The Art Of Lovemaking In Different Cultures Over Time Richard Shusterman: Ars Erotica, Sex and Somaesthetics in the Classical Arts of Love Cambridge University Press, 2021, 436 pages Richard Shusterman says at the beginning of the book that his aim is to show the methods and techniques of erotic love or sexual love, which acquires the name of the art of lovemaking in connection with the concepts of love. The art of love as expressed by Latin ars (art) and Greek eros (love) is best represented by Ovid’s ars amatoria,1 while the term ars erotica is of recent origin, coined by Michel Foucault in History of Sexuality, where he distinguished between Western studies of scientia sexualis and non-Western knowledge of sexuality as the ars erotica. But in applying the term ars erotica, Shusterman does not mean only one type of the art of lovemaking, but a series of different ars erotica that spans through different historical periods and geographical areas. But in fact, the purpose of the book is to answer three main questions: 1) In what way can ars erotica be appreciated (and performed) from the point of view of the aesthetics of art? In what way is ars erotica also truly aesthetic, which is why theorists have called it the art of lovemaking and tried to explain it that way. For it is good to be aware that knowledge and experience of ars erotica go beyond the physical contact of foreplay and sexual intercourse, as this includes the knowledge of how to dress and seduce; how to dance, sing or play an instrument; how to walk, eat, drink and gesture in a refined way; how to convincingly write or recite love poetry, a love letter or how to properly equip a bedroom. In addition to music, painting, poetry, and dance theory ars erotica also emphasizes knowledge of flower arrangements, interior design (especially bedrooms), fashion (including jewelry), cuisine, cosmetics, creating and mixing perfumes. »Key aesthetic feature of ars erotica is its emphasis on beauty and pleasure rather than mere utility. While sex obviously has an essential reproductive function, ars erotica’s prime focus is typically on enjoying lovemaking for its own sake (in terms of its sensory pleasures and expressive feelings and meanings) rather than for the production of children or some other external end or product« (p. 5). Fine arts add an important atmosphere and lead to intercourse but even when it comes to intercourse ars erotica emphasizes how we perform it by offering numerous techniques for maximization of its effect. 2) How can ars erotica be used as a means of self-cultivation and ethics; to enrich ourselves and others? Ars erotica is one of the means of educating our humanity, an ameliorative method of self-care, which at the same time means respect for others, first for our erotic partners, and more broadly for society and its customs. In addition to sensory and emotional learning, ars erotica promotes ethical learning in the following ways: when we engage in sexual intercourse with someone, it requires us to know certain norms, rules, and values that apply to both seduction and sexuality in a particular culture. This means we know what types of sex are illegal or immoral, e.g. sexual intercourse with a person under the age of 14, with parents, kin (incest), or what types of sexual intercourse may be considered taboo in a particular culture. To be attractive to others, it is not enough to be fit, attractive, fashionably dressed, wearing perfume »but also the allure of a winning personality worthy of esteem and a character endowed with valued virtues that make one a desirable partner«. (p. 12) The theories of ars erotica therefore specifically devote education to expressing attention, respect, generosity, understanding, and trust, which makes someone attractive, while teaching us how to assess the character of others and discover moral flaws such as inattention, stinginess, ignorance, and manipulation. Finally, ars erotica offers a path to scientific knowledge, especially regarding our bodies and the bodies of others. 3) How does its characteristic formation of biological functions and somatic energies reflect (and preserve) cultural ideologies and social order so that the seemingly universal sex drive takes on different forms and meanings both between different cultures and within the same culture in different periods and places? One of the arguments of the book is that the purpose of the technique and discipline of the traditional art of lovemaking was not only to increase sexual pleasure but also to provide certain aesthetic pleasures and ethical virtues to improve interpersonal relationships and relationship with the divine. In other words, such art sought to provide an aesthetic education that, by developing character, taste sensitivity, and interpersonal consciousness could contribute to what many consider to be the highest art of all: the art of living. And in order to show all this, Shusterman classifies each of the world's ars erotica into chapters, and in each chapter, he first presents the historical, social, cosmological/religious, and political aspects that