Who Says Who Has Better Sex?
Sure, the Internet can and cannot be great for learning about sex, but is it better or worse than past methods? Like, you know, when people consulted Greek gods and were subjected to curses and punishments? Really, though, we can still learn a lot from the plight of the prophet Tiresias. After some kind of scuffle with magical snakes, he became a woman for seven years. He was then summoned by Zeus and Hera to settle the debate over who has better sex: men or women. His answer did not please the gods. Hera subsequently blinded him. Zeus felt bad about this and gave him the powers of prophecy and a long life. Now, all of that was about who has better sex. Tiresias' answer leads to complicated thoughts and discussions. In a far less violent manner, Jennifer Finney Boylan brilliantly offers thoughts on how being transgender and other factors can inform this discussion.
Getting Better at Sex Ed
I mentioned the term "sex revolution" before because I honestly believe that's where we are in our history. Sex is pushing against conservatism. Sex is making inroads to not just those in the know, but those who previously aligned with the status quo. To make this effort work, sex needs advocates and activists. Sex needs people who can represent it. Those folks, the prophets of our age, are the sex educators. They make a massive difference in getting the good and juicy word out there. Unfortunately, though, they are not all as conscientious as they should be. Through examining countless sex ed texts, blogs, and websites, Meg-John Barker, Rosalind Gill, and Laura Harvey identified some disturbing trends in how sex education is depicted and discussed for their book Mediated Intimacy: Sex Advice in Media Culture. This needs to stop. Sex ed needs to be inclusive and considerate of our current and hoped-for future state. It cannot rely on lazy tropes and by-the-numbers writing. We can do better.
