Sexuality is something that has been around for a while. In fact, it has always been a hot button topic. One of which has no true answer for many. However, recently in these last decades we have started to become more accepting and open on the topic of sexuality. However, there are still a lot of different meaning to the word sexuality. So, what is sexuality? Well, sexuality can be defined in many ways. However, there are three ways that I will be discussing. The main three ways that it can be used are your capacity for sexual feelings, Sexual Orientation, and the amount of Sexual activity that you engage in. These are very important when talking about sexuality in adolescents. However, there is one problem that need to be addressed when discussing …show more content…
A woman named Lisa Firestone addressed this in her article titled “Are We Still Condemning Women for Their Sexuality?” In this she states that "Many of our attitudes toward sex are shaped by how we were raised and how sexuality was portrayed to us in our families and in our communities." And I agree with her. Sexuality is something that plays an important role in our lives. Especially in the lives of adolescents. Teenagers who are still developing their own identity and ideals. It can affect the way that the teen lives, as well as how they are treated in some cases. Especially by peers and family. But some of the major things that should be addressed when talking about sexuality are the capacity for sexual feelings, a person's sexual orientation or preference, or sexual activity. These things affect young people in their everyday lives. It is something that can be shaped by things like family, media, and the society they live …show more content…
This is what most people are talking about when using the word Sexuality. Sexual orientation is defined as a person's sexual identity in relation to the gender to which they are attracted. There are many different Sexual Orientations that a person can be grouped in. Some examples include being heterosexual, homosexual, or bisexual. There are many other different types of sexuality based on the person and what they are attracted to. A person usually finds out their Sexual Orientation when they are young. It is found during adolescence or young adulthood. Due to this most people understand their sexuality from a young age before they have had any sexual encounter. The reason I believe that most people find their sexuality around the time of adolescence or young adulthood is that they are discovering a part of their identity. They are discovering what they are attracted to and what they want. Sexual Orientation can be very important in one’s identity. Especially a teen. Adolescents are growing different part of who they are. They are discovering what make them their own individual. Sexual orientation is just one of those things. Yet it can affect how they are treated by peers, which is very important to a youth. Teens want to be accepted so they will most likely hide it if they feel as if they will be rejected due to it. While if the peer group is more accepting they will be able to more freely explore this part of
THE ISSUE OF CONSENT In acknowledgement of the particular difficulties involved in the prosecution of rape cases and the consequent poor conviction rates, a central alteration in the law on sexual offences concerned the meaning of consent and the manner in which it should be established in a court of law. Previously, the Se... ... middle of paper ... ... y asking the reasonable person what may by its nature be sexual begs the question. Into what nature of the term sexuality are we asking people to enquire?
The terms gender and sexuality are usually mistaken for one or the other. Gender refers to the social term that is given to a specific sex. Gender is typically considered female or male. The term sexuality refers to people’s sexual interest or desires to other people. Different types of sexuality are heterosexual, homosexual, bisexual, pansexual, and other types. Gender and sexuality are used for people to identify their sexuality, communication with others, and learn how to find a community of people that are alike.
Key Ideas. EBSCOhost, ezproxy.brenau.edu:2040/login?url=https://search-ebscohost-com.ezproxy.brenau.edu:2040/login.aspx?direct=true&db=nlebk&AN=110299. In this chapter of Sexuality written by Jeffrey Weeks, the author goes through and talks about sexuality and all aspects of it. From where it originated to how it’s a social construct or even what defines whether an action is sexual or not, most of that stuff is in there.
Each of these words play into a bigger image in the social imagination. For example thinking about the word heterosexual or even homosexual I think of sexuality in relation to sex; e.g. heterosexuality is being attracted to the opposite sex. It seems to be that this excludes gender presentation however that sexuality is solely surrounded by the sex of the individual which plays into the social imagination that sex is determined by genitals which perpetuates the binary by excluding intersex folks. This ignorance is passed on into the perpetuation of oppression against those who have a different gender identity than their orginal sex. Therefore the fact that sexuality has the tendency to be thought about in these terms causes a disconnect from gender identity language because of how these terms are relational.
