Strategic Sex: Why They Won't Keep It in the Bedroom (Haworth Gay & Lesbian Studies) [Hardcover]

John Dececco Phd (Author), D Travers Scott (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 12, 1999 | Series: Haworth Gay & Lesbian Studies

With chapters from Ron Athey, Scott O'Hara, Tristan Taormino, Michael Scarce, and Kevin Killian, Strategic Sex: Why They Won't Keep It in the Bedroom explores sex in public--performed, depicted, or discussed outside the “appropriate” bedrooms and doctor's offices. This book examines why sex is brought into the spotlight, defying mainstream social codes of etiquette and obscenity. Sex activists and queer theorists will discover wide-ranging opinions and personal experiences from scholars, activists, artists, educators, sex workers, and pornographers who explore--and sometimes demonstrate--why they won't leave sex in the bedroom.

Surprisingly moving, humorous, erotic, and intelligent, Strategic Sex shares episodes of powerfully affected lives, thoughts, and behaviors. Sex is revealed as more than merely a blind, animal instinct but a tool which can be harnessed to specific ends. The chapters in Strategic Sex discusses interesting and informative topics by such individuals as:

• Marti Hohmann with Annie Sprinkle--“Interview with a Metamorphosexual”
• Sally Trash--“Making Porn Videos Work for Lesbians”
• Carol A. Queen--“Porno-formance: Some Notes on Sex as Art”
• Rafael Katz--“Moby Dick in the China Sea: Great White Pornography in Taiwan”
• T. A. King--“Scenes from a Culture of Masochism”
• Lawrence Schimel--“Pumping Iron, Pumping Cocks: Sex at the Gym”
• Jaron Kanegson--“Girlfriends, Boyfriends, Dykes, or Fags?”
  
  The contributors--heterosexual, homosexual, male, female, and gray areas in between--relate and imagine ways of harnessing sexual energy. While some reveal goals as noble as rape prevention, improving women's health care, fighting racism, overcoming grief, and community building, you will find how others illustrate sex utilized for self-promotion or manipulation of groups and individuals. With a unique mix of fiction, analysis, performance texts, and personal essays, Strategic Sex ultimately presents sex as a powerful influence on dominant power structures within cultures and will make you question how sexuality influences your life--in both public and private places.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In the past decade, anthologies of personal essays about sexAparticularly transgressive sexAhave become increasingly commonplace; as a result, they have largely lost their potency and shock value. Scott, a novelist (Execution, Texas: 1987) and performance artist, has collected 20 such essays that range from the mundane to the extraordinary and that, as a whole, carry some power. Stating that his volume is "about questioning, thinking, and exploring" as well as "deepen[ing] the meaning of sexual energy," he focuses on unusual and public sexual activities. While selections such as Tristan Taormino's "Caution: Sharp Objects," about a series of gender-bending s&m sexual encounters, or Simon Shephard's "Discourse: Dick," which describes highly sexual performance art, feel old hat and pretentious, other essays deliver the intellectual and erotic goods. The best work here often deals with more than just sexual activity. Jayson Marston's "White Skinhead Seeks Black Submissives" looks at race, sex and violence in ways that are unsettling; though it feels half-formed, it's startling and extremely provocative. In "Under My Skin," noted performance artist Ron Athey relates a simple history of the tattoos that cover almost his entire body, gracefully evoking the drastic emotional and psychological changes he has undergone. These essays, plus a few others, more than make up for the unstimulating ones. (Oct.)
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From the Publisher

Discover the powerful influence of sex when it goes beyond closed doors!

Product Details

• Hardcover: 162 pages
• Publisher: Routledge; 1 edition (October 12, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1560239697
• ISBN-13: 978-1560239697
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #4,924,565 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

For over two decades, D. Travers Scott has worked as a writer, critic, and artist, appearing everywhere from underground 'zines to Harper's and This American Life. He is author of two novels: the internationally acclaimed Execution, Texas: 1987 and the Lambda Literary Award winner, One of these Things is Not Like the Other. His most recent book is Love Hard: Stories 1989-2009. After many years in the advertising industry, left to earn a PhD at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Southern California. He and his husband live in South Carolina, where he is Assistant Professor of Communication Studies at Clemson University.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars sexy and thought-provoking, February 3, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Strategic Sex: Why They Won't Keep It in the Bedroom (Haworth Gay & Lesbian Studies) (Paperback)

I thought this book would be a lot of boring academics writing about sex, but it turned out to be much more surprising. The variety of writers and subjects kept things constantly interesting, and there was much to challenge my preexisting thoughts and feelings about sex. This was different from any book I've read on the subject before and, while some of the contributions are uneven, overall it was a startling and sexy read.