Human sexuality is a product of sociocultural and historical constructs. In modern, contemporary society, pornography has emerged as the dominant form of sexual discourse, transforming the human body as an object to be manipulated, shaped, and trained. In this thesis, I will argue that pornography is the vehicle for disciplinary practices that transforms human bodies into sexual bodies that are mere representations of itself. As Michel Foucault describes it in Discipline and Punish (1977), discourse does not function all by itself to produce effects of power, but, rather, the efficacy of discourse is tied to the systematic and calculated use of force by definite agents on definite human bodies. Modern pornographic sexual discourse is only part of a power-knowledge formation that includes subtle and often direct coercion over the body. Men acting as sexual partners extract from pornography a ‘knowledge’ of sexuality that they use to organize their personal domination over women, in order to turn women into docile bodies that learn to adopt various positions or gestures. Even though, if discipline is successful, coercion is minimized, economized, to generate the maximum effect of control through the minimum expenditure of force, a force that never disappears completely. When society is saturated with pornographic representations as a normative standard, which in turn operates as an ideal to which people ‘voluntarily’ aspire, it is only because of the operation of this efficient economy of force, which goes mostly unnoticed. Perceived as a natural, innate human characteristic, sexuality is instead a social construct, where all of the body’s movement, gestures, and attitudes are manipulated, and thus obedient to a pornographic ideal of sexual experience that is limited in its heteronormative expression.

This study examines the discursive construction of girls' sexuality in the teen magazine, Dolly. It uses Dolly to illustrate the ambiguity surrounding girls' sexuality in the media which render it simultaneously problematic and a source of entertainment. This focus was inspired by recent publicity surrounding teen sexual practices in New Zealand, where various media and governmental debates have rendered teen, and in particular girls' sexuality a 'sex crisis' (The New Zealand Listener: 14-20 May 2005) with which New Zealand is faced. The study uses a multi-modal approach, combining ethnographic research and textual analysis. The former consists of a questionnaire with one hundred and nineteen respondents from two socio-demographically different secondary schools and supports previous research that demonstrates the important role of magazines in the lives of young women. The latter involves an examination of fifteen issues of Dolly and suggests that the identities of the reader, subject and author are discursively constructed through the prevalent discourses in the magazine. The often contradictory discourses upon which this study focuses are confession, victimisation, epidemic, medicine, desire and girl power. The identities constructed are equally contradictory and include a naïve, knowledgeable, deviant or normal but always heterosexually desiring and desirable reader. In general, the study provides an insight into the ambiguity surrounding girls' sexuality in popular culture, and into the potential implications of this on girls' sexual, personal and social development and identity.

Sexual violence is an unfortunate everyday occurrence in South Africa. The rising statistics in relation to the rape of children and infants is a strong indication of the desperate need for the counselling mechanisms, counselling and ultimately the prevention in this field. The occurrence of sexual dysfunction in women that were molested as children is as a result very high and within marriages there is often a very high price to be paid. The research question that was applicable in this study is the following: What pastoral guidelines can be offered for the guidance of the molested woman, that is experiencing problems with sexual adjustment within her marriage, to guide her towards a normal sexual relationship within the marriage. The following research procedures were followed in order to answer this question: Chapter 2 investigates the basic concepts of the self esteem of the molested as well as God's plan concerning sexuality and body image. Excerpts of a number of relevant Scriptures were made and the appropriate principles identified. Chapter 3 covers a number of valuable contributions made by some of the supportive sciences in this field of study. A historical overview of the manner in which the church handles the molested woman gives valuable insight. There is a focus placed upon the emotional and physical characteristics of the so-called rape syndrome, typical defence mechanisms and reactions of the victim, aggression, self esteem as well as the body image of the molested person. An in depth look is taken at the emotional and physical characteristics of the so-called rape syndrome, covering issues such as aggression. Chapter 4 is an empirical investigation based on an extensive questionnaire and interviews with a number of respondents. The content of the questions was particularly concentrated on the role of the church, when the molestation took place, memories and/or memory lapses regarding the molestation, functioning within the marriage, sexual dysfunction, where help was sought and found as well as the person's experience of God. From the responses it was deduced that there is much room for improvement in the counselling that the Church offers to the molested iv woman or child. From the information in the preceding chapters certain practice theoretical guidelines, which can be applied when counselling the molested woman or child, could be formulated in Chapter 5. These guidelines can be very useful when counselling the individual as well as when counselling a married couple. In this regard much emphasis is placed on aspects such as guilt, forgiveness, the healing process as well as the powerful medium of prayer as part of the therapeutic process. Inner healing of emotions and memories was also identified as absolutely crucial for such a person to ultimately achieve sexual wellbeing and normal functionality within her marriage / Thesis (M.A. (Pastoral))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2005.

Human sexuality is a product of sociocultural and historical constructs. In modern, contemporary society, pornography has emerged as the dominant form of sexual discourse, transforming the human body as an object to be manipulated, shaped, and trained. In this thesis, I will argue that pornography is the vehicle for disciplinary practices that transforms human bodies into sexual bodies that are mere representations of itself. As Michel Foucault describes it in Discipline and Punish (1977), discourse does not function all by itself to produce effects of power, but, rather, the efficacy of discourse is tied to the systematic and calculated use of force by definite agents on definite human bodies. Modern pornographic sexual discourse is only part of a power-knowledge formation that includes subtle and often direct coercion over the body. Men acting as sexual partners extract from pornography a ‘knowledge’ of sexuality that they use to organize their personal domination over women, in order to turn women into docile bodies that learn to adopt various positions or gestures. Even though, if discipline is successful, coercion is minimized, economized, to generate the maximum effect of control through the minimum expenditure of force, a force that never disappears completely. When society is saturated with pornographic representations as a normative standard, which in turn operates as an ideal to which people ‘voluntarily’ aspire, it is only because of the operation of this efficient economy of force, which goes mostly unnoticed. Perceived as a natural, innate human characteristic, sexuality is instead a social construct, where all of the body’s movement, gestures, and attitudes are manipulated, and thus obedient to a pornographic ideal of sexual experience that is limited in its heteronormative expression.

