernization
e. reflexive risk exposure |
|
|
Reflexivity is the process of being self aware & self controlled |
|
|
The relationship btwn traditional society & modernity is illuminated
through an increasingly reflexive modernity |
|
|
In general, there has been a reduction in the numbers of visible prostitutes
on the street & an increase in male /transsexual prostitution |
|
|
It is generally believed that in the US, prostitution is riskier today
because of AIDS & because of prostitution being driven into the street
making violence more probable |
|
|
A prostitutes' well-being depends on:
a. the risk level of the setting in which she works
b. the reasons she / he entered prostitution
c. whether she / he experienced victimization as a child
or adolescent
d. the wealth of her or his environment / clientele |
|
|
Today there is an increase in the self regulation & organization
of prostitution by women themselves; & new forms of machine sexuality
coinciding w/ the AIDS era, for example telephone sex, & computer sex |
|
|
THE PROSTITUTES' RIGHTS MOVEMENT HAS IMPROVED WORKING CONDITIONS,
LEGAL RIGHTS, & MORE |
|
|
Since the 1970s in No America & the 1980s in Britain is the increase
in the regulation & organization of prostitution by women for themselves |
|
|
The rise of the prostitutes rights mvmt which developed in the 1970s
in No America & also in Germany & the Netherlands related directly
to the feminist mvmt |
|
|
This inter-relation btwn feminists & prostitutes has helped to
shift the discourse on prostitution out of a legal framework & into
a feminist framework focusing first of all upon violence against prostitutes
by clients & also pimps & secondly upon prostitution as work |
|
|
See Also: The Prostitutes Rights Movement |
|
|
PROSTITUTION IS TRANSITIONING IN STATUS TO BECOME MORE LIKE
WORK |
|
|
For many people, prostitution is experienced & articulated as sex
work |
|
|
Sex work includes any type of work which is primarily related to the
recreational or pleasure oriented aspects of sexuality including prostitution
& pornography production, as well some forms of entertainment such
as dancing or waiting/serving |
|
|
Prostitutes, like any worker, negotiate the relationship btwn psychic
processes created by the work, & social processes, btwn self &
the wider social world |
|
|
Burawoy called the process of dealing w/ the stresses, contradictions,
social stereotypes, etc. at work 'making out' |
|
|
Prostitutes make out by dealing w/ violence against prostitutes, the
resistance women engage in in order to maintain stable self identities
whilst labeled & treated as 'other' as marginal & criminal through
the operation of what Gail Pheterson (1986) has called the 'whore stigma' |
|
|
Like all work, prostitution, the experiences, needs, meanings &
practices of the sex worker, is shaped by the socio histl context of the
society in which it exists |
|
|
There have been shifts in the social organization of prostitution from
tradition to later modernity from a moral to legal to feminist discussions
& today all 3 go on simultaneously |
|
|
The feminist discourse on prostitution centered initially upon violence
& pornography & more latterly upon work, rights & human liberties |
|
|
Advocates for prostitutes seek to promote the understanding of women's
lived experiences contextualised w/in an understanding of the sociology
of work, the feminization of poverty, as well as the rise of the prostitutes
rights mvmt |
|
|
Advocates for prostitutes are demanding that prostitution be accepted
as work & that female & male prostitutes be given the same rights
& liberties as other workers |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on Sexual
Violence
|
|
External
Links
|
|
- Supplement: Herstory
of Domestic Violence |
Link
|
|
SEXUAL VIOLENCE IS A TYPE OF ABUSE WHICH INCLUDES PHYSICAL,
EMOTIONAL,
VERBAL,
CHILD,
& EVEN NEGLECT |
|
|
Sexual violence, which ranges from verbal abuse to rape & assault,
is widespread in the US |
|
|
Domestic violence refers to physical, sexual, emotional, or psychological
abuse btwn marital partners, former partners, & other adults who are,
or have been, in close relationships |
|
|
Women are morel likely to be injured by a family member than a stranger |
|
|
The family is the most violent group in society with the exception
of the police & the military |
|
|
Most experts distinguish domestic violence from the mistreatment of
the elderly or of children |
