Later Life, Sex and Intimacy in the Majority World
Edited by Krystal Nandini Ghisyawan, Debra A. Harley, Shanon Shah and Paul Simpson
ISBN
978-1447368410Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Policy PressISBN
978-1447368434Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Policy PressISBN
978-1447368434Dimensions
234 x 156 mmImprint
Policy Press
Later Life, Sex and Intimacy in the Majority World
Literature on sex, intimacy and sexuality in later life has been heavily influenced by perspectives from more affluent regions, perpetuating the belief that the West is more sexually progressive and liberal than other cultures.
This book challenges this belief by exploring diverse cultures and perspectives from the majority world, which are often overlooked. It highlights the importance of learning from cultures in the global South and East, dismantling stereotypes that frame them as sexually conservative or inferior.
Variously drawing on structuralist, postcolonial and decolonial theory as well as social anthropology, the book critically examines binaries related to culture, age, sex and intimacy, highlighting the need to decentre Western perspectives as the benchmark while other cultures and practices are misunderstood.
“Sex and intimacy is not simply for the young! This volume gives a much-needed impetus to understanding the continuing centrality of such questions in later life. It takes an extraordinarily expansive view, traversing fields of inquiry and geographic locations. A very welcome addition to both sexuality and ageing studies.” Arlene Stein, Rutgers University
“This is an exceptional book that draws on numerous disciplinary areas to decentre Western approaches, foregrounding post-colonial and indigenous perspectives, and offering refreshing new insights to the fields of sexuality, gender and ageing.” Sarah-Jane Page, University of Nottingham
Krystal Nandini Ghisyawan is Director of Research at the Silver Lining Foundation in Trinidad and Tobago.
Debra A. Harley is Provost Distinguished Service Professor in the Department of Early Childhood, Special Education and Counsellor Education at the University of Kentucky.
Shanon Shah is Researcher at the Information Network Focus on Religious Movements (Inform), based at King's College London, and Tutor in Islam at the University of London's Divinity programme.
Paul Simpson is Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Manchester.
Foreword - Gayatri Reddy
1.Introduction to the Volume: Themes, Issues and Chapter Synopses - Paul Simpson, Krystal Nandini Ghisyawan, Debra A. Harley, Shanon Shah
Part 1: In/visibility and Ambivalence
2.Under the Orhni: Intimacy and Near-Invisibility among Older Indo-Trinidadian Queer Men - Krystal Nandini Ghisyawan and Marcus Kissoon
3.Older kinnars, ageism and Sexuality during the Covid-19 Outbreak - Anushkaa Arora
4.Doing Complex Intimacy in the Later Life of Chinese Gay Men in Hong Kong - Barry Lee and Travis Kong
Part 2: Women Questioning Age/ing Intergenerationally and Intragenerationally
5.Deep within the Eye of the Beheld: Exploring Hidden Accounts of Intimacy in the Lives of Older Indian Women in Urban Malaysia - Sally Anne Param
6.From Age of Despair to Window of Opportunity? Reframing Women’s Sexuality in Later Life in the Middle East and North Africa - Shereen El Feki and Dr Selma Hajri
7.Lost Voices of Partition: Carrying Gender, Nation and Femininity across the Life Course - Nafhesa Ali
Part 3: Agency through Fantasy, Erotic Tales and Pleasure
8.Sexual Fantasies and Older, Indigenous Purépecha Women: Socio-Cultural Constraints and Possibilities - Cuauhtémoc Sanchez Vega
9.Indigenous Elders as Sexual Agents Through Storytelling as a Queer and Decolonial Practice in ‘Canada’ - Madeline Burns
10.Sex, Intimacy and Older Life in Muslim Contexts - Shanon Shah
11.Reflections: Themes and Issues Emerging from the Volume - Debra A. Harley, Krystal Nandini Ghisyawan, Shanon Shah, Paul Simpson