Sex

Resumen del libro

Sex is always paradoxical. On the one hand, it is one of the most natural activities in which human beings engage. Without sex, we wouldn't be here. We simply cannot live without it. On the other hand, sexuality has given rise to some of the most complex and taboo issues in the history of civilization. What counts as sex? Are same-sex relationships 'natural' or constructed? Why is sodomy considered a crime in one era and merely as a perversion or as titillating in the next? And what of pederasty? Why did the ancient Greeks socially and culturally sanction sexual activities that now seem to us to be abhorrent? Such critical questions lie at the heart of Daniel Orrells' bold and imaginative treatment of of ancient sexuality and its later reception. If the modern world is steeped in classical culture, says Orrells, it seems contrary to admire the intellectual and artistic heritage of ancient Greece while ignoring what now seem to us deeply problematic sexual practices. This divertingly readable book explores the contested relationships between ancient and modern ideas about sex and the erotic, encompassing homosexuality, paedophilia, auto-eroticism, cybersex and bestiality.

Ranging from Sappho to Foucault, the author shows why the very definition of what sex is has changed radically between ancient and modern times.