Customer Reviews

The Rise of Viagra: How the Little Blue Pill Changed Sex in America

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Good case study of the enormous influence wielded by BigPharma over modern culture. Loe describes how the application of the medical model turns sex into a commodity, with quality measured by speed of erection, efficiency of ejaculation, and ability to perform on demand and in the absence of relational connection. "Normal" is defined more and more narrowly until any variation becomes a "dysfunction," and such dysfunctions take on epidemic proportions. Meanwhile, men feel more and more pressure to attain the unattainable. Just as Prozac is used to medicate modern angst and stress, Viagra is used to relieve men's insecurity in this age of sexual McDonaldization. The irony is that antidepressants reduce sex drive, so men are more in need of Viagra in order to perform at the level of their (and their partners') increasingly high expectations.

Loe's section on how BigPharma is extending the Viagra model to "Female Sexual Dysfunction" (FSD) is eye-opening. Look for "FSD" in the upcoming Fifth Edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM V).

Also providing food for thought is the growing emphasis on sex as a purely physical act, ego-centered, non-relational and even alienated from others. When I see this focus in the sex offenders I evaluate, I see it as deviant. But according to Loe, it's market-driven and increasingly normative. Interesting.

I gave it only 4 stars because the writing is somewhat pedantic and jargon-laden, and you have to wade through lengthy and tedious quotations. I wish she'd had the confidence to write more in her own voice.

The subject of the book is, of course, the story of the little blue pill and how it changed sexuality and medicine in the United States. Written by a sociologist, the book looks at the pill and its effects from a sociological standpoint.

The author starts the book with a relatively short history of the medicine and the disease process it is designed to cure. This is followed by a look at how this has been received by men and by women. Finally, the author looks at the medical industries attempts to find a drug to "fix" FSD syndrome.

The author seems to have a problem with the creation of the drug. Her attitude seems to indicate disgust with the major pharmaceutical houses that are "curing" a disease that the author does not view as a disease, but rather as a social condition. While recreational use of the pill is unwarranted and a problem, the author believes erectile dysfunction is nothing but a fancy name for impotence and that it is a natural part of the aging process. While delving into the history of impotence, and some of the attempted cures along the way, the author misses one big point. Life expectancy 50 years ago was much lower than today, and it wasn't uncommon for men to die in their 50s and 60s. With men living longer, they expect to be able to enjoy relations well past their 50s, which the author sees as a problem.

I would say that I agreed with about 50 percent of the content of the book. Her interviews with men certainly didn't reflect my attitudes towards the issue and I doubt they would reflect a majority of men.

The writing is scholarly and, at times, difficult to wade through. That makes this a book for those who need to read it or a willing to read through a rather heavy tome. If you are looking for a quick, light book on the subject, this isn't it.