The Pornographer's Grief: And Other Tales of Human Sexuality [Paperback]

Joseph;Coles, Robert Glenmullen (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1994

A Harvard psychiatrist and expert on human sexuality shares some of his most fascinating cases, covering sexual behavior, drugs, trauma, and religious repression.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

These tales from psychotherapy gracefully demonstrate Glenmullen's thesis "that sexual issues and symptoms are metaphors for the larger psychological stresses and strains in an individual's life." Describing cases taken from his private practice, the Harvard Medical School professor unravels the often complex symptoms that bring troubled patients to him for help. In the title piece, a young man disturbed over his compulsion to buy pornographic magazines gradually connects that behavior to his longings for the father who abandoned him. In another tale, a woman who has been traumatized by witnessing a violent fight between two men is able, after unrelenting effort, to remember an event from childhood that has proven central to her life. Glenmullen's accounts also touch on sexual problems that have physical origins--such as the side effects of medication--and those related to conflicts caused by infertility. These absorbing narratives chronicle the ultimate effectiveness of unhurried, steady psychotherapeutic excavation in relieving the pain of sexual dysfunction.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Rapidly changing sexual mores in recent decades have contributed to a confused sense of sexuality. Thus, people who are successful in other spheres of activity can experience problems in their sex lives. Psychiatrist Glenmullen selects a wide range of case histories illustrating manifestations of problems of sexual origin. The writing highlights his own methods for discovering the roots of his patients' dysfunctions. Among the topics he explores are pornographic addiction, an inability to use condoms, the relationship of food and sex, and the adverse effect of medication on sexual behavior. The writing is, of course, sexually explicit, since he must reveal his patients' intimate confessions during the course of prolonged psychotherapy. All the cases he recounts are success stories. Recommended for psychology collections.
- Carol R. Glatt, V.A. Medical Center, Philadelphia
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 272 pages
• Publisher: Perennial (March 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060922036
• ISBN-13: 978-0060922030
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #663,804 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sensitive treatment of sexual issues, February 28, 1998

By 

Paul Jerry (Medicine Hat, Alberta Canada) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Pornographer's Grief: And Other Tales of Human Sexuality (Hardcover)

I approached this book from the point of view of a clinician-turned-academic, looking for material to highlight presentations on clinical work with sex addicts.

I was delighted to find Dr. Glenmullen's book both readable and insightful. Writing a case in a manner that is instructive as well as sensitive to the humanity involved, is an art and Dr. Glenmullen has mastered this art.

I am especially impressed with the depth these cases reach, allowing the reader (clinican or not) to appreciate that under every issue lies another, and eventually, there will be a core aspect that is "driving" the patient's pain and their attempts to deal with that pain.

The first chapter (where Dr. Glenmullen describes the treatment of the 'pornographer' of the title) provided the reader with an example of how a therapist can move beyond the trap of morality and move to the (not always obviously related) root of the problem at hand.

I strongly recommend any therapist who deals with sexual issues to make use of Amazon's excellent "out of print" finding service (2 month turn-around in my case) and get a copy of this for your bookshelf.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Pornographer's Grief is a gift to us all, February 3, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Glenn Dale, MD) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Pornographer's Grief: And Other Tales of Human Sexuality (Paperback)

In this informative and bold work a Harvard psychiatrist reveals much about his work as a therapist and himself personally. A daring work that is a page turner whether you are a therapist or have thought that you have unresolved issues in which sex has become fused with other parts of life: love, hate, dependence, intimacy, career, etc. You start reading these case histories seeing clients as characters in a short story and before long they are as close to you as your sibling, parent, self.