fundamentally influenced the formation of a particular ars erotica. In certain places where Shusterman deems it appropriate, he also incorporates the thoughts and insights of Michel Foucault from his book The History of Sexuality (1-3), which he says has greatly influenced him. Shusterman first introduces ars erotica in ancient Greece. Eros was distinctly aesthetic to the Greeks because it inspired art and mutually served as an artistic creation, while ars erotica included aesthetic pleasures of meaning and form, not just raw bodily sensation. The practice of symposia illustrates the key role of art in the Athenian ars erotica, where music and dance were essential elements for creating an erotic mood. Musicians and dancers, both men and women, were there mainly for the purpose of arousing the erotic desire of the participants, and it often happened that the participants also had sexual intercourse with them. Hence the reputation of flutists as prostitutes. In this respect, Plato's Symposium was unique in that it did not include any such sensuality from the outset, participants »abandoned interest in the flutist,« »refrained from [usually] heavy drinking,« and instead devoted themselves to the entertainment of improvisational oratorio and »conversations« on love (p. 49), but nevertheless Plato's Symposium nicely shows that love and lovemaking in ancient Greek society has always been associated with beauty, procreation, as well as learning and striving for divine heights and that in this sense the ancient Greeks divided love into sensual, earthly, which was heterosexual and focused on procreation, and mental, spiritual, which was homosexual and focused on pleasure, education and divine. But the essential connection of sexual desire with beauty and not just with the physical instinct or reproduction encourages ars erotica to focus on aesthetic values, creative expression (poetry, drama, sculpture, vase paintings) and ethical self-cultivation and self-care. ... Athenian aristocracy tended to associate [Eros] with nobility and virtue (construed as an ethical beauty of character and refinement that implied intelligence and integrity) … This proved particularly evident in pederastic love, demanding a delicate, aesthetically sensitive ars erotica of courtship and consummation. Sexually attracted to the beloved’s youthful beauty but also to his noble character, the older erastes sought intimate physical contact with the eromenos yet had to pursue it by respecting and even improving his beloved’s character and reputation. (p. 44) Regarding the role of women: as already mentioned, Athenian eroticism was distinctly aesthetic in emphasizing pleasure over functionality: but this was only true in the case of heterosexual women who were not wives, i.e. hetaera (for women whose function was to provide healthy offspring, ars erotica was limited in its aesthetic freedom and diversity, and for men it was primarily intended for health and self-cultivation). Because hetaera's highly regarded services and affections (hetaeras were educated in art, rethoric and some even philosophy) and were not for sale, Athenian upper class men had to earn them with rhetorical skills, knowledge of art, expensive gifts and competition with other suitors. The main Greek philosophical traditions continued in the Roman times, but with some adaptations. They increasingly followed Plato's condemnation of infertile homosexuality in Laws and The Republic and focused on heterosexuality, with Roman wedding art including an increasing emphasis on the personal relationship between husband and wife became a norm. »By combining the satisfactions of erotic love with those of virtuous friendship, marriage constitutes the most pleasurable and beautiful of unions«, as Plutarch suggests (p. 84) and married women enjoyed more freedom and rights than married women in ancient Greece. We have no ars erotica in Judaism and Christianity. In its monotheistic religion, which emphasizes strict reproduction as God's commandment »Be fruitful and multiply ...« (p. 101) Judaism has strongly condemned adultery, mixed marriages, and homosexuality because they are geared towards enjoyment for the sake of enjoyment itself. The Hebrews were strict about this, just as they were strict against any mixing with other religions and gods (p. 93-109). Needless to say, this is also a distinctly misogynistic religion that cultivates no respect for women, and therefore Adam does not need to be polite, wise, beautiful, rich, gallant or courteous in order to 'mate' with a woman and thus conceive offspring. There is no art of lovemaking among the Hebrews. The only way to seduce was often wine and rarely clothes. Other ways are mentioned, such as the seductive charms of foreigners, which the Old Testament condemns and are not only associated with the use of wine but also with other means of erotic deception that seem distinctly aesthetic using sophisticated sensual pleasures and the beauties of art. In short, among the Hebrews, erotic pleasure was never considered a goal that was in itself valuable or essential to the sexual goal of