| In this course we move beyond common sense and ‘natural’ explanations of sexuality to show how it is a social construct of competing scientific, religious and legal discourses. We focus specifically on the state’s regulatory role in the field of sexuality and how it has contributed to the creation of sexual insiders and outsiders through the extension of sexual citizenship (e.g. marriage, civil partnerships, hate crime laws etc). We examine resistances to this regulatory code governing sexuality and how it has contributed to the construction of sexual identities and social movements. The course also focuses on contemporary debates around the political economy of sexuality exploring controversies around the criminalisation/decriminalisation of sex work and the sexualisation of children. |