The story of human sexuality is a story of the transformation of ideas and philosophy. In a society which was dominated by imperialism and fascist political class, we revolted for a new kind of freedom. The kind of freedom that gave the right to pleasure for an individual and the right to express his or her sexual orientation in an open-minded culture. Rajit Roy
The beginning of the Hippie movement in the 1960s led to a revolution of thought and behavior in American youth. Hedonistic lifestyle became a prominent symbol of dissent against the traditional bourgeoisie and the idea of ‘free love’ defined a countercultural perspective that was based on tolerance and common human feeling. With this came a new age philosophy which promoted sexual liberation of the individual. Increased acceptance of premarital sex, skepticism towards traditional moral values about relationships and most importantly, a diversion from staunch heterosexuality made waves across the west which was still emerging from the trauma of the World War and looking for ways to escape the pain of an existential crisis. Sex was fast becoming a symbol of individual freedom and empowerment of the youth. With the rise of feminism, the female sexual choice became a flourishing debate across the modern world. However, amid all this commotion there lay deeply rooted academic scholarship that was trying to understand the psychology and sociology of human sexual behavior. The superstar psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud began an analysis of human sex in terms of day-to-day behavior and bonding. He went on to define libido as a form of sexual energy that drives human behavior and society at large. The Freudian school laid an unprecedented emphasis on sex in order to explain broader impetus in human nature. Michel Foucault of France wrote The History of Sexuality in which he presented a detailed analysis of the evolution of sex as a cultural practice and its impact on society and politics of the age. “We demand that sex speak the truth [...] and we demand that it tell us our truth, or rather, the deeply buried truth of that truth about ourselves which we think we possess in our immediate consciousness.” This kind of thoughtful attitude towards sexuality broke the taboo that existed around it despite the ancient texts in the Oriental countries that celebrated the idea of man’s animal propensity, Kamasutra being the quintessential one. With this drastic transformation of ideologies, there came an increased acceptance or rather idealization of open representation of sex in culture and art. Pornography became a mainstream industry with revolutionaries like Hugh Hefner making it a household phenomenon in progressive cultures. Prostitution, though it remained largely obscured as it ever was, became a symbol of sexual independence in a society that was becoming more tolerant towards open relationships contrary to marriages. Today we are part of a new kind of sexual revolution where homosexuality and LGBT communities are no longer prone to judgments and insecurity, however, there’s still a long way to go. The story of human sexuality is a story of the transformation of ideas and philosophy. In a society which was dominated by imperialism and fascist political class, we revolted for a new kind of freedom. The kind of freedom that gave the right to pleasure for an individual and the right to express his or her sexual orientation in an open-minded culture. However, with this freedom, we are bound by a responsibility that transcends any caste or sex. A responsibility to hold on to basic human principles of decency and moral awareness. There are still miles to go when we reach that point of spiritual excellence where sex can liberate the human soul.
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Rajit Roy
An existential romantic, an agnostic and a prospective biologist. Archives
September 2018
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