The Field of Sexuality Studies: What is it?

Cambridge University Press, 2020

Introduction The most significant recent development, a break with the past, in the study of sexual cultures has to do with the term ‘culture’ itself: that we think of sexuality (and sexualities) as having ‘cultures’. Historically, both in academic and popular thinking, the term ‘sexuality’ most frequently elicited responses that have to do with biology. That is, whether as an area of study or as a set of ideas people have about their intimate lives, sexuality was too easily detached from the social contexts where it belongs and presented as something of itself. There is a strong tendency to view our sexual lives as dictated by their own peculiar rules that ( a ) are biologically derived, ( b ) have been historically stable (that is, the same since the ‘dawn of time’), ( c ) are ‘essentially’ about our ‘private’ lives, and ( d ) are ‘basically’ the same across different cultures. Ironically, while, on the one hand, we think of sexuality as a world-untoitself – such that it is regard...

Sexuality in Africa has always been defined from birth; this is looked at from the baby’s genitalia. It is assumed that a baby with the male genitalia is definitely sexually oriented to be a man and vice versa. Culture is the way of life of individuals, Culture is dynamic and it changes from time to time and place to place. Religion further serves to impact on how people perceive their sexual orientation, it openly advocates for heterosexual relationships between men and women. However of late individuals have openly come out to declare their sexual orientation which has caused open debates on what is perceived right or wrong. 38 African countries have openly passed anti-gay laws with different countries taking drastic action against this lifestyle. The methodology used is a review, thus this paper aims to establish the beliefs, views and attitudes of Africans towards sexual orientation. This paper is significant as it will open avenues to study on sexual orientation in Africa, which up to now has been thrown on the pile of unwanted debris and issues.

This course examines gender, sex, and sexuality as powerful forces in people's lives that are loaded with cultural significance. In this class, we will explore the construction of gender and sexuality both in the United States and international contexts by asking some of the following questions: How has contemporary anthropological theory shaped the ways we think about gender and sexuality? Why is the regulation of sexuality such an important component for maintaining certain forms of social hierarchy both in the US and abroad? How do international differences and inequalities manifest in understandings of gender and sexuality around the world? and How does sexuality intersect with race, gender and class in various cultural contexts? We will address these questions by looking at both obvious and less visible dimensions of power, culture, gender, and sexuality. Students should leave the course with an increased understanding of the historical development of gender and sexuality, as well as understand these concepts beyond " normative " definitions. Specifically, students should engage with the ways sexuality intersects with gender, race, class, religion, location and other forms of social distinction or exclusion. Course Objectives Students will be able to: 1. identify and explain key terms that are central to an anthropological understanding of sexuality 2. relate sexuality to topics of cultural and social diversity 3. understand relationships between sexuality, gender, class, race, and other forms of difference 4. relate issues in sexuality studies with power relations, ideology, and social institutions 5. apply key themes, theories, and approaches of anthropology to their own analysis

2007

2015

(ASSAf) gratefully acknowledges the following individuals and organisations for their valuable contributions and collaborative efforts that have led to the successful production of this report:  Professor Daya Reddy, the President of ASSAf and the Council for their support throughout the project.  The Uganda National Academy of Sciences (UNAS) for collaborating in the undertaking of this study.  The Rockefeller Foundation and the African Science Academy Development Initiative, a programme of the US National Academy of Sciences that was established in 2004 with a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.  The members of the consensus study panel for their time, commitment, enthusiasm and contributions to the report.  The peer reviewers who gave valuable input that led to the enhancement of the fi nal report.  Professor Harry Dugmore for his relentless hard work in researching, handling and incorporating all comments and authoring the report.  The copy editor, Ms Patricia Scholtz and Seriti Printing for attention to detail and production of the report.  The staff of the Academy, in particular, Professor Roseanne Diab, Ms Phyllis Kalele and Ms Henriette Wagener for their contributions and support throughout the project.

Archives of Sexual Behavior

Although heterosexual oral and anal sexual behaviors have been reported in sub-Saharan Africa, little is known about how they are understood and perceived, particularly, in West Africa. We undertook a qualitative exploration of local terminologies and sexual scripts associated with heterosexual oral and anal sex in preparation for a quantitative survey. We held focus group discussions (18) and interviews (44) with younger and middle-aged men and women from the general population and female sex workers (FSWs) in selected communities in Ibadan. Most participants had heard of oral and anal sex. Younger adults aged 18-25 years, particularly male participants and FSWs, appeared more informed than older adults in the general population. Sexually explicit movies were the most cited source of information. Oral and anal sexual behaviors were considered sensitive, with different local names, meanings, and interpretations. Participants advised against the use of slang terms in research. We identified six different scripts employed by participants in discussing oral and anal sex practices: protecting sexual relationship, financial reward, an alternative to vaginal sex, pleasure, male dominance and control, and risk, stigma, and disgust.

Chiedza: Journal of Arrupe College, 2012

2007

us with the opportunity to continue some of the debates initiated by Patricia MacFadden, Charmaine Pereira and Sylvia Tamale in an earlier issue (see Feminist Africa 2). In keeping with Feminist Africa's intellectual development agenda, the present issue also provides a platform for new research carried out by leading African feminist thinkers. The three feature articles present thoughtprovoking material drawn from the Mapping Sexualities Research Project. This is possibly the first project in the transnational field of sexuality research to have been carried out by African researchers rooted in feminist praxis. Through this new knowledge, we provide ourselves with the opportunity to deepen and further inform the ongoing debates and struggles around various aspects of sexuality. Much of the literature available on the global market addresses African sexuality by proxy – in terms of grand theorisations of race and imperialism, colonial histories of regulation and population contr...

Globalization and the Indigenous Concept of Sexuality in African Tradition: Charting a New Course for Sexual Right and Safe Society, 2018

Across the human societies, the concept of sex and sexual relationship is attached with some degree of sacredness and in some cases, can be classified as a taboo if some rules guiding such activity is ignored or violated. African societies in particular, at various degrees, have an understanding of sexual relationship as a sacrosanct factor to the image of a group, and a respectable phenomenon which every member of the group must adhere to the rules guiding them. However, the era of culture contact has left an indelible mark on the understanding and perception of sexual relationship among the African societies. This paper analyses the trends in the perception of sex and sexual relationship among the African societies, in the face of cultural globalization using, the available Ethnographic literatures and other emerging issues. Though the wave of cultural globalization is so enormous to have sunk the ships of most African Traditional Cultures, the paper suggested a common ground for the accommodation of the concept of sex and sexual relationship between the African Traditional Culture and the emerging global culture.