JMB 3.1 (Feb 2002): Mahaffy, Mundane Sex: From Frivolity to Serious Scholarship

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When I was invited to edit this issue, I accepted without much hesitation. At the time, I was more concerned with adding to my workload than what this issue would do to my reputation. When I innocently began discussing my new responsibility with friends, my decision was often met with a few raised eyebrows and laughter especially when I mentioned the title of the issue. The responses went something like this: Mundane se-eh-ex?! Ha, ha. [Smirk.] Are you trying to say something about your sex life? Do you want to be taken seriously after this venture? The teasing was sufficient to put an end to my voluntary disclosures. And, no, this is not an issue about my sex life.

Why might friends attempt to dissuade me from this responsibility? What is discrediting about this kind of scholarship? For a moment, let us foray into the hierarchy of the academy and the politics of sex research. Academic disciplines rank subject matter in terms of status: those to be taken seriously and those that are "frivolous." Women's issues used to be frivolous, but feminist groups have struggled to bring women's experiences to the center of theorizing, empirical study, and policy development with mixed success. On the other hand, sex research tends to fall toward the bottom of the status hierarchy. Scholars of sex and sexuality are frequently the brunt of jokes and are assumed to be sex gurus, voyeurs, or perverts (Troiden 1988). According to some people, the only serious, respectable sex research is that which is blessed by the government and validated by grants, big grants.

Consider the topic of adolescent sexuality. Early efforts to conduct a national study of adolescent sexual behavior in the United States were thwarted by conservative politicians and religious organizations (Udry 1993). A few years later, another national survey of U.S. adolescents with the purpose of studying health risks received approval (http://www.cpc.unc.edu/addhealth/design.html ). Although numerous questions on this survey probe adolescents' sexual behaviors, limited to male/female and male/male sex, questions about sexuality, sexual orientation, and the development of a positive sexual self-image are noticeably absent. In contrast, abstinence education has received overwhelming political support through its link to welfare reform initiatives as part of the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996. With the passage of this act, the U.S. government began funding abstinence education at a sum of $US 50 million a year (http://www.agi-usa.org/pubs/ib_welfare_reform.html). This figure does not include mandated support from state governments or other sources of federal funds.

In an attempt to promote sexual health and a dialogue among all interested parties, U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher issued a call to sexual health and responsible sexual behavior (http://www.surgeongeneral.gov/library/sexualhealth/call.htm). The call to action has been virtually ignored by our current administration. Apparently, serious discussions of sexual health can only be framed in terms of abstinence. In the U.S., the prohibition of sex among teens and the poor has become a financially rewarding enterprise for politicians, religious groups, community organizations, and researchers. Perhaps the 20^th and early 21^st centuries will be remembered for their political economy of (no) sex, not even mundane sex.

Now for a bit of levity. Why might "mundane sex" be perceived as funny? If I said, "mundane eating" or "mundane sleeping" no one would chuckle. Eating, sleeping, and sex are routine, ordinary dimensions of our lives. The laughter may betray a certain discomfort that many of us feel about public discussions of sex particularly when one's sex life could be interpreted as ordinary, routine, or worse, boring. Nonetheless, mundane sex speaks to the "truth" of our everyday experiences. Some of us are too tired to have sex or we go through the motions. The novelty and lust have been replaced by: "Can we do it before 10 pm?" Do I have to take my socks off?" "Can I just lay here while you do the work?"

Don't confuse sex with love, my senior seminar students reminded me the other day. We were talking about the message that sexually eager adolescents need to hear, but I think this is equally applicable to adults. We can love our sexual partners and enjoy the intimacy that comes from knowing someone for years, but not feel up for sex on a daily or weekly basis. That said, someone has found a scientific connection between love and sex among heterosexual adults. Data from a 1992 survey indicate that U.S. heterosexual women who usually or always achieve orgasm experience greater emotional satisfaction and physical pleasure in their relationships as do their partners (Waite and Joyner, 252). An increase in the frequency of sex has a similar effect. However, whether heterosexual men always or usually achieve orgasm has no effect on the level of emotional satisfaction or physical pleasure they or their female partners experience (Waite and Joyner, 258). I guess men's orgasms are over-rated.