reproduction. Erotic experience in the Old Testament was also not seen as a means of self-cultivation, a way to strengthen to self-care, sensitivity and care for others, as was the case with the ancient Greeks and Romans. Christianity was even worse off as it increased the scope of sexual prohibitions. Christianity (mostly under the influence of Neoplatonism) has evolved in the direction of what might be called asexual divine eroticism, where sexuality represents a domain that in itself seems impure. Even more important was the Christian degradation of human eroticism from the divinely privileged universal commandment of procreation to the second best compromise for those who cannot carry out the higher life of celibacy exemplified by Jesus and proclaimed by Paul. »'It is good for a man not to touch a woman,' claims the apostle in his First Epistle to the Corinthians. 'Nevertheless, to avoid fornication, let every man have his own wife, and let every woman have her own husband,' and let them show 'benevolence' in giving each other reciprocal 'power' or use of their own bodies« (p. 121). Paul held that the partnership was clearly worse than celibacy because it included desires and pleasures of the flesh, as he claims that flesh is not for the unholy, but for the Lord. The Christian ideal is therefore the kingdom of heaven, and this, unlike the Hebrews, did not require new births (i.e., no sex or marriage) and there is also no aesthetics. Interestingly, however, as we will point out a little later that beauty and attractiveness have been attributed precisely to the emphasis on non-aesthetic aspects. In the Chinese ars erotica, Shusterman first mentions Foucault's erroneous belief that it was primarily a matter of promoting pleasure for the sake of pleasure itself. Shusterman points out that Foucault's mistake was based on China's promotion of sex with more than one woman in one night which Foucault mistakenly thought was for pleasure, but it was primarily for health reasons, as the ancient Chinese believed men as the yang energy rejuvenate with women's yin through sexual intercourse and that Daoist cosmogeny is thus re-created. And the more sex they had, the more qi or life energy men got, which helped them maintain health, physical strength, vitality, and well-being. Shusterman also supports this by saying that texts on ars erotica were placed immediately after and in connection with medical books. So Chinese ars erotica was aimed primarily at health, procreating healthy offspring, and maintaining the youthful appearance and well-being of men. Based on this, the legendary Chinese Yellow Emperor or Huangdi (2.7-2.5 century BC), who had 1.200 wives and concubines while ordinary nobles and generals had »thirty or more«, even achieved the status of deity. As a ruling eminence, the Yellow Emperor also strengthened his attractiveness with various impressive aesthetic means, such as luxurious gilded and silk dresses, jewelry, court dancers, flutists, very attractive concubines, and courtesans, and special musical and poetic performances to create an attractive erotic atmosphere. For the Japanese ars erotica, the main source of inspiration was the Chinese ars erotica of the Tang dynasty. Within the tradition of the Heian dynasty of culture (8–12 C.E.), it is interesting that it is actually the only period where female ars erotica dominates, mainly in the form of letters, diaries and various arts such as poetry, stories and love letters, written, for example, by Lady Murasaki, Lady Sarashina, and others. This Japanese court culture combined the Confucian aesthetics of artistic refinement and decoration with a Buddhist reverence for the indefinite and the fleeting, embodied by the fleeting splendor of cherry blossoms. The crucial quality of the Heian aesthetic, in love as in everything, was a refined elegance that the Japanese identified as the ideal of miyabi … The first is a total lack of explicit sexual content and hardly a mention of physical contact in accounts of lovemaking; there is no discussion of foreplay, no classification or even mention of genital parts and their amatory uses, let alone coital positions ... Instead, the stages of courtship and seductive foreplay (but also the continuing technique of sustaining erotic desire throughout an extended affair) proceed through poetry, calligraphy, and music. This signals a second key element of Heian lovemaking: the centrality of the arts. Artistic knowledge and talent (with correspondingly refined aesthetic taste) could win and keep a lover; its lack could lose one (p. 293). Like the courtly love of the Heian period, the Japanese tradition of male homoeroticism originated in China. Japanese nanshoku was primarily men’s love for boys (chigo), reminiscent of Greek pederasty. This ars erotica developed primarily in Buddhist temples, where young boys worked as assistants and as a kind of »sexual servant« to senior monks or members of aristocratic households. In exchange for serving his masters, however, chigo received knowledge of music, dance, and classical literature. In samurai, however, homoeroticism