Thoughts on Sula In her essay, Stevenson presents a very clear, though complex, depiction of slave sexual and marital relations; sex was generally encouraged only between married couples and pre-marital pregnancy led to marriage, and, in terms of monogamous relationships, fidelity was highly valued. Most important in her analysis is her assertion that “[Slave kin] […]
Yesterday was the anniversary of the Comstock Act of 1873. The act was geared towards preventing the sale of birth control through the mail. It was eventually expanded to include the complete prohibition of birth control distribution and use. The Comstock Act received a major blow in 1916, when Margaret Sanger opened the first birth […]
Identity and Sexuality in the Anglo-American Colonies In this week’s Peiss readings we get some concrete facts and history to support what Foucault had mentioned in The History of Sexuality – the fact that sexual abnormality was often tolerated by villagers/townspeople during the Puritan era, even though legal codes created by the religious and political […]
Depressing to Optimistic Parts Four and Five of Foucault’s The History of Sexuality were quite an emotional rollercoaster. Foucault beings by discussing the “juridico-discursive” idea of power, and then criticizing it and explaining his own theory of power – though I found both ideas quite depressing. Foucault claims that the “juridico-discursive” idea of power underlies […]
“Keep away from whores and all loose women. KEEP AWAY FROM WHORES!” said a pamphlet given out to soldiers during World War I. This pamphlet was ancillary to a pro-kit that was also distributed in order to prevent further outbreaks of venereal diseases. It contained a tube of ointment, a cloth with soap, a cleansing […]
