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Academic tome on sex predicted to be “bestseller”

December 10, 2004

scott.JPGhawkes.jpgHomophobic slurs and jibes at sexually-active teenage girls are common in playgrounds, according to revelations in a ground-breaking book on sexuality, collated by a group of academics from the University of New England.
About one if five gay men and women reported homophobic harassment during their school years, while teenage girls have told how playground slurs such as “slut” have sullied their reputations.
The book, Perspectives in Human Sexuality, is edited by UNE academics Drs Gail Hawkes and John Scott and will be launched on Monday, December 13 at UNE.
Dr Scott said it was the first Australasian book to study sexuality from a socio-cultural, rather than a biological, perspective.
“It took us 18 months to compile and edit and the 12 contributors write from an Australasian perspective, which is quite distinct from Europe, or the US,” said Dr Scott, who added publishers Oxford University Press were predicting the book to be an academic best-seller.

Dr Hawkes, who writes extensively on unauthorised sex and “sinful” sex, said the past 30 years had seen Australian authorities exercise greater restrictions on the population’s sexuality and expressed concern the nation was becoming “nannified”.
“Few people realise there are now restrictions on advertisers and publishers when it comes to public nudity,” Dr Hawkes said.
“There are limits on how much breast can be displayed on a poster, on the size of the breast and there is far less topless bathing these days.”
Of greatest concern, however, were the sexual awakenings of the younger generation, especially when it comes to gay people and heterosexual, teenage girls.
In his chapter, Crimes Against Manhood, UNE Associate Professor David Plummer argues boys who fail to live up to what their friends perceive as “masculine” are disgraced and intimidated with labels such as “poofter” and “faggot”. This inverse fear of being labeled gay often drives boys to extreme masculinity and prejudice.
“Some areas of the school are particularly prone to homophobic dynamics and boys who have been targeted quickly learn to divide the school precinct into safety and danger zones,” Associate Professor Plummer said.
In her chapter, Monash University academic Jo Lindsay looks at young people’s sexual practices and touches on the problem of “reputations”.
“Girls must not appear as though they are too eager, too prepared, or too knowledgeable about sex,” Ms Lindsay said.
“Acquiring a reputation as ‘slut’ can happen easily, from having a certain ‘look’ …or through misplaced trust with a boyfriend.”
On the whole, however, the book places sexuality in a positive light and addresses a wide range of sexual mores, from the sexual lives of older people, to “risky” sex and homosexuality.
For more information phone Lydia Roberts on 6773 2779 or Dr Gail Hawkes on 6773 2277 or Dr John Scott on 6773 2116.

Posted by Lydia Roberts at December 10, 2004 01:41 PM