was often associated with violence. Instead of focusing solely on male intercourse (which was only a small and not always necessary part of the erotic equation), bushido developed a comprehensive discipline of self-cultivation focused on virtue, loyalty, honor, and duty. In this sense, the lovers pledged to be faithful to each other and willingly sacrificed for each other, even through acts of self-harm. The third form of classical Japanese ars erotica is best known for the most influential Japanese visual genre ukiyo and drama kabuki, Kabuki originated in Kyoto (around 1603 AD) with daring songs and dance performances by a courtesan – Kabuke who with role of a dandy visiting a brothel caused an immediate sensation and countless imitations and on the basis of which the drama Kabuki emerged. The institution of elite courtesans/geishas who were not for sex was another import from the Chinese Tang dynasty. »Indeed, the artistic emphasis on the pleasures of social and cultural intercourse made the sex act almost incidental. The arts that made courtesans erotic magnets included not only music, dance, and song but also calligraphy, tea ceremony, poetry, and the art of identifying incense by fragrance ... These artistic gifts along with a courtesan’s wit, elegant manners, good taste, and compassionate thoughtfulness were more important than beauty for gaining her the high status of tayu«. (p. 309) Shusterman continues with Indian ars erotica based on the Kamasutra (1st century AD), although Natyaśastra (2nd century BC) already links courtesan to theatre as the main artistic text. This work, which also includes music and dance beside theatre, serves as the foundational text of all Indian aesthetics and confirms that »... erotic is 'rich in pleasure' because 'happiness has its source in women [and] the enjoyment' they provide.« (p. 216) In this way, by emphasizing erotic pleasure in conjunction with aesthetics such as dance, music, and drama, Natyaśastra helped shaping the aesthetic aspect of Kamastura a century before its inception. The distinctly aesthetic character of Indian ars erotica is clearly expressed in its emphasis on role-playing and the pleasures of acting with the aim to preserve the marital union and its harmony by maintaining sexual attraction between the spouses and thus the wider social stability. But not only that, by maintaining a rich relationship between partners, ars erotica also prevented polygamy, adultery, and various forms of evil. Indian ars erotica was also aware that sexual power and its energy can promote learning therefore it includes aesthetic, cognitive, psychological, practical and even divine aspects. As we can read in the Kamasutra: 'Luck in love comes [not from mere luck but] from learning the arts'; through their mastery a beautiful courtesan 'wins the title of Courtesan de Luxe,' while 'a man who is accomplished in these arts . . . finds the way to women's hearts right away' … For the Kamasutra proclaims its true goal is not the satisfaction of sexual desire and other sensual pleasures, but rather to refine one’s capacities and master one’s senses to become a better person. This is initially 'for the sake of worldly life' until one is ready to advance to the later stage of renunciation and release from worldly existence. (p. 221) Aesthetic cultivation through art is key to such sensual sophistication and mastery. Which means that the Indian emphasis on role-playing and imitation of theater skills in terms of theatrum mundi also has a touch of divine romance: it relies on the idea of acting and duplicating oneself in role-playing; the lover is one such role, not the true identity of the true self. Which means that the ideal of penetrating beneath the changing appearances and roles of empirical existence is to realize that the true self is essentially one with the highest divine principle (Atman is Brahman). Such blissful, blessed union is described in strikingly erotic terms: 'As a man fully embraced by his beloved wife knows nothing that is without, nothing that is within, so does this infinite being (the self ) when fully embraced by the Supreme Self, know nothing that is without, nothing that is within'. (p. 248) When talking about Muslim ars erotica he points out that this is the only religion where God commands sexuality and sexual pleasure »Evident in the very notion of mut’ah stands Islam’s unwavering recognition of sexual desire as an irrepressibly natural, powerful, positive drive, and of sexual satisfaction as an overwhelming God-given delight that is valuable in itself rather than merely a means to promote health, friendship, or family ties and progeny.« (p. 256) But pleasure is not just a right, sexuality is a legal obligation. Even if a husband is devoted solely to God and chastity, this does not mean that he can neglect the duty of sexuality he has towards his wife, even though the wife’s duties in sexuality are much stricter. As the prophet explains: »'If a woman spends the night forsaking her husband’s bed, the Angels will curse her' and God 'will be angry with her'« (p. 257). Men can have up to four wives but they can not have a married woman which is punishable with death. »Finally, the Quran suggests the divine quality of erotic pleasure by making it central to the heavenly rewards of Paradise, where one 'reclines with bashful virgins whom neither man nor jinee will have touched before, ... virgins chaste and fair, dark-eyed virgins sheltered in their tents' ...