This thesis examines Kant’s claims about the morally problematic nature of sexual desire and activity, as well as the necessity of marriage in order to allow for permissible sexual relations. It shows that, based on Kant’s assumptions regarding the problematic nature of sex, his own solution, marriage, does not allow for permissible sex. My work then proceeds to explain the position Kant should have taken on this matter based on the Formula of Humanity as well as perfect duties to self and other. Finally, it suggests that sexual pleasure can involve a temporary suspension of humanity, and thus be morally problematic. / Graduate

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Germany's Weimar republic has been understood as a time in which gays and lesbians asserted their demands for social tolerance and protection under the law. Many historians of this period have so far treated the complicated relationship between sex and gender variance and the scientific community. Yet the creation of the "homosexual" in the late nineteenth century as a kind of person also opened up the possibility for the discussion of a specifically sex variant soul. At the same time, the relative freedom of expression that occurred during Germany's Weimar period allowed for sex and gender variants to engage with existing ideas to articulate their own formulations. One journal, Die Freundschaft was a mouthpiece for a particularly vast array of opinions regarding same-sex love. Influenced by the works of Plato, as well as German romanticism, Die Freundschaft's authors saw their desires as being guided by Eros, a non-human and sacred force. Moreover, they fused Magnus Hirschfeld's notion of a "third sex" with the theosophical principle of reincarnation, arguing that part of the karmic path was the eventual incarnation of a soul into a body of opposing gender. Finally, the sentiment commonly espoused during Weimar Germany, that one could discover one's soul in nature, made nature a place in which sex and gender variants could discover their unique souls, and come to terms with their desires. Examining the ways in which sex and gender variants chose to describe themselves and their experiences in the language of the sacred reveals the extent to which they were able put forward an articulation of same-sex love that subverted scientific prescription, describing a constellation of desires and embodiments that were hallowed as well as natural.

Current studies on the topic of sexuality in the ancient Greek world tend to favour the active/passive paradigm of understanding sexual relations which was originally proposed in Kenneth Dover's Greek Homosexuality (1978) and Michel Foucault's three volume History of Sexuality (1978, 1985, and 1986). In Dover and Foucault, the sexual behaviour of the classical Athenian male takes primacy, so much so that the reader of either scholar can be left with the impression that the role of the active partner was available only to adult citizen males. Alciphron's Letters of Courtesans (Book 4 of his works) depict a group of desiring female subjects who demonstrate that sexual agency, the assumption of the active role in a sexual relationship, need not be the exclusively masculine phenomenon that Dover and Foucault describe. Letters of Courtesans prove that female sexuality can be portrayed as active and therefore that women in literature can be sexual agents. Additionally, these letters demonstrate the limits of the approaches of Dover and Foucault, that sexuality need not be defined as exclusively active or exclusively passive. By approaching Letters of Courtesans from this perspective, we are able to see that ancient Greek literature includes depictions of active female sexuality that Dover and Foucault overlooked. Letters of Courtesans are therefore a way to challenge and develop the work on ancient sexuality that has followed from these two landmark studies. Because of their fictional nature and their epistolary format, Letters of Courtesans lay bare the process of Alciphron's construction of sexuality and gender. I shall therefore show that Alciphron's Letters of Courtesans are an ideal locus for a discussion of these topics. This study will establish that Letters of Courtesans ought to occupy a place of importance in any discussion of ancient ideas of sexuality and gender.

Much scientific and media attention has been devoted to the growing body of research into the genetic correlates of human phenomena. However, many of the resulting reports lead to a deterministic interpretation of the role of genes, and involve fundamental misunderstandings of genetics and heredity. Hence, questions arise regarding the ways in which people make sense of the behavioural genetics research they encounter in everyday life. Furthermore, essentialist accounts are often embedded within popular understanding of politically sensitive topics, such as eugenics, race, and sex, and therefore it is important to examine how people comprehend genetic influences on behaviour. In this dissertation, I review current findings regarding the effects of genetic attributions on beliefs, attitudes, and behaviours in the context of the social world. Particular attention is paid to such effects in the context of gender issues. Specifically, in three studies I examine the effects of exposure to scientific theories concerning human sexuality on attitudes towards and evaluations of men’s dubious sexual behaviors. The results indicate that among men exposure to evolutionary psychology arguments leads to more lenient evaluations and judgments of an array of dubious sexual behaviors, compared with exposure to social constructivist arguments. It also seems that men implicitly hold nativist perceptions with regards to male sexuality and promiscuity. The findings were less conclusive among women, with some indication that women are less affected by such exposure as well as less likely to naturally hold a nativist perspective in the context of human sexuality. This empirical research has direct implications for previously suggested intervention programs and adds to the incurrent resurgence of interest in the effects of genetic theories. Finally, I identify areas where further exploration is needed, suggest potential solutions for specific problems, and evaluate related individual and social implications.