Not having enough sex? How about lobbying your legislator for a policy modeled after Singapore's? The Singaporean government has created a unique social policy whose primary aim is to increase fertility, but the latent function may be to arouse citizens from their mundane sexual habits. Commemorating National Day on August 20, 2001, Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong, announced drastic reforms that would provide paid maternity leave to women having their third child (previously leave was only granted for their first and second children), a baby bonus of $US 5,000 over a six year period for a second child, and up to double this for a third child (Kurlantzick, ¶ 3). These measures were not the only stimulating packages announced. "The civil service has declared that newly wed employees will receive three days of paid leave, and the state controlled Development Bank of Singapore has shortened its work week from six days to five, presumably in part so that its employees will not be too tired to procreate" (Krulantzick, ¶ 6). Imagine that.

One of my goals as the guest editor was to publish papers that address the everyday, ordinary dimensions of sex, sexuality, and gender. Often gender and sexuality are conflated. A "masculine" looking/acting woman is presumed to be lesbian and a "feminine" looking/acting man is presumed to be gay. As Powell notes, gender, sex, and sexuality are not the same. Old Time Dance with its gendered dance parts can be used to push the boundaries of gender and expand women and men's experiences of gender. Gender is represented in other physical activities as well. Bueno discusses the unique way in which many Japanese women walk uchimata, pointed in, and conjectures about the slow but steady changes in Japanese women's lives. Sex talk among women is fairly routine. The terms used to describe women's bodies and experiences of heterosexual intercourse contribute to a dichotomy in which women's sexuality is described as "interior" and men's sexuality is described as "exterior." Potts explores the implications of these differences and provides a vision for reconceptualizing these bodily experiences.

Much of the debate regarding pornography assumes that it has the same meaning for everyone. Nagel approaches this hotly contested topic from a phenomenological tradition. What is its meaning? Nagel challenges the common assumption that the meaning of pornography is the same for all viewers. Like the rise in popularity of reality TV shows, Barcan describes an increased interest in making and watching home-made porn. What attracts "real people" to star in their own sex videos and what explains the consumer interest in this product? Through a series of interviews with readers, Smith explores the meaning of For Women, a British pornographic magazine marketed exclusively to women. Part of the magazine's appeal is its coverage of ordinary women's issues enabling the female reader to "be where the girlies are."

Literature includes reference to routine sexual encounters and protagonists' attempts to find a sexual partner. For instance, Style's critique of Let Me Count the Times reminds us that sex can be counted (and is counted by some partners), but desire cannot be satiated by frequent sex. If you are interested in rejuvenating your mundane sexual relationship, read this article. Some protagonists get plenty of sex while others find that they are excluded from the sexual marketplace because they have little to offer. McNamara critiques the work of Michel Houllebecq and male ressentiment that develops from exclusion. McNamara offers an alternative vision of sexual relations.

The only personal essay in this collection is by Hammond Guthrie. His vignette depicts an ordinary Sunday stroll in the park until a young woman comes along. After that, there is nothing mundane about this story.

Returning to sex, gender, and sexuality, Altman argues that social, political, and economic forces shape these everyday experiences. His global perspective and persuasive writing link such diverse issues as adolescent sex in Uganda and Thailand, Japanese pornography, Irish women seeking abortions abroad, the Fiji NGO Coalition on the Right to Sexual Orientation, and the "gay marriage" issue in the United States. Although we have included only a portion of Altman's book, Global Sex, I highly recommend obtaining a copy and reading it from cover to cover.

A review of Young's Ordinary Pleasures, written by Larry Rosenberg is also available.

Acknowledgments: I would like to thank the following people who generously gave of their time to develop this issue. They are Lynn Comella, Solomon Davidoff, Ted Lowe, Jill McCorkel, Myron Orleans, Rebecca Plante, Lisa Reshaur, Pedro Rodriguez, Scott Schaffer, Nena Stracuzzi, Joe Thomas, Kelly Train, Nadine Wasserman, Sandra Willis, and Yung-Hsing Wu. Barbara Dills typed Altman's chapter for our use and deserves a medal for working with that pesky program MS Word.

Kurlantzick, Joshua. "Love Singaporean Style." The Atlantic Online (2001) retrieved July 20, 2001, available from http://www.theatlantic.com/issues/2001/07/kurlantzick.htm

Troiden, Richard, R. Gay and Lesbian Identity: A Sociological Analysis. Dix Hill, NY: General Hall, 1988.

Udry, J. Richard. "The Politics of Sex Research." The Journal of Sex Research 30 (1993): 103-110.

Waite, Linda and Kara Joyner. "Emotional Satisfaction and Physical Pleasure in Sexual Unions: Time Horizon, Sexual Behavior, and Sexual Exclusivity." Journal of Marriage and Family 63 (2001): 247-264.