|
|
Both men & women may act violently toward each other, but women
are more likely than men to be injured or murdered by their partners |
|
|
Domestic violence leaves long lasting effects on its victims &
their families |
|
|
Victims may abuse alcohol or drugs & experience depression, eating
disorders, or display other types of psychological distress |
|
|
They are also more likely than non victims to consider or attempt suicide |
|
|
Children who witness domestic violence often experience emotional &
psychological distress & they are more likely than other children to
become violent |
|
|
VICTIMS OF SEXUAL VIOLENCE, LIKE VICTIMS OF MOST CRIMES, KNOW
THE PERPS, & IS WIDESPREAD W/ REPORTING RISING |
|
|
Because sexual violence & abuse in general is often unreported
to police, statistics on these crimes are low |
|
|
Estimates range from 960,000 incidents of violence against a current
or former spouse, boyfriend, or girlfriend per year to three million women
who are physically abused by their husband or boyfriend per year |
|
|
Around the world, at least 1 in every 3 women has been beaten, coerced
into sex or otherwise abused during her lifetime |
|
|
31 % of women report being physically or sexually abused by a husband
or boyfriend at some point in their lives |
|
|
Nearly 25 % of Am women report being raped & / or physically assaulted
by a current or former spouse, cohabiting partner, or date at some time
in their life |
|
|
In 2001, more than half a million American women were victims of nonfatal
violence committed by an intimate partner |
|
|
In 2001, women accounted for 85 % of the victims of intimate partner
violence & men accounted for approximately 15 % of the victims |
|
|
While women are less likely than men to be victims of violent crimes
overall, women are 5 to 8 times more likely than men to be victimized by
an intimate partner |
|
|
Women are 7 to 14 times more likely than men to report suffering severe
physical assaults from an intimate partner |
|
|
Women of all races are about equally vulnerable to violence by an intimate
partner |
|
|
33 % of women homicide victims are killed by spouses or ex spouses |
|
|
SOCIO HISTORICAL ANALYSIS |
|
|
Domestic violence has a record that goes back as far as the historical
record, which according to many social scientists is when patriarchy began |
|
|
See Also: The Origin of the Family, Private Property & the
State |
|
|
See Also: The Development of the Patriarchal
Family |
|
|
During the reign of Romulus in Rome, wife beating was accepted &
condoned under The Laws of Chastisement |
|
|
During the Middle Ages, in Europe, squires & noblemen beat their
wives as regularly as they beat their serfs; & the peasants faithfully
followed their lords' example |
|
|
During the Middle Ages, the Church sanctions the subjection of women |
|
|
During the Early Industrial Era, around 1792, In A Vindication of
the Rights of Women, Mary Wollstonecraft seeks changes in the education
for women & kinder treatment by husbands & lovers |
|
|
In 1829, in England, a husband's absolute power of chastisement is
abolished |
|
|
In the late 1800s, US courts begin to show signs that they might hold
husbands responsible & found guilty of marital rape |
|
|
Even in the 20th C, most social scientists, law professionals, &
other experts considered domestic violence a "private matter" |
|
|
Today most experts recognize it as a dangerous social problem |
|
|
A variety of services help prevent & treat domestic violence, including
shelters for battered women |
|
|
Shelters provide a wide range of programs, including legal assistance
& counseling for victims & their children |
|
|
Since the 1980's, all 50 states of the US have enacted laws that specify
domestic violence & violence against women as crimes |
|
|
Laws have made it easier for women to obtain restraining orders, court
orders designed to prohibit offenders from contacting their victims |
|
|
Many states also require police officers to arrest offenders in cases
of domestic violence |
|
|
The fed govt passed the Violence Against Women Act in 1994 |
|
|
The fed govt grants money to state & local govts to establish programs
& shelters for battered women |
|
|
The Violence Against Women Act also identifies stalking (repeatedly
threatening, following, & harassing a victim) as a crime |
|
|
THE CAUSES OF DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ARE WIDE RANGING & PARALLEL
