Women’s Sexual Experience

This book, like its companion volume, Women''s Sexual Development, is a potpourri of ideas, not campaign literature to promote a particular point of view. The editor agrees with some of her authors and strongly disagrees with others. The "facts" are few, the questions many. The intent of both books is to evoke questions, delay convictions, invite controversy, and plead for opening minds. The examination and ex­ planation of women''s sexual experience has long been the province of men. The "is" and the "oughts" have been hopelessly confused by the investigators'' (or exhorters'') biases and limited experience, as well as by the use of the male sexual experience as the model for all human sexual experience. Women, at long last, are talking not only to each other, in personal journals and letters, but also in the more formal worlds of academic and scientific publications. The papers in this book come from many sources. Some are aca­ demic; some are experiential, journalistic, or personal. Several empha­ size the lack of adequate research and data but address an issue that is just appearing on the surface of contemporary controversy and con­ cern. Many topics and sources of information are missing.