Sex and Sexuality (ESSAY)

Sex and sexuality;

Sexuality is defined as the complex desires, beliefs, and behaviours that are related to erotic physical contact and the cultural arena in which people debate what is right and wrong when it comes to sexuality.

People often view sexuality as a purely biological drive that brings people together for the means of reproduction but when compared to the animal kingdom humans differ significantly. Humans often engage in partnerships and will mate for life as some animals in the animal kingdom do, but this is not very common. Humans also keep their sexual activities private as society has deemed it taboo to share or speak about sexual activities with those outside of your partnership while animals engage in public intercourse. 

And lastly human beings are one of the few species of animals that have sexual intercourse for pleasure and fun rather than simply reproduction. This is important when looking at issues of heterosexuality vs homosexuality as we realize that the human species does not always use sex as a means for reproduction but rather enjoyment and pleasure. 

Culture and biology are significantly linked to how we behave sexually. Biology can explain some of our behaviour through hormones such as testosterone that push our desire to come together for intercourse and create offspring with our partners, while culture can explain the more intricate details of how these joinings happen. In the media we are bombarded with images of “true love” from a young age, believing that one day we will find our perfect partner. This leads to a desire for not only reproduction but emotional affection amongst our fellow people.

Culturally humans are arranged into categories based on who they are attracted to: Heterosexuality (they are attracted to the opposite gender), Homosexuality (they are attracted to the same gender), Bisexuality (They are attracted to multiple genders), and Asexuality (they do not experience sexual attraction but that does not necessarily mean they don’t engage in sexual activities). These categories have a significance of power to them as many people who identify as anything other than heterosexual will be treated unfairly in the workplace or in common society. Often when someone comes out as a member of the LGBTQ+ community even today they are rejected by their society and treated poorly by their peers. 

Sexology, the scientific study of sexuality, viewed heterosexuality as the ideal sexuality for human society in the 19th century and began dividing people two categories, heterosexuality and homosexuality which at the time was considered a mental illness. It was later discovered that these categories did not sufficiently cover the diversity of human sexuality as human beings are sexually intricate and fluid with the example of people being attracted to multiple genders, fantasies, likes and dislikes, and preferences. To define one in such a simple way would not suffice for the diversity of the human mind.

The rituals of love and sexuality are also put deeply into gender roles as can be viewed through the ideas of weddings. The romanticization of a wedding is placed on women from a very young age as they are taught to navigate through tv, parental guardians, literature, advertisement, and many other forms of media. Women are taught that one day they will be given to a man who will become their life-partner and many women are still taught that this is their life’s goal. Women are prepared for this even through dating and events such as prom.

Weddings used to be a symbol of a woman being given to another man by her father (hence the man “giving-away” his daughter) as the woman was dependent on other males for property and money. 

Though this has changed in recent years the marital ceremony remains largely the same with the father walking his daughter down the aisle to be received by her soon-to-be husband.

Same-gender marriage was only legalized in the US in 2015 and was heavily criticized by the public- but to the people of the LGBTQ+ community this was a chance to join with their partner and make their relationship known and public. Still in the world today there are places where same-gender couples cannot marry or can even be killed for their sexuality. Even in Canada and the USA the minority sexualities are heavy discriminated against and discouraged, especially with black lesbian women. Many people of colour do not feel comfortable discussing their sexuality in a public setting for fear of being harmed by the community. 

Many black people were reluctant to challenge the expectations of their community by being open and honest about their sexuality because of the judgement they might receive.

People with disabilities are also often discouraged from engaging in sexual intercourse or seeking pleasure even as they mature into adults. In Sweden many care-takers are taught to reprimand and discourage sexual feelings that disabled people might feel as they age as it is seen as inappropriate for a disabled person to feel such feelings.

Many disabled people disclose to their workers that they want nothing more than to have a family or engage in intercourse with a partner but they are told to repress these urges because of the fact that their mind might still work at the age of a child while their body does not. It is still a moral question of whether it is right or wrong to allow people with disabilities to engage in sexual activities willingly or if we should continue to have them repress it. 

Globalization has made the need for partners more significant in recent years with the time-space compression. There is now a constant global conversation about how sexuality should be viewed in modern society and if we have any right to limit, repress, or discourage anyone from being free to explore their sexuality with their partners. 

With immigration and communication with many countries the idea of sexuality is forced into the light across the globe as people are able to discuss their freedoms or lack thereof and what they wish they could be free to enjoy. 

My question for you is if you think we have the right to limit or force people to repress a natural desire shared in a private setting with laws or if sexuality should be embraced into society rather than being treated as a taboo?