Book contents
- The Cambridge World History of Sexualities
- The Cambridge World History of Sexualities
- The Cambridge World History of Sexualities
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures in Volume I
- Contributors to Volume I
- Editors’ Preface to the Series
- 1 The History of the History of Sexuality
- 2 The History of Sexuality and Anthropology
- 3 The History of Sexuality and Women’s History
- 4 The History of Sexuality and LGBTQ+ History
- 5 The Impact of Sigmund Freud on the History of Sexuality
- 6 Michel Foucault’s Influence on the History of Sexuality
- 7 Queer Theory and the History of Sexuality
- 8 The Sexual Body in History
- 9 Marriage and Families in the History of Sexuality
- 10 Class in the History of Sexuality
- 11 Sexuality and Race: Representations, Regulations, and Sentiments
- 12 Male Homoerotic Relations in History
- 13 Desire, Love, and Sex between Women in Global History
- 14 Trans and Gender Variant Sexualities in History
- 15 The Sale of Sex in History
- 16 Sexual Violence in History
- 17 Sexual Science in History
- 18 Sexuality and Emotion
- 19 Erotic Art in World History
- 20 Erotic Literature in History
- 21 The Material Culture of the History of Sexuality
- 22 Public History and Sexuality
- Index
- CONTENTS TO VOLUMES II, III, AND IV
- References
2 - The History of Sexuality and Anthropology
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 April 2024
Book contents
- The Cambridge World History of Sexualities
- The Cambridge World History of Sexualities
- The Cambridge World History of Sexualities
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Figures in Volume I
- Contributors to Volume I
- Editors’ Preface to the Series
- 1 The History of the History of Sexuality
- 2 The History of Sexuality and Anthropology
- 3 The History of Sexuality and Women’s History
- 4 The History of Sexuality and LGBTQ+ History
- 5 The Impact of Sigmund Freud on the History of Sexuality
- 6 Michel Foucault’s Influence on the History of Sexuality
- 7 Queer Theory and the History of Sexuality
- 8 The Sexual Body in History
- 9 Marriage and Families in the History of Sexuality
- 10 Class in the History of Sexuality
- 11 Sexuality and Race: Representations, Regulations, and Sentiments
- 12 Male Homoerotic Relations in History
- 13 Desire, Love, and Sex between Women in Global History
- 14 Trans and Gender Variant Sexualities in History
- 15 The Sale of Sex in History
- 16 Sexual Violence in History
- 17 Sexual Science in History
- 18 Sexuality and Emotion
- 19 Erotic Art in World History
- 20 Erotic Literature in History
- 21 The Material Culture of the History of Sexuality
- 22 Public History and Sexuality
- Index
- CONTENTS TO VOLUMES II, III, AND IV
- References
Summary
This chapter discusses the contribution of anthropology to the understanding of the diversity of practices and attitudes towards sexualized bodies developed by different human cultures, beginning with the works of classical anthropologists, including E.E. Evans-Pritchard, Margaret Mead and Bronisław Malinowski. It discusses Marxist, feminist, and postmodern anthropology, and reflects on the influence of Michel Foucault, particularly his notion of the dispositif, the device of sexuality. The chapter argues that the device of sexuality—that is, that there is such a thing as “sexuality”—is modern and Western. The sexual life of the peoples studied by anthropologists is an inseparable part of their social order and its reproduction, and in no way constitutes a separate sphere of existence that can be studied as such, nor does it constitute the core of any identity, either personal or collective. The task of anthropology consists in restoring how these peoples deal with the sexual in their own social and cultural terms, respecting their radical otherness.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Cambridge World History of Sexualities , pp. 23 - 44Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2024
References
Further Reading
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