THE CAUSES OF OTHER SOC PROBS |
|
|
The causes of domestic violence include patriarchy, poverty, unemployment,
crime, econ exploitation & other soc probs, & also have a causative
effect on these very soc probs, i.e. they interact |
|
|
Most of the 'direct / relationship' causes of dom violence can be characterized
as a function of patriarchy |
|
|
There is no single reason for domestic violence |
|
|
Many offenders have a history of alcohol or drug abuse |
|
|
Some abusers experience stress caused by unemployment, sexual difficulties,
& low job satisfaction |
|
|
The most abusive offenders tend to have severe emotional problems |
|
|
Numerous offenders were abused as children |
|
|
There are several theoretical views of the nature of rape, including
the
a. victim precipitated theory
b. the psycho pathology of rapists
c. feminist theories of rapists & the culture of violence
against women
d. social disorganization theory |
|
|
While Freud wrote on the psychological & social roles of
men & women, he never commented on sexual violence |
|
|
Rape is actually an expression of power |
|
|
Date rape refers to forcible sexual violence against women by men they
know |
|
|
Rape myths, the false belief that women want rape, & hostility
toward women are two cultural factors that predisposes men to engage in
aggressive behavior toward women |
|
|
Some cultural features enhance the likelihood of violence in general,
& violence against women |
|
|
Individualism is the cultural norm that predisposes one to pursue one's
own interests w/ as little regard for others as society allows |
|
|
Collectivism is the cultural norm that predisposes one to pursue group,
organizational, or societal interests w/ as little regard for oneself as
society allows |
|
|
Asian cultures are more collectivist & have less sexual violence
against women than American cultures |
|
|
The fact that Asian cultures are collectivist means that empathy tends
to be more common, & this is viewed as a protective factors against
aggression |
|
|
Related to our culture of individualism is our acceptance of wide differentials
of power & control |
|
|
A culture of power & control makes it more acceptable to control
women, workers, or any subordinate group |
|
|
Economic dependency exacerbates the problem of power & control,
& it also makes victims of abuse more likely to accept abuse &
stay in bad relationships |
|
|
Stress is also a factor in sexual violence, abuse, crime, & other
social problems |
|
|
The question of whether men are inherently violent, or more violent
than women, has not been definitively answered, though history offers ample
evidence of man's violent nature |
|
|
SOCIAL POLICIES TO REDUCE SEXUAL VIOLENCE INCLUDE ZERO TOLERANCE,
EDUCATION,
SOC
MVMTS, END SEX DISCRIMINATION, &
THERAPY FOR VICTIMS
& PERPS |
|
|
1. Zero tolerance for sexual violence |
|
|
The criminal justice system ( CJS ) must have the laws, personnel,
& resources to prosecute all instances of sexual violence, as well
as child & elder abuse |
|
|
- Mandatory sentences & counseling for crimes against women |
|
|
- The state, not the victim, becomes prosecutor in crimes
against women |
|
|
- All 50 states have marital rape laws that prohibit forced sex
even in marriage, but these laws vary widely in there strength & enforcement |
|
|
2. Expand education & research on the effects of gender
socialization & objectification of women, men, & sexuality |
|
|
3. Groups or social movements such as NOW & AAUP which
support women's rights, work to end sexism, etc. must organize, cooperate
& work together |
|
|
4. To reduce sexual violence, the general policies to
end sex discrimination in the economy must be embraced to ensure women's
status by eliminating the traditional view of women as second class citizens |
|
|
- Stronger laws around wage discrimination |
|
|
- Stronger laws around occupational discrimination & the
glass ceiling |
|
|
5. Social psychological therapy for victims & perpetrators |
|
|
Many programs are available to treat people who commit domestic violence |
|
|
Judges often require men who assault their wives to attend these programs
as a condition of their sentence |
|
|
The purpose of behavior therapy is create new learning, that
is to learn how to respect others, solve problems, & deal w/ feelings |
|
|
Communities across US established shelters to provide counseling and
