Lecture Notes

What we see as natural in our culture may be viewed as unnatural in other cultures. Culture takes our sexual interests and molds and shapes them. Sometimes these cultural views celebrate sexuality, and other times they condemn it. Among the variety of factors that shape how we feel and behave sexually, culture is possibly the most powerful. All cultures assume that adults have the potential for becoming sexually aroused and for engaging in sexual intercourse for the purpose of reproduction. But cultures differ considerably in terms of how strong they believe sexual interests are. These beliefs, in turn, affect the level of desire expressed in each culture. Among the Mangaia of Polynesia, both sexes, beginning in early adolescence, experience high levels of sexual desire. Around the age of 13 or 14, boys are given instruction on how to please a girl. Girls the same age are instructed by older women on how to be orgasmic. Young men and women are expected to have many sexual experiences prior to marriage. The New Guinea Dani show very little interest in sexuality. To them, sex is a relatively unimportant aspect of life, as their only sexual intercourse is performed quickly, ending with male ejaculation. Female orgasm appears to be unknown to them. The Dani are an extreme example of a case in which culture, rather than biology, shapes sexual attractions.