Chapter 5

“DEVIANT” AND
“NORMAL”
SEXUALITY
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 Sociology and Sexuality

 Sexuality has multiple dimensions: identity, desire, and behaviour
 The sociological study of sexuality is dominated by subjectivist
approaches (i.e., perceptions, meanings, and control of sexuality)
 Sexual cultures vary historically and cross-culturally
 Athens (5th century BCE) – sexuality
was intertwined with structures
of power

 Sambian society – ritualized

homosexuality reinforced the
patriarchal structure of the society
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 Indigenous Cultures: Colonizing Sex, Gender, and

Sexuality
 Indigenous sexual cultures were characterized by considerable
variety
 A common theme, however, was the belief that sexuality was
integrally linked with all dimensions of life
 Many cultures recognized multiple sex/gender variants
 During the early years of colonization, Indigenous
women formed relationships with European
settlers and were called les femmes du pays
 However, as colonization progressed, Indigenous
sexuality became increasingly defined as deviant
and subject to control by both religion and law
 Despite this, relationships continued in many forms
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 North America: The Evolution of Meanings of

Sexuality
 17th century sexuality was based on:
 reproduction within marriage
 the need for “country wives”
 the sexual control of slaves
 Social control involved the church, court,
family, and community; while people were
punished for their sexual deviance, the
ultimate goal was reintegration
 Social control varied on the basis of socioeconomic status, race, and
gender
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 North America: The Evolution of Meanings of

Sexuality
 From the late 18th century through the 19th century, sexuality became
based on intimacy within marriage
 Shift due to:
 urbanization/wage labour
 changes in religious ideology
 emphasis on personal happiness
 Social control by women, physicians, social
reformers (social purity/sex hygiene
movement) and the culture industry
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 North America: The Evolution of Meanings of

Sexuality
 By the early 20th century, the dominant
meaning of sexuality had become
personal fulfillment, independent
of marriage
 The culture industry rapidly expanded
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 Sexual Culture Today

 Characterized by greater, but not unlimited, sexual freedom
 Criteria for evaluating “deviant” and “normal” sexuality:
 consent
 how do we define “consent”?
• sexual assault
• date rape drugs
• age of consent laws
 nature of the sexual partner
 matters of law – age, incest, bestiality

 formal regulations – workplaces, therapeutic relationships

 informal regulations – professors and grad students

 evolving views of same-sex relationships

 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 nature of the sexual act

 determinations are culturally and
historically specific (e.g., sexual positions,
ancient Athens, masturbation, sexual
fetishes, BDSM)
 location
 governed in part by law (e.g., exhibitionism)
 frequency
 “addicted” versus “frigid”
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 Sex Work
 Includes exotic dancing, pornography, prostitution, and any other
type of work that deals with impersonal sexual activity
 Exotic dancing
 issue of “exploitation” versus “choice”
 more recently, the focus has been on
dancers’ own understandings of their work
 survivors, nonconformists, dancers, and workers

 exotic dancing as “work” (e.g., erotic labour, emotional labour)

 gender
 issue of power
 individual – relationships with customers

 organizational – rules of the establishment

 institutional – McDonaldization (i.e., efficiency,

predictability, control, and calculability)
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 Pornography
 debates continue over definitions:
 functional – individual arousal;
genre – intentions of producers;
labelling – community standards
 debates over legal definitions:
 child pornography

 sexting
 issue of harm:
 effects – physical harm, social harm, ontological harm

 effects on youth
• effects on attitudes, behaviours and self-concept
• correlation between violent pornography and sexually
aggressive behaviours/impact on self-concepts
 interpretive research has revealed both normalization and
ambivalence to be characteristic of young adults’ attitudes
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 Prostitution
 the past 200 years have been characterized by changing discourses
of prostitution:
 morality

 public health

 victimization

 workers’ rights
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 Sexual Exploitation
 Sex trafficking
 the act of:
 recruiting, transporting, harbouring, and/or exchanging (a
person)
 by means of:
 force, fraud, or coercion
 for the purpose of:
 commercial sexual exploitation
 the majority of sex trafficking in Canada is domestic and victims
are Canadian born; the average age is 13-14
 some groups are more vulnerable than others
 “Deviant” and “Normal” Sexuality

 “the game” is used to describe the subculture; the players include:

 trafficker/pimp

 john/trick

 “bottom bitch”

 sex trafficked women and girls

 recruitment  grooming/isolation  turning out

 Sex tourism
 offenders can be both local and foreign;
most are situational child sex tourists
 for many years, Canada had an
international reputation for being an
ideal location for sex tourists
 Resources

 U of A Sexual Assault Centre

 Sexual Assault Centre of Edmonton
 Association of Alberta Sexual Assault Services
 Human Trafficking (Public Safety Canada)
 Human Trafficking – Support for Victims and Survivors
(Public Safety Canada)
 Canadian Human Trafficking Hotline
 Canadian Centre to End Human Trafficking