SEX IN HISTORY [Hardcover]

Reay Tannahill (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Stein & Day (1979)
• ASIN: B00164CAW0
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,259,204 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

31 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Do yourself a favor...Buy this book., December 2, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Sex in History (Paperback)

I've read this book at least 4 times, and I never get tired of it. Tanahill's writing is witty,interesting, and unbiased. She addresses the history of sexuality in almost every country and culture (not just Europe, which is what usually happens)and gives a history of humankind, from the Neolithic Revolution to the 1980s. It's well-researched and incredibly informative, filled with facts about gender roles and sexuality (and how this affects everything else in a society) throughout time.

21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Inaccurate and difficult to read, January 5, 2008

By 

V. Brock (Midwest, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Sex in History (Paperback)

Near the beginning, the author makes the ridiculous assertion that women can only be raped from the front. In the discussion of ancient Rome, she puts forth a theory that the Roman empire collapsed because the men of Rome allowed their women to buy too many material goods, thus creating a trade deficit. She states that Judaism encourages withdrawal as a method of birth control, when in fact withdrawal and condoms are the only two methods of birth control Orthodox Judaism FORBIDS. In the section on the Arab world, a drawing of a mule is labeled as a "mare". In the section on early Christianity, she covers the theology dominant at the time; but doesn't even mention the minority opinions on sex (like those of Vigilantius and Chrysostom) which became the official Church position in modern times. This work contains many much such inaccuracies and historical distortions.

Regarding the section on Europe, "A History of the Wife" by Marilyn Yalom covers the exact same topic without the inaccuracies and historical distortions. When purchasing "Sex in History" I was hoping for a book on how cultures regarded the actual act of intercourse. This book actually attempts to cover the status of wives and prostitutes, with some details the author apparently thought titillating (for example, she likes to use Sanskit words for anatomical parts as much as possible in discussions where English words would be much more natural) thrown in. On top of all this, the writing style is difficult to read - the author couldn't even make this an entertaining read!

I was highly disappointed in this purchase.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding and unbiased overview, November 19, 2001

By 

ROD VAN-MECHELEN "Rod Van Mechelen" (Olympia, WA United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Sex in History (Paperback)

As publisher of the flagship forum of equalitarianism at The Backlash! I have long prized my well worn copy of Reay Tannahil's Sex in History: It is an unbiased overview of sexual relationships throughout history. In highly readable prose Tannahil tells the truth about women and men without lapsing into rants about either sex, and I recommend her book to everyone.