temporary housing for women and children of domestic violence |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on Functionalism
on Sexuality
|
|
External
Links
|
|
DEVELOPING NORMS AROUND SEXUALITY IS FUNCTIONAL / USEFUL
/ NECESSARY FOR SOCIETY |
|
|
Functional analysis examines the fact that every society has regulated
marriage & sexuality, establishing strong norms around it |
|
|
From a biological perspective, sex allows our species to reproduce |
|
|
From a psychological perspective, sex is the expression of Eros, the
life force, of our animal nature |
|
|
From a social perspective, sexuality permits pair bonding, usually
in the form of marriage |
|
|
From a social perspective, sexuality permits group bonding in the form
of families, extended families, & in traditional societies, the tribe
or larger social org |
|
|
Culture & social institutions regulate w/ whom & when people
reproduce & / or have recreational sex |
|
|
IN FUNC TH, IF A PRACTICE, SUCH AS PROSTITUTION, EXISTS IN
SOCIETY, IT MUST BE 'FUNCTIONAL' |
|
|
The manifest function of prostitution is the exchange of two values:
sex & money |
|
|
Because of the power of sexuality in our society, prostitution is more
frequently viewed as sexual than economic |
|
|
The latent functions of prostitution is to preserve the family unit |
|
|
According to Kingsley Davis, prostitution is widespread because of
its latent function |
|
|
Davis assumes that if prostitution were not allowed, the family would
be in jeopardy because the man would leave for sex, & / or the woman
would leave because the man was in another relationship, as opposed to
"merely" having an encounter w/ a prostitute |
|
|
For functionalists, society, in the form of social institutions such
as religion, the govt, etc., would have eliminated prostitution if they
desired |
|
|
CRITIQUES OF FUNCTIONALISM ON SEXUALITY INCLUDE ITS PATRIARCHY,
DIVERSITY
IN SEXUALITY, SOCIETY'S DEV OF SEX NORMS, & SEX NORMS ADJUSTING
AS OTHER SOC STRUC CHANGE |
|
|
Feminists modify the functionalist argument to the extent that it is
the power of patriarchy & not male concern w/ the family that keeps
prostitution as a common relationship |
|
|
The conservative functionalist approach of Davis ignores the great
diversity of sexual ideas & practices found w/in every society |
|
|
Moreover, sexual patterns change over time, just as they differ around
the world |
|
|
As family & sexual relations change, other social structures adjust
to them as seen in the development of the legal system to deal w/ divorce |
|
Internal
Links
Top
|
Outline on Symbolic
Interactionism on Sexuality
|
|
External
Links
|
|
The symbolic interaction ( SI ) approach highlights how, as people
interact, they construct everyday reality, including the changing views
of sexuality |
|
|
THE SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION OF SEXUALITY IS ACCOMPLISHED BY THE SAME
PRACTICES THAT CONSTRUCT OTHER BEHAVIOR: 3 WAY DYNAMIC AMONG
SELF,
SOCIETY,
& THE PROCESSES OF SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION |
|
|
Almost all social patterns involving sexuality have seen considerable
change over the course of the 20th C |
|
|
A cross cultural analysis or histl analysis of sexuality demonstrates
that perhaps sexuality is one of the most diverse types of relationships
in which humans engage |
|
|
The wide variety of sexual patterns demonstrates that people spend
time & energy constructing their gender & sexuality |
|
|
The wide variety of sexual patterns demonstrates that the social construction
of sexuality is an intricate pattern, & demonstrates more than most
relationships that one person's self, i.e. social identity is constructed
in a the social env of others' social identity |
|
|
An analysis of sexuality shows, more than other relationships, the
interdependency of all social roles: an 'American Woman' is that
modern form of woman to an American man, but is viewed very differently
by another culture, & she can be herself only w/ the 'American Man,'
& vice versa |
|
|
GLOBAL COMPARISONS OF SEXUALITY REVEAL PARTICULAR UNIVERSAL
CHARACTERISTICS RELATED TO PATRIARCHY, MARRIAGE, DIVORCE,
VIRGINITY,
ETC., BUT ALSO WIDE VARIATION |
|
|
The broader our view, the more variation we see in the meanings people
attach to sexuality |
|
|
The global view of sexuality, the family, romance, etc. may broadly
be divided btwn traditional relations which have their roots in pre industrial
