Gender & Sexuality: Sociological Approaches

Summary (from the publisher): This new introduction to the sociology of gender and sexuality offers a fresh take on the importance of these concepts in modern society. It provides an insight into our rapidly changing attitudes towards sex and our understanding of masculine and feminine identities, relating a study of gender and sexuality to wider social concerns throughout the world and presenting a comprehensive yet readable summary of recent research and theory.

 

In an accessible and engaging style, the book demonstrates how thinking about gender and sexuality can illuminate and enliven other contemporary sociological debates about social structure, social change, and culture and identity politics. Emphasis is placed on the diversity of gendered and sexual lives in different parts of the world. The book offers detailed coverage of wide-ranging topics, from international sex tourism to celebrity culture, from gender in the workplace to new sexual lifestyles, drawing examples from everyday life.

 

By demonstrating the links between gender and sexuality this book makes a clear case for thinking sociologically about these important and controversial aspects of human identity and behavior. The book will be of great value to students in any discipline looking to understand the roles gender and sexuality play in our lives.

 

Review: I read this book for a class on special topics in higher education that dealt specifically with sexuality and gender for my master's degree program. I think my professor chose this text specifically because it offers an introductory overview of the history of sexuality and gender. This includes the history of feminism in the western world, and the greater dynamics of gender roles internationally. Specifically, this book gives background on the development of sociological thought on gender and sexuality, thoughts on inequalities and social structure, as well as a discussion of culture, ideology, discourse, self, identity, and agency in terms of gender and sexuality.

 

Aside from some basic knowledge of the women's rights movement from the political perspective, I had never read or studied much about sociological theories about gender and sexuality before this course. I believe this text did a decent job of providing a well-rounded overview of the history of the relevant issues, and bringing readers up to speed on the changing schools of thoughts in America and elsewhere.

 

Had I not been assigned this book for class, I think it is safe to say I likely would not have ever picked this up to read on my own. This book is obviously geared towards class use, including learning outcomes summarized at the end of each section, as well as notes and research for further study. However, as far as required readings go, this book did a good job at covering the topics in as engaging and interesting a method as possible.

 

Stars: 3