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
21 - The Material Culture of the History of Sexuality
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 April 2024
- 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
Material culture profoundly influences the ways we understand, experience and represent sexuality. This chapter examines cross-cultural material cultures of heterosexuality, homosexuality, domestic life, communal rituals, sex work and intimate relationships, among other examples. The history of sexuality and material culture is a long one, and to consider Roman brothels, Palauan men’s houses and Peruvian pottery is to recognise their significance in changing sexual mores. Objects, including buildings and artworks, can tell us about fundamentally diverse ways of understanding sexuality as an everyday practice and the subject of academic inquiry. The chapter also offers a discussion of the ephemera of movements for sexual rights in more recent times. These objects may be everyday items repurposed for queer life and politics, for example, or custom-made props for protest and organising. Museums have often paid little attention to the material culture of sexuality, hiding away incriminating exhibits, but new museological approaches to objects reveal the intricacies of intimate life, tell the story of previously marginalized forms of sexuality, and even resist established modes of power. Material culture, and the ways we address it, speak forcefully to the politics of sexuality.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Cambridge World History of Sexualities , pp. 467 - 492Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2024