Unlike sex, the history of sexuality is dependant upon society and limited by its language in order to be defined and understood.
It is a common misconception that gender, sex, and sexuality are linked. In reality, sex refers to biology, whether a person was born with male or female chromosomes and genitalia,
What is the first word that comes to your mind when I say the word “sex?” Sex for me is when two people have intercourse. You don’t necessarily have to be in love to have sex. Many people enjoy having sex with other people, because it feels good, or they just want to procreate. According to Auleb, in the class reader “Human Sexuality”, he states “Sex has more than one definition and can be used in many contexts.” Sex can mean multiple connotations to different people. People can think your asking them their gender when you ask them what the word sex means to them, or they can be talking about their vagina or penis. On the other hand, the word sexuality for me means that you have the power to feel sexual, and that is your sexuality. Many people don’t have a sexual side to them, because they don’t really like talking about the word sex, or the word sexuality. According to Auleb, Sexuality means “the quality of possessing a sexual character or potency, although some individuals’ sexuality may encompass little to no sexual behaviors”. Sexual identity is a very important word to understand. For me sexual identity means what gender you see yourself as, or who you are sexually attracted too. I believe sexual identity can be a
Despite the transition, little consideration has been given to understanding the growing population of gay adolescents. 25% of American families are likely to have a gay child (Hidalgo 24); In the United States, three million adolescents are estimated to be homosexual. Yet, American society still ignores gay adolescents. Majority of children are raised in heterosexual families, taught in heterosexual establishments, and put in heterosexual peer groups. Gay adolescents often feel forced by parents to pass as “heterosexually normal” (Herdt 2). As a result, homosexual teens hide their sexual orientation and feelings, especially from their parents. Limited research conducted on gay young adults on disclosure to parents generally suggests that disclosure is a time of familial crisis and emotional distress. Very few researchers argue that disclosure to parents results in happiness, bringing parents and children closer (Ben-Ari 90).
The terms sex, gender and sexuality relate with one another, however, sociologists had to distinguish these terms because it has it’s own individual meaning. Sex is the biological identity of a person when they are first born, like being a male or female. Gender is the socially learned behaviors and expectations associated with men and women like being masculine or feminine. Gender can differentiate like being a man, woman, transgender, intersex, etcetera. Sexuality refers to desire, sexual preference, and sexual identity and behavior (1). Sexuality can differentiate as well like being homosexual, heterosexual, bisexual, etcetera. Like all social identities, gender is socially constructed. In the Social Construction of Gender, this theory shows
Sexuality in society can be learned by two ways: by looking at it from an individual perspective or looking at society as a whole.
To begin with, sexual orientation can be determined by more than one factor and is not the same for everybody. According to the American Psychological Association:
In conclusion, adolescent teenagers can experiment with drinking, drugs, sexual relationships or other dangerous behaviors. Some psychological disorders can appear during adolescence like depression and anxiety unless parents or family support them. Society can help adolescents during this turbulent time of growth by creating some programs in the schools for all teenagers who do not have support. Even those who have support like family or friends need to know they have someone else they can go talk to and be able express themselves. Adolescent years are very difficult and teenagers need lots of support.
In my eyes I believe that how you were raised has a big role in the development of your sexuality. When
In today’s society things are being expressed and experienced at younger ages, than ever before in our time. Children and teenagers are discovering their sexuality at very early ages. Sexuality is the discovering of who you are and what makes you different from everybody else.
The definition of sexuality encompasses many things. This can mean the feelings we have about ourselves as sexual beings, the ways in which we choose to express these feelings with ourselves and others, and the physical capability each of us has to give and experience sexual pleasure. Sex is the total sum of physical characteristics that distinguish males and females from each other. The most distinctive difference in characteristics is that men and women have different reproductive organs. This is pretty obvious, and so are other traits like facial hair, deep voices, and muscular builds.