societies, & modern relations which are historically less than 2 centuries
old |
|
|
A CRITICAL REVIEW HOLDS THAT S - I IGNORES STRUCTURAL FORCES
SUCH AS RELIGION, THE MEDIA, & OTHERS IMPACTING SEXUALITY |
|
|
The strength of the symbolic interaction approach lies in revealing
the constructed character of familiar social patterns |
|
|
One limitation to this approach is that not everything is so variable |
|
|
As is the case w/ many SI approaches, the SI approach to sexuality
ignores the structural forces which functionalism & conflict theory
demonstrate such as the power of patriarchy as an overall organizing force
on our self identity today |
|
|
The social construction of sexuality takes place w/in the pre existing
social structures of contemporary peer grps, the family, religion, etc. |
|
Internal
Links
Top
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Outline on Conflict
Theory on Sexuality
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The conflict theory approach shows how sexuality reflects patterns
of social inequality & also how it helps perpetuate them |
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SEXUALITY & GENDER ARE ONE BASIS SOCIAL OF INEQUALITY AS SEEN
IN PATRIARCHY, SEXUAL LIBERTY, & MORE |
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Feminists have used a conflict theory model to demonstrate the group
interests of men & women in gender & sexuality relations |
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From a feminist perspective patriarchy is the exploitation of women
by men & it occurs in all classes, but is the least powerful in the
middle class |
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Patriarchy demands not only the physical control of womens' bodies,
but also ideological control of how we, society, view gender, sexuality,
the family, etc. |
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Besides patriarchy's ability to keep women subordinate to men for sexuality,
family tasks, etc., patriarchy also keeps women out of traditional economic
relationships limiting their influence in the economic sector |
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Studies show that if women had economic opportunities, few would be
involved in prostitution |
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Thus for women, prostitution is clearly more of an economic transaction,
i.e. they are not doing it for sexual adventure |
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Defining women in sexual terms amounts to devaluing them from full
human beings into objects of men's interest & attention |
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QUEER THEORY EXAMINES OPENNESS, MARGINALIZATION,
ETC. IN RELATION TO SEXUALITY, ESP HOMOSEXUALITY |
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Homosexuals are removing the power from such words as queer by voicing
their interests in a manner that turns partriarchy's slanders against itself |
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Queer theory refers to a growing body of knowledge that challenges
an allegedly heterosexual bias in sociology |
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The queer orientation begins w/ the assertion that our society is characterized
by heterosexism, a view stigmatizing anyone who is not heterosexual as
"queer" |
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Like feminists, gay activists view anti gay sentiment as an extension
of patriarchy which seeks to maintain an ideology of the normalcy of traditional
gender, sexuality, family, etc. relations |
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If patriarchs allowed the questioning or deconstruction of the line
btwn straight & gay, then people might also begin to question the other
boundaries of traditional, patriarchal relations |
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A CRITICAL REVIEW IS THAT SEXUALITY IS NOT POWER LADEN
FOR ALL |
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Applying the social conflict approach shows how sexuality is both a
cause & effect of inequality |
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But the conflict approach overlooks the fact that sexuality is not
a power issue for everyone |
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The conflict paradigm under represents the progress our society has
made toward eliminating injustice |
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