Sexual variations, fetishes, and kinks

What is the norm when it comes to sex?

Sexual variation

Is the idea of kinks new?

No it has been around for a long time

What is normal defined by?

Social/political forces that is objectively measured by psychological and medical criteria.

What are the two ways that people usually define normal/abnormal sex?

1. If culture accepts it
2. If it is legal

Expand on the culturally accepted point for how we define normal

Each subgroup over time has accepted different types of sex as normal.

Expand on the legality point about how we define normal

Many types of sex have been illegal at some point.

What is the DSM?

It is the diagnostic and statistical Manuel of mental disorders that classifies what is normal versus abnormal

Has the DSM been consistent with what is normal?

No they have not been as it fluctuates with cultural norms as science and medicine are cultural.

How do numbers apply to if something is normal or not?

If a lot of people do it then its normal. If only a few people do it then it is abnormal.

Who came up with the charmed circle?

Gayle Rubin

What used to happen or still happens to people who have abnormal sexuality?

Pressure and torture methods are imposed on people to make their sexuality appear normal.

Who was Cesare Lombroso?

He was a criminologist that associated sexual deviance and criminality and believed that both were biologically deterministic.

What else did Lombroso associate?

Female deviance with female sexuality

What were the three catergories that Lombroso divided women into?

1. Prostitutes
2. Criminals
3. Normal women

What did Lombroso propose for the prostitute category of women.

1. They were a separate species from the other two
2. Had numerous abnormalities in the skull and body
3. Shorter, fatter, and more masculine

What are three reasons why people suppress kink?

1. Destabilization of power structures
2. It will lead to social decay and disruption as it destroys the family structure as the foundation of society
3. Disruption in gender relations

Who wrote deviant desires?

Katherine Gates

What are three things that kinks have in common?

1. Power play
2. Taboo
3. Sensations/textures/materials

What is power play?

It is consensually giving up power by playing types of things that lack power in society.

Are fetishes and kinks what we want in reality?

No they are primarily fantasy based.

Why are fantasies pleasurable?

Because they will never actually happen in real life

Who sets the limits to what we are aroused by?

Ourselves

What does camming lead to?

Exposure to a lot of specialized kink

What are three possible reasons for why we care where kink comes from?

1. Curiosity
2. Justification
3. Eradication

Instead of thinking about kinks/fetishes as a deviation, what can we think of them as?

A creative exploration or building upon basic sex

What is vanilla shaming?

Where people make fun of others who are not interested in kinks