CCHU9015
Sex and intimacy in modern times
Offer semester
Lecture time
Lecture venue
Credits awarded
1st semester
Wednesday
17:00-18:50
CPD-3.28
6
Great transformations have been taking place in the realm of intimacy, with the rise of non-monogamous non-marital forms of intimacy, increasing visibility of LGBTQ life, well-established commercial sex industries, popularized public reports of private stories, huge developments in the popularity of cosmetic surgery, and widening possibilities for intimacy in social media, to name but a few. New forms of identity, intimacy and sexuality have emerged in today’s globalized world, which blur the boundaries of what constitutes private matters and public issues and challenge the meanings of normal/abnormal citizen, natural/artificial body, real/virtual relationship, and authentic/counterfeit intimacy.
Using contemporary sociological theories of identity, gender, and sexuality, this course aims to track the major transformations in the realm of sexual intimacy and to examine newly emerged ethical issues, moral dilemmas, and social conflicts over sexual intimacy in four inter-related domains in modern times: (a) democracy, human sexual rights, and citizenship—how these issues are important when talking about intimate relationships; (b) mass media, social media and popular culture—how private matters become increasingly subject to public scrutiny; (c) economy and consumption—how intimacy is increasingly commodified and commercialized; and (d) science, medicine, and digital technology—how medical and computer science foster new pleasures, bodies and practices, and the problems that arise from this.
This is a certified Communication-intensive (CI) Course.
At the end of the course, you are expected to be able to think critically about intimacy, to understand the complex interplay between the self and society, and to have learnt how to respect individual differences and preferences.
Study Load
Activities
Number of hours
Lectures
22
Tutorials
10
Reading / Self-study
20
Assessment: Journal writing
30
Assessment: Group project / Presentation (incl preparation)
40
Assessment: Learning reflection
20
Total:
142
You will be able to…
Identify key concepts in understanding intimacy using contemporary sociological and political theories of identity, gender and sexuality.
Demonstrate critical understanding of the complexity of issues of intimacy in their everyday lives through examination of the interplay between the self and society, i.e. how social, economic, political and cultural forces shape our intimate choices and decisions; and between private and public, i.e. how our most private decisions are bound up with public institutions such as the state, the law, the media, and medicine.
Express an appreciation of the distinctiveness and inter-relatedness of their own and other intimate cultures and demonstrate a cultural sensitivity with people of diverse cultures.
Behave as responsible global citizens who respect individual differences and preferences and uphold the core values of a democratic society: human rights, justice, equality and freedom of speech.
Tasks
Weighting
Participation in Problem-based Learning tutorials
20%
Essay
25%
Group project and presentation
35%
In-class quiz
20%
Attwood, F. (2009). Introduction. In Mainstreaming sex: The sexualization of western culture. London: I.B. Tauris.
Bartky, S. L. (1999). Foucault, femininity, and the modernisation of patriarchal power.” In Feminist Philosophies, eds. Kourany, Janet A., James P. Sterba and Rosemarie Tong. New Jersey, NJ: Prentice Hall.
Chu, C. S. K. (2024). Commercial sex or romance? Men’s sexual scripts in compensated dating. Deviant Behavior, 45(3), 394-409.
Giddens, A. (1992). Romantic love and other attachments and Love, commitment and the pure relationship. In The Transformation of Intimacy: Sexuality, Love and Eroticism in Modern Societies. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press.
Green, A. I. (2010). Remembering Foucault: Queer theory and disciplinary power. Sexualities, 13(3), 316-337.
Jamieson, L. (2011). Intimacy as a concept: Explaining social change in the context of globalisation or another form of ethnocentricism? Sociological Research Online, 16(4).
Mitchell, H., Owen, S., & Gerber, L. (2017). Liquid love? Dating apps, sex, relationships and the digital transformation of intimacy. Journal of Sociology, 53(2), 271-284.
Plummer, K. (1995). Intimate citizenship: The politics of sexual story telling. In Telling Sexual Stories: Power, Change and Social Worlds. (pp. 144-166) London: Routledge.
Plummer, K. (2003). New theories of citizenship. In Intimate Citizenship: Private Decisions and Public Dialogues. Seattle, WA: University of Washington Press.
Rubin, G. (1984/1993). Thinking sex: Notes for a radical theory of the politics of sexuality. In H. Abelove, M. A. Barale & D. M. Halperin (Eds.), The lesbian and gay studies reader (pp. 3-44). London: Routledge.
Richardson, D. (1998). Sexuality and citizenship. Sociology 32(1): 83-100.
Todd, M. (2021). Histories of sexuality. In Sexualities & Society: An Introduction (pp. 9–29). SAGE.
Yao, P. (2022). Sex, body, and medicine. In Women, Gender, and Sexuality in China: A Brief History (pp. 60-69). Routledge.
Bonilla-Zorita, G., Griffiths, M. D., & Kuss, D. J. (2021). Online dating and problematic use: A systematic review. International Journal of Mental Health and Addiction, 19, 2245-2278.
Gunnarsson, L., & Strid, S. (2022). Chemistry or service? Sugar daddies’(re)quest for mutuality within the confines of commercial exchange. The Journal of Sex Research, 59(3), 309-320.
Kong, T. S. K., Kuan, H. W., Lau S. H., & Friedman, S. L. (2021). LGBT movements in Taiwan, Hong Kong, and China. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Politics.
McLelland, M. and V. Mackie (eds.). (2015). Love, sex and marriage. In Routledge Handbook of Sexuality Studies in East Asia, London, UK: Routledge.
Offer Semester | Lecture Day | Lecture Time | Venue | Credits awarded |
|---|---|---|---|---|
1st semester | Wednesday | 17:00-18:50 | CPD-3.28 | 6 |
