Contrary/Sexual/Feeling

See's thinking is out ahead of the field, or in opposition to it: in his questioning of the epistemological ground and the political effects of anti-essentialism; in his rethinking of the place of science and of Enlightenment values more broadly; and in his testing of anti-normativity as a framework for politics, See demurs from fundamental principles of queer studies.

Art for Science’s Sake: Wilde in Whitman’s Wilderness

Wilde’s affection for Whitman reveals an overlooked strain of nature-based queer aesthetics not only in Wilde’s writing but in the literary modernist era that both Whitman and Wilde are often considered to anticipate. Such aesthetics are rooted in two evolutionary scientific principles: first, that nature is infinitely mutable; and second, that sexual feeling is aesthetic feeling grounded in the material world.

Menarche and Its Determinants in Adolescent Girls

Introduction: Biological, psychosocial, cognitive, emotional and social changes begin during puberty and continue throughout adolescence. The age at which a female reaches sexual maturity is critical in determining her future reproductive health and success. The aim of the study was to assess the average age of sexual feeling and menarche among the adolescent girls and its determinants. Methods: Three hundred fifty five respondents were selected through simple random sampling from three secondary schools (namely Sunrise Boarding School, Swaraswati Secondary School and Gyanjyoti Samudayak Bidhyalaya) in Palpa for the cross-sectional study. Structured interview schedule was used to collect information. Data was tabulated in Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and analyzed with SPSS-16. Results: Most of the girls (44.8%) attained menarche at 12 years (M = 12.4, SD = 1.11). Age at menarche was more likely before 13 years of age when the age of onset of sexual feeling was earlier than 12 years of age, in students than in domestic workers and if they are living with parents than in those not living with parents. Conclusion: The average age of menarche among the adolescent girls was 12.40 years and it could be influenced by age of sexual feeling, occupation and living status of girls.

RED AND WHITE IN OVID’S METAMORPHOSES: THE MULBERRY TREE IN THE TALE OF PYRAMUS AND THISBE

Throughout the Metamorphoses Ovid draws special attention to the colors red and white. Red (rubor, rutilus, rubesco, puniceus, purpureus, ‘ red ’ or ‘purple ’) is, of course, the color of blood, of a blush, of ripening fruit, Tyrean dye, and the sky at dawn. White is the color of marble, ivory, lilies, and the sky at noon. If we examine this pair in erotic contexts, however, we will find that white is associated with innocence and chastity, with the frigid absence of sexual feeling and with emotional and physical death. Red is associated with pudor, that sense of shame that afflicts the innocent whose eyes have just been opened to erotic reality, and with the heat of violence, both the violence of feeling (furor) and the violence of rape.

Red and White in Ovid's Metamorphoses: The Mulberry Tree in the Tale of Pyramus and Thisbe

Throughout the Metamorphoses Ovid draws special attention to the colors red and white. Red (rubor, rutilus, rubesco, puniceus, purpureus, ‘red’ or ‘purple’) is, of course, the color of blood, of a blush, of ripening fruit, Tyrean dye, and the sky at dawn. White is the color of marble, ivory, lilies, and the sky at noon. If we examine this pair in erotic contexts, however, we will find that white is associated with innocence and chastity, with the frigid absence of sexual feeling and with emotional and physical death. Red is associated with pudor, that sense of shame that afflicts the innocent whose eyes have just been opened to erotic reality, and with the heat of violence, both the violence of feeling (furor) and the violence of rape.Perhaps one of the most familiar examples of this color contrast and its erotic associations occurs in the story of Pygmalion and his ivory maiden, in Book X. Ovid is emphatic that the statue is ivory (X.247-48: niveum … ebur, ‘snowy ivory’; 255: ebur, twice) and that the ivory is white. Her ivory flesh, however, is so lifelike that the sculptor fears she will bruise. He dresses her like a real woman, adorns her with countless gifts, and makes her recline on a couch covered with red-dyed spreads (X.267: conlocat hanc stratis concha Sidonide tinctis).