Book Review: Written in the Flesh: A History of Desire by Edward Shorter

Although the title of Edward Shorter's book,  Written in the Flesh, suggests a discussion of erotic desire, in fact he offers a book about erotic desire of a particular sort – the desire to eroticize every last inch of our bodies. His project is to trace what he believes is the inexorable trajectory of human sexuality to embrace "total body sex," to engage all our senses in a fuller exploration of opportunities for pleasure. The thrust of his argument is that historically many forces beyond our control have worked against the experience of pleasure in sex. Only recently have we found ways to alleviate their impact, and so only recently have we begun to break out of the constraints that limit the kinds of activities we pursue for our sexual gratification.

Part-way through the book, I had to engage in a little reading interruptus. A new term has begun as I plod towards a degree in theological studies, and I had to buy some books on my reading list. As I scanned the bookshelves, my eyes strayed to the Roman Catholic section. What, I wondered, are the Catholics thinking about all this sex business? Surely the church (and most especially the Roman church) must figure historically as a constraint in the full expression of sexual pleasure.

Then my eyes settled on a publication from the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, "On the Pastoral Care of Homosexual Persons." Might as well get my information straight from the horse's mouth, as they say, so I bought the tract. I am pleased to report that the Congregation has downgraded homosexuality from sin to "disorder" and recommends that a faithful person with homosexual impulses practise abstinence. Not exactly a ringing endorsement of pleasure–seeking.

Returning to the book under review, I discovered a shorter treatment of church than one might expect. In the list of constraints inhibiting enjoyment of sex, church falls well below scabies. In fact, although Shorter does not make this explicit, there is nevertheless embedded in his narrative an important lesson for church: sex is sex and church has never had much impact on this particular element of human behaviour. If church has had any impact at all, it is to make people feel guilty for doing what they do in any event.

What, then, are the most important constraints that have kept us from fully enjoying our bodies? Most of the factors that Shorter considers fall under the category of economics. Throughout history, the very rich have never had much compunction about enjoying themselves. In this respect, the tabloid exploits of Paris Hilton are so unremarkable that they leave one yawning. What is remarkable, is the presence of a huge middle class which has sufficient resources to emulate this behaviour.

Article Author: David Barker

Theoblogger - a forty-something ex-lawyer theologian from Toronto dedicated to finding the nuggets beneath the mountains of crap that some try to pass off as belief.

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