« Wherein I stand up and say... | Main | An afternoon at the Vrije Universiteit Gender Clinic »
The professional is personal
July 05, 2005
When I first started working on sexuality as an undergrad and then professionally at the Museum of Sex, I resisted the implication that an academic interest in sex was anything other than that. I maintained that just because I’m interested in the history of sexuality doesn’t mean that I’m a big perv and that I want to talk about my own personal sexuality all the time.
But then I went the way of perviness (and how!).
I was guarding myself against two sets of kind of gross assumptions - studying sex says dirty things about the researcher and/because sexuality is not a legit thing to study and write about in the academic context. I maintain that both of these are bullshit assumptions, but at the same time I think it’s kind of crazy for someone to float through academic studies of sexuality without seriously pondering the being and meanings of their own sexuality(ies). I think that a person doing work on sexuality who has not interrogated their own feelings and morals about their own and other people’s sexualities is like a ticking time bomb of unprofessional remarks. Sexuality is a thing that illicits deep responses in people and its difficult to remain academically stoic, removed and aloof.
But that’s not something that can or really should be enforced - people certainly shouldn’t be forced to talk about and confront their sexuality, especially in a professional, academic context. A situation like that could very well spell out sexual harrassment. However, I do think that places for such discussions should be made available - for instance the sexual attitude readjustment (SAR) sessions offered at Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality conferences. In SARs, viewers are presented with a variety of images - usually porn - that are most likely outside of their sexual purview. Basically, SARs are meant to rattle cages a little and encourage the viewers to consider their reactions to such images and to people who find the depicted acts pleasurable.
This all leaves me thinking about how my personal experiences relate to my approach to my academic work - the last few days of being and thinking in Amsterdam have made me realize what a profound effect the last 2-plus years of wild-n-pervy experiences have had on my worldview, which of course extends into my percetions of academia and my work within that beast. My personal experience is valuable, and in some ways its useful to extend the knowledge I’ve gained from my personal experiences of sex work and “alternative lifestyles” (quotes because I don’t really like that phrase but its useful anyway) into my pants-on work. More than it being useful - its inevitable, because as a livingbreathingfeeling person I bring those things to the table, wherever I’m sitting. I do know that I have to be careful however, careful to not relate everything to my microview of the world.
Really - the point is, I’m still trying to flush out the perverts in my little group here in Amsterdam. I can’t be the only one - surely someone else is interested in exploring the seamy side of the city from a naked perspective. I’ve begun to make the leap and plant the seeds of my perversion in other people’s minds (scandalous and daring!), because I don’t mind being the first to admit who and what I am, especially if it will draw people out of their shells and get them to go to clubs and shows with me.
Posted by Dacia at July 5, 2005 04:12 PM
Trackback Pings
TrackBack URL for this entry:
http://www.wakingvixen.com/cgi-bin/mt-tb.cgi/333
Listed below are links to weblogs that reference The professional is personal:
» glory hole girls from Jane
penis enlargement pills penis enlargement pills penis enlargement [Read More]
Tracked on April 17, 2006 05:48 AM
» blackjack from blackjack
blackjack slots [Read More]
Tracked on May 5, 2006 04:02 AM
Comments
Now you are moving past the professional basis and establishing a personal relationship with these folks. They all will not bring the same experiences and feelings to your proverbial table. Going out for a drink, coffee, dinner, are all invitations to extend the relationship. You might involve some of these folks in conversation where you can explore what they do, and see who experiences are similar.
Long way of saying nothing ventured, nothing gained but improve your odds.
Posted by: Monty Parker at July 5, 2005 02:49 PM
Hmmm, this maybe ranting for a bit, but I have been reading your blog since I stumbled across it about a month ago. In my free time I have been trying to read through the archives, you know to catch up on the who’s and how’s. I have come to see a similarity in what you study and the problems your having with conveying to others that what your doing has more meaning than the sterotypes attached to it. I have an intrest in studying material that has little or no value ot most people, but if you dig, the story is intresting to merit the study, to borrow a line, the juice is worth the squeze. The kind of study you do is completly interesting because it is an aspect of social and cultural history. I have a degree in history and have research and written about things like Star Wars and its impact on a generation, The Godfather, Tupac, music in general, the importance of poetry, ect, ect. By the way, I am not famous or extensivly published. SO where does this go? What your doing can’t be wrong because you believe it. Look for the others who share your belief of hobby. They are the people you want to hang out with.
PS visit the van gogh museum
Posted by: nh carey jr at July 5, 2005 03:41 PM
We’re told from early on that we shouldn’t be interested in sex. When I wrote “Beyond You & Me,” I thought it was “literary fiction” because it’s about young people in college who discuss great ideas while fucking. Gradually it dawned on me I was writing erotica and that I should just get over my inhibitions about writing sex.
Posted by: W. S. Cross at July 5, 2005 09:27 PM
It’s interesting - I feel like i’ve said the exact same thing only insert the word “death” everywhere you’ve written sex and “mortality” everywhere you’ve written sexuality. But I suppose sex, life and death are all connected pretty deeply.
Posted by: Mia at July 6, 2005 01:22 PM
I’m a total perv. If I lived nearby, I’d go to shows with you for sure!
Posted by: sk8rn at July 6, 2005 01:23 PM
