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Virgin: The Untouched History

by Hanne Blank

Virgin: The Untouched History Cover

Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments:

Why has an indefinable state of being commanded the attention and fascination of the human race since the dawn of time? In Virgin, Hanne Blank brings us a revolutionary, rich and entertaining survey of an astonishing untouched history.

 

From the simple task of determining what constitutes its loss to why it matters to us in the first place, Blank gets to the heart of why we even care about it in the first place. She tackles the reality of what we do and don’t know about virginity and provides a sweeping tour of virgins in history—from virgin martyrs to Queen Elizabeth to billboards in downtown Baltimore telling young women it’s not a “dirty word.” Virgin proves, as well, how utterly contemporary the topic is—the butt of innumerable jokes, center of spiritual mysteries, locus of teenage angst, popular genre for pornography and nucleus around which the world’s most powerful government has created an unprecedented abstinence policy. In this fascinating work, Hanne Blank shows for the first time why this is, and why everything we think we know about virginity is wrong.

Review:

"By any material reckoning, virginity does not exist,' writes Blank in this informative, funny and provocative analysis of one of the most elusive — and prized — qualities of human sexuality. Blank, an independent scholar, has pieced together a history of how humans have constructed the idea of virginity (almost always female and heterosexual) and engineered its uses to suit cultural and political forces. Blank has no shortage of fascinating facts: since Western virginity was symbolized by the color white, missionaries viewed nonwhite peoples as sexually immoral; late medieval and Renaissance moralists thought they could detect whether a woman was a virgin by examining her urine ('a virgin's was clear, sparkling, and thin'). Blank also has a pleasing, highly readable style that allows her to convey large amounts of information with wit and agility. But she becomes most animated, and political, when she probes contemporary ideas about virginity. Taking on a range of questions — why is virginity considered sexy? how does the idea of virginity fuel violence against women? — she makes the case that contemporary culture is as obsessed with, and benighted about, virginity, as those of the past. Thoroughly researched, carefully argued and written with a sly sense of humor, this is a bright addition to the popular literature of women's and cultural studies." Publishers Weekly (Starred Review) (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.)

Review:

"Embodied in the figure of the goddess Athena or Mother Mary, the virgin state has inspired universal cults, national myths, personal passions and unsurpassed works of art; it has excited religious mystics to praise it as the highest ideal and fastest way to heaven; it has also moved many a titillating plot about the seduction of the innocent — from the notorious 'Liaisons Dangereuses' to teen soaps... Washington Post Book Review (read the entire Washington Post review)

Synopsis:

Blank presents a revolutionary and entertaining survey of the history of virginity. From the simple task of determining what constitutes its loss to why it matters in the first place, Blank tackles the reality--and the perceived reality--surrounding this indefinable state of being.

About the Author

Hanne Blank is a writer, historian, and public speaker whose work has been featured everywhere from OUT to Penthouse. An independent scholar, she has served in faculty positions at several colleges and universities, most recently as the 2004-2005 Scholar of the Institute For Teaching and Research on Women at Towson University, Maryland.

Product Details

ISBN:
9781596910102
Subtitle:
The Untouched History
Author:
Blank, Hanne
Publisher:
Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Subject:
General
Subject:
History
Subject:
Human Sexuality
Subject:
Social history
Subject:
Virginity
Subject:
World - General
Subject:
Popular Culture - General
Subject:
General History
Subject:
Virginity - Social aspects
Subject:
Virginity - History
Edition Description:
Us
Publication Date:
March 2007
Binding:
Hardcover
Language:
English
Pages:
290
Dimensions:
9.26x6.52x1.11 in. 1.26 lbs.

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