Forbidden Sex, Forbidden Texts


Book Description

The book argues that there is no monolithic homosexuality; there are only homosexualities, that is, there are as many reasons for being gay as there are gays. Some people are born gay, some have gayness thrust upon them, and some do, indeed, achieve to great gayness. Representation of homosexuality/homoeroticism, as it is understood today, is thus a western import. The act and public/social discourses on same-sex love are still illegal; it is, according to many, against the Indian ‘tradition’; and a sense of ‘history’ is seriously problematic when we dig out for a past tradition of homoerotic love and desire. Hoshang Merchant, through an examination of texts, films, poetry, attempts to analyse and crack the codes of sexual (mis)conduct in contemporary India, giving short histories of the fate of several gay writers and explaining the difficulties of ‘coming out’.




Sex in the Forbidden Zone


Book Description

In this book on sexual psychology the author explores a largely taboo subject - the sexual relationship between men in authority and the women they are meant to help. He examines the psychodynamics of these relationships (how to recognize a potential abuser as well as a woman's own capacity for being a victim), and explores what men look for in sex, how their sexual fantasies differ from those of women, and how men could benefit by becoming more in touch with their feminine aspect. He offers reassurance and advice to the victims, both men and women, of such encounters.




A Forbidden Rumspringa


Book Description

When two young Amish men find love, will they risk losing everything? In a world where every detail of life is dictated by God and the all-powerful rules of the church, David takes on Isaac as a carpentry apprentice. Soon their attraction grows amid the sweat and sawdust, and they share sinful secrets. Can they reconcile their shocking desires with their commitment to faith, family and community?




Text & Presentation, 2004


Book Description

Text & Presentation is an annual publication devoted to all aspects of theatre scholarship. It represents a selection of the best research presented at the international, interdisciplinary Comparative Drama Conference. This anthology includes papers from the 28th annual conference held in Columbus, Ohio. Topics covered include Euripides, German and Russian theatre, dramatic antecedents of the striptease, surrogate love in The Glass Menagerie, surrealist drama, Greek comedy and the American concept musical, and theatre and politics.




Taboo


Book Description

French realist texts are driven by representations of the body and depend on corporeality to generate narrative intrigue. But anxieties around bodily representation undermine realist claims of objectivity and transparency. Aspects of bodily reality which threaten les bonnes moeurs - gender confusion, sexual appetite, disability, torture, murder, child abuse and disease - rarely occupy the foreground and are instead spurned or only partially alluded to by writers and critics. This wide-ranging study uses the notion of the taboo as a powerful means of interpreting representations of the body. The hidden bodies of realist texts reveal their secrets in unexpected ways. Thompson reads texts by Sand, Rachilde, Maupassant, Hugo, Barbey d'Aurevilly, Mirbeau and Zola alongside modern theorists of the body to show how the figure of the taboo plots an alternative model of author-reader relations based on the struggle to speak the unspeakable. Dr Hannah Thompson is a Senior Lecturer in French at Royal Holloway, University of London. Her first book, Naturalism Redressed: Identity and Clothing in the Novels of Emile Zola, was published by Legenda in 2004.




Magic and Sex


Book Description

The intertwining of magic and sexuality has long been a source of fascination, intrigue, and controversy across cultures and throughout history. This book delves into the complex relationship between magic and sex, exploring how these two primal forces intersect, influence each other, and shape human experience. Drawing upon a multidisciplinary approach that incorporates insights from anthropology, psychology, folklore, and esoteric traditions, this book seeks to unravel the mysteries surrounding the enchantment of desire. It examines the role of magic in shaping sexual practices, beliefs, and taboos, as well as its impact on individual and collective perceptions of eroticism, intimacy, and power dynamics. Through an exploration of mythological narratives, historical accounts, and contemporary practices, this book illuminates the ways in which magic has been used to enhance sexual pleasure, attract partners, and navigate the complexities of romantic relationships. It also delves into the darker aspects of magical sexuality, including the use of love spells, aphrodisiacs, and sexual rituals for manipulation, control, and exploitation. Furthermore, this book investigates the psychological and spiritual dimensions of sexual magic, examining its potential for personal transformation, healing, and transcendence. It explores the concept of sexual energy as a potent force for creativity, spiritual awakening, and the cultivation of ecstatic states of consciousness. Finally, this book reflects on the ethical considerations and moral implications surrounding the practice of sexual magic, addressing issues of consent, boundaries, and the responsible use of power. It calls for a nuanced and holistic understanding of the intersection of magic and sexuality, one that recognizes both the potential for liberation and empowerment, as well as the risks of exploitation and harm.




Sex and Punishment


Book Description

Sex and Punishment tells the story of the struggle throughout millennia to regulate the most powerful engine of human behaviour: sex. From the savage impalement of an Ancient Mesopotamian adulteress to the imprisonment of Oscar Wilde for 'gross indecency' in 1895, Eric Berkowitz evokes the entire sweep of Western sex law. The cast of Sex and Punishment is as varied as the forms taken by human desire itself: royal mistresses, gay charioteers, medieval transvestites, lonely goat-lovers, prostitutes of all stripes and London rent boys. Each of them had forbidden sex, and each was judged – and justice, as Berkowitz shows – rarely had anything to do with it.




Reproductive Realities in Modern China


Book Description

Lasting from 1979 to 2015, China's One Child Policy is often remembered as one of the most ambitious social engineering projects to date and considered emblematic of global efforts to regulate population growth during the twentieth century. Drawing on a rich combination of archival research and oral history, Sarah Mellors Rodriguez analyses how ordinary people, particularly women, navigated China's shifting fertility policies before and during the One Child Policy era. She examines the implementation and reception of these policies and reveals that they were often contradictory and unevenly enforced, as men and women challenged, reworked, and co-opted state policies to suit their own needs. By situating the One Child Policy within the longer history of birth control and abortion in China, Reproductive Realities in Modern China exposes important historical continuities, such as the enduring reliance on abortion as contraception and the precariousness of state control over reproduction.




Reading Sex in the Eighteenth Century


Book Description

Publisher Description