Doing it: The Social Construction of S-E-X

Since the dawn of man, sex has played a crucial role in society. Before they learned to read or write humans were engaging in sex and without it none of us would be here. In today’s society, sex has grown to become much more complicated. If I were to ask a group of people on the street what they believed sex was? I bet they would have a hard time answering. The question puzzling society today is how do we define sex? Can we define sex? These are questions raised in Tracy Steele’s article “Doing it: The Social Construction of S-E-X”. This article is about the current questions and issues that have been raised about sex within today’s society. In this paper I will summarize the key points of the article, while sharing my own thoughts and opinions of Steele’s findings.

One of the key questions raised in the article is where do our sexual urges come from, have they always been there deep in our minds, or did we gradually learn them. Steele states that it is her belief that sex in something that is learned overtime from our environment and society (Steele 13), but she also states that there are many theorists who believe that sex is instinctive, and that we have always known how to perform it. After considering both sides of the argument, I have to agree with Steele’s belief that sex is learned. I believe this because I find it hard to believe that humans are born with the knowledge of sexual intercourse. This is due to the fact that I can guarantee you most children barely have a clue what sex is, let alone how to engage in it , it’s not until their parents or teachers explain to them what sex is, that they are able to truly understand and engage in it. The only argument that can be raised against this idea is that there are m...

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...define sex; they can’t even agree on where our sexual desires come from.

In conclusion, what I learned from this article is that sex is much more complicated then I could have believed it to be. This article made me aware of many conflicts, issues, and disagreements that go along with what is or isn’t sex, and how there is no clear way to say, it’s really just a matter of opinion. For lesbians the simple use of a finger is enough, for gay men its anal sex. For some sex is innate and instinctive, while others believe it is learned. For some it’s based on love and pleasure, while for others it’s about domination. I highly doubt that there is anyone in this world that could come up with a universal meaning to sex which would please all parties. It is my conclusion that there is no right or wrong definition of sex; it is whatever

you want it to be.