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Joy of Sex Gets A Makeover

Revised edition loses 'frigidity', tackles AIDS and Viagra, and a woman's viewpoint

By Victoria Floethe, Newser User

Posted Dec 18, 2008 3:25 PM CST

(Newser) – In 1972, The Joy of Sex became a fixture of bedside tables across America and spent 343 weeks on the New York Times best-seller list. Now comes a revised version of the book that includes all we’ve learned about sex since the 1970s, reports the Times—including entries on AIDS and Viagra, and adding a female viewpoint its male British author missed.

Dr. Alex Comfort mentioned the clitoris, but has no specific section on it, while he does have a section on how to tactfully take a woman’s virginity, and another on “frigidity.” Says Susan Quilliam, the British sexologist who headed the revision: “There’s an awful lot of trivialization of sex. I am absolutely in favor of making sex fun, pleasurable, loving, playful. But this is serious stuff. You sleep with somebody and it bonds you to them.”

[Images (2)]

[Quotes (5)]

We know more about now than we did in the 1970 about the arousal cycle, hormones, pheromones, the clitoris, the relevance of the nipples, how erections work, aphrodisiacs.

The British cover of the revised edition. (Amazon)

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Dr. Comfort was debunking the idea that sex was dirty, I’m saying: ‘Let’s normalize this. Most people don’t have screaming orgasms every weekend.
- Susan Quilliam

Because we are more sexualized, we need something that is credible, accurate and authoritative. - Susan Quilliam, sexologist and writer of The Joy Of Sex

There’s an awful lot of trivialization of sex. I am absolutely in favor of making sex fun, pleasurable, loving, playful. But this is serious stuff. You sleep with somebody and it bonds you to them. - Susan Quilliam

He mentions the clitoris, he honors the clitoris, he says it’s important. That was a lot more than most people did in those days. But he only mentions it in passing a few times and has no specific section on it.
- Susan Quilliam

Im sure he was a lovely man, but he said that most men, given a young and attractive partner, can always get it up — it’s only when a woman lets herself go that he has a problem. And you’re going, ‘No, no, no!’ But that is what it was like then. - Susan Quilliam

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Joy of Sex Gets A Makeover