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Pornography, abortion, rape, sexual discrimination: one merely has to open the newspaper or turn on the television to be confronted with sexual issues. In Sexual Investigations, Alan Soble contributes to the discussion by examining the moral, political, and analytical dimensions of sexuality that form the foundation for these discussions. In Sexual Investigations, Soble takes a rigorous yet user-friendly look at a number of topics in the area of human sexuality: the nature of sexual activity, the ethics of sexual conduct, pornography, masturbation, sexual health, perversion, date rape, prostitution, contraception, reproduction, and both the beauty and the ugliness of the sexual body. What, Soble asks, defines healthy sexuality? How firm is the distinction between rape and consensual sex? How and when are sexually explicit films and photographs degrading to women? This sweeping examination of the philosophical, ethical, and political issues surrounding human sexuality is as learned and thoughtful as it is entertaining.
This fascinating book illustrates how a philosophical approach to sexuality can illuminate various sexual phenomena: pornography, prostitution, the difference between women and men in sexual behaviors and attitudes, sadomasochism, homosexuality, masturbation, sexual perversion, and adultry. The third edition of this popular anthology of essays has been revised to expand the sections on homosexuality and sexual morality and to include essays on date rape and sexual harassment.
Now in its third edition, this fascinating book illustrates how a philosophical approach to sexuality can shed light on various sexual phenomena, such as pornography, prostitution, sadomasochism, homosexuality, masturbation, sexual perversion, and adultery. A definitive work on a provocative topic.
In the fourth edition of The Philosophy of Sex, distinguished philosophers and social critics confront a variety of issues, including prostitution, adultery, masturbation, homosexuality, and the different attitudes men and women have about sex. The fourth edition includes an entirely new section on Kant and sex, as well as new essays by Michael E. Levin, Cheshire Calhoun, Irving Singer, Pat Califia, and Alan Soble. Visit our website for sample chapters!
The author of the classic philosophical treatment of love reflects on the trajectory, over decades, of his thoughts on love and other topics. In 1984, Irving Singer published the first volume of what would become a classic and much acclaimed trilogy on love. Trained as an analytical philosopher, Singer first approached his subject with the tools of current philosophical methodology. Dissatisfied by the initial results (finding the chapters he had written “just dreary and unproductive of anything”), he turned to the history of ideas in philosophy and the arts for inspiration. He discovered an immensity of speculation and artistic practice that reached wholly beyond the parameters he had b...
A survey of the analytic and normative approaches taken to the subject by conservatives, religion, liberals, feminists, and others. Topics addressed include the nature of sexual pleasure, sexual desire, and sexual activity; the relationship between judgments about the psychological, biological, and social nature of human beings and judgments that certain sexual behaviors or desires are sexually perverted; the possibility of constructing principles of sexual ethics; the moral and social issues of rape, pornography, prostitution, adultery, promiscuity, masturbation, abortions, and contraception; and how issues within the philosophy of sex and love look different once gender is taken into account. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR
In this unabashed defense of pornography from a utilitarian-hedonist perspective, philosopher Alan Soble strongly rebuts both feminist and conservative critics. Soble demonstrates that neither conservative nor feminist critics of pornography show much acquaintance with the genre they criticize. This suggests that purely political motives underlie their critiques instead of reasoned, objective arguments based on thorough empirical research.Soble also faults critics of pornography for their failure of empathy: they refuse to see pornographic images from the various perspectives of their viewers. In approaching these images literally, detractors promulgate the worst possible interpretation of pornography. Further, they do not do justice to the social and psychological research about pornography and its purported harms. Conservatives and feminists manufacture their case against pornography and its consumers based on oversimplified interpretations of the images and a poor understanding of scientific studies.This sardonic and well-reasoned critique of feminist and conservative moral outrage over pornography is sure to be controversial.
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From the author of the #1 New York Times bestseller On Bullshit, a profound meditation on how and why we love In The Reasons of Love, leading moral philosopher and bestselling author Harry Frankfurt argues that the key to a fulfilled life is to pursue wholeheartedly what one cares about, that love is the most authoritative form of caring, and that the purest form of love is, in a complicated way, self-love. Through caring, we infuse the world with meaning. Caring provides us with stable ambitions and concerns, and it shapes the framework of aims and interests within which we lead our lives. Love is a nonvoluntary, disinterested concern for the flourishing of what we love—and self-love, as distinct from self-indulgence, is at heart of this concern. The most elementary form of self-love is no more than the desire to love, and self-love is simply a commitment to finding meaning in our lives.
On hard core pornographic cinema.