Infant and Child Sexuality: A Sociological Perspective - Ipce

of dwellings. He based his work on the thesis that restrictions placed
upon contact--the maintenance of social distance--provide a way in
which awe can be generated and sustained. He assumed that sex was most
likely to be private in societies where houses had substantial walls
that could not be seen through. On the other hand, attitudes toward sex
would likely be more casual if people lived in houses made of lattice
work or grass or if the houses had no walls. Maxwell made a cross-culture
check of his theory having adequate information on wall material
and norms of premarital sex behavior for ninety-three societies. The
data supported the hypothesis. The more opaque the walls, the stricter
the sex norms. Homes in the United States overwhelmingly have opaque
walls.
Awe and trauma can occur for the child if he has been sheltered and
is suddenly exposed to an unusual adult genital-related experience
without receiving an adequate explanation of the behavior, as the following
case.
I was intrigued with my mother’s physical differences.
The most puzzling childhood experience
I had involved her menstruation. I awoke
one night to see my father carrying my mother,
who had hemorrhaged to such an extent that her
nightgown was soaked with blood. This terrified
and mystified me, not only that night but for
some time afterwards. I was so shocked by her
appearance that I thought something terrible had
happened to her. There again, no attempt was
made on my parents’ part to explain this normal
biological occurrence. The experience happened
to me when I was no more than four years old,
yet I vividly recall the emotional reactions
which took place in my mind.
It is quite rare that parents in the United States show sexual and
erotic attachment for each other in the presence of their children and
in ways which a child can comprehend. As a result children show little
awareness of the sexual relationship between their parents. Parents who
have good relations with each other are likely to he seen as associates
rather than as lovers by their children. (Mead and Wolfenstein,
1955).
My parents never seemed to show any signs or say
anything that might make me consider the possibility
of them having another side of their marriage
besides the family.
As long as I can remember I have never seen my
parents show intimate affection in any way
toward each other.
I remember in high school when we used to talk
about how affectionate couples are that either
were going steady, engaged, or just married, and
it was hard to imagine my parents the same way.
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