What is Sexual Capital?
-
- 10,99 €
-
- 10,99 €
Description de l’éditeur
This book does to sex what other sociologists did to culture: it shows that sex, no longer defined by religion, now plays a role in the economy and can yield tangible benefits in the realms of money, status, and occupation. How do people accumulate sexual capital, and what are the returns for investing money, time, knowledge, and energy in establishing and enhancing our sexual selves?
Dana Kaplan and Eva Illouz disentangle the current cultural politics of heterosexual life, arguing that sex – that messy amalgam of sexual affects and experiences – has increasingly assumed an economic character. Some may opt for plastic surgery to beautify their face or body, while others may consume popular sex advice or attend seduction classes. Beyond particular practices such as these, the authors trace an emerging form of “neoliberal” sexual capital, which is the ability to glean self-appreciation from sexual encounters and to use this self-value to foster employability, as exemplified by Silicon Valley sex parties.
This highly original book will appeal to students and scholars in sociology, anthropology, gender studies, and cultural studies and to anyone interested in the nature of sex and how it is changing today.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Sociologists Kaplan and Illouz (The End of Love) deliver a provocative reappraisal of the role of sex in neoliberal societies. The authors argue that sexual capital can generate "advantages that are obtained in the sexual arena but may go well beyond it," and they outline four categories of sexual capital, including "by default" in the form of chastity and the "surplus value of the body" utilized by sex workers and ostensibly nonsexual service sector jobs. "Embodied sexual capital" refers to the "sex sells" principle in advertising and entertainment, and the authors' formulation of "neoliberal sexual capital" describes the employability benefits enjoyed by people whose sexuality boosts their self-confidence and esteem. The authors' arguments occasionally stumble under internal contradictions, such as when they assert that the motivation to accrue sexual capital is "not an interested behavior but habituation instilled by class dispositions," conflicting with their earlier observation that sex workers and waiters game the exploitative systems to their benefit. That said, there's plenty of food for thought here, and Kaplan and Illouz offer an important contribution to understanding the socioeconomic function of sex.
