When Women Wanted Sex Much More Than Men – Alyssa Goldstein

http://www.alternet.org/when-women-wanted-sex-much-more-men

Click on the link to visit Alternet for Alyssa’s interesting browse through some of the historical and political dimensions of current cultural perceptions of gender/sexuality. Many of these perceptions are profoundly unhelpful and unpleasant:-

‘Women must be convinced, persuaded, even forced into “giving it up,” because the prospect of sex just isn’t that appealing on its own, say popular stereotypes. Sex for women is usually a somewhat distasteful but necessary act that must be performed to win approval, financial support, or to maintain a stable relationship. And since women are not slaves to their desires like men, they are responsible for ensuring that they aren’t “taken advantage of.”’

As Alyssa comments at the end of her piece, there is a value in contextualizing some of these ideas:-

‘Gender roles gain their power from the fact that they appear natural and eternal. By looking to the past, we can draw aside this veil and see these categories for what they are – made by people, and able to be changed by people.’

Thanks to Brent Dean Robbins for posting this on the Society for Humanistic Psychology, Division 32’s Facebook page.

Palace Gate Counselling Service, Exeter