« (str. 257) Because of its important role lovemaking should be cultivated and taught. It »should also be the duty of scholars to initiate people into all that gives rise to it, strengthens it and increases it, not to mention God’s commandment to practice it and the prophets’ urging people to observe it« (p. 273) But because Muslim law commanded polygamy, and because Muslims, like the ancient Greeks, believed that women were more lustful than men, they were even more dominant and violent toward women than elsewhere. One aspect of taming women's attractiveness and lust, however, was their concealment through veil. The aesthetic aspect of ars erotica referred to the knowledge of poetry, the physical beauty of the body and face, and the fragrance, which contributed significantly to the pleasure and art of lovemaking. They even had a book on coital positions and sexual techniques as an art of lovemaking based on Hindu book but it was lost. After finishing reading, we can say that Shusterman's book is undoubtedly a thorough academic study of ars erotica through history, but for the general or laic reader it is too detailed and relies too heavily on quotes from the most important authors throughout history to be interesting and appealing, at the same time, it contributes little to the curiosity in terms of debate regarding certain concepts of the art of lovemaking for the academic reader. We get lost in the accurate presentation of the basic concepts of ars erotica with too many quotations (there are certainly over a thousand of them) and there are too few personal insights of the author to make the book interesting for such readers. It is true that Shusterman can be credited with his feminist awareness – he repeatedly mentions in the introduction that the topic and texts he deals with are distinctly misogynistic towards women, but he can not really do more than that, because throughout the book female thinkers about ars erotica appear in only three cases: in the presentation of the text of the Italian courtesan Tullie d'Aragona, in the short quotations of the Japanese courtier Lady Murasaki, and in the short presentation of Su Nu, the Chinese goddess of war and sex. There are no other mentions of female authors and very rarely ars erotica is presented with a female point of view therefore it is book written almost entirely from male perspective which is rather dissapointing yet pointing at reality that female pleasure and health was a very minor concern of ars erotica throughout history. Shusterman is also sensitive to the topic of homosexuality – of course, as the entire ancient Greek and partly Roman culture is imbued with it, but at the same time he does not forget to mention Chinese male homosexuality and Japanese nanoshoku and samurai. He also mentions Muslim example of love of elder men towards boys, although the Qur'an strictly forbids homosexuality and, last but not least, he also mentions a few homosexual men in Renaissance. The most interesting part of the book is its final part, but in fact it is only the last few pages where the author for the first time proposes his position that ars erotica as the art of lovemaking ended when the notion of beauty, which was throughout and from the beginning of Greco-Hellenic culture associated with Eros (and the goddess Aphrodite/Venus), ceased to be associated with erotic attraction and became an independent philosophical discipline called aesthetics, which deals exclusively with the cognitive aspects of beauty. To this end, he offers us some quotes from Shaftesbury, Baumgarten, Kant ad Schopenhauer, with which he wants to support this personal thought, but does not develop it further, because he says that it goes beyond the purpose of this book. For instance, he cites Shaftesbury: »Beauty, to maintain its ennobling spiritual quality and edifying uplift, had to forsake the erotic with its impure sensuality and passion for possessive union ... Schopenhauer draws the contrast of erotic and aesthetic experience still more sharply and explicitly, linking the latter to the bodiless beauty of Platonic ideas.« (p. 400-401) What seems worthwhile, and which is why we mentioned Shusterman’s hypothesis, is its significance for the present. Namely, we seem to live in a time of obsession with beauty, where beauty is strongly associated with sex appeal and as undoubtedly one of the main causes of attraction and choice of a partner. But in contrast to, say, ancient Greco-Hellenistic times, today it seems as if all other factors and characteristics of a person, such as intellectual and aesthetic education, are in the background compared to physical beauty. Beauty is not related to the aesthetic qualites (writing poems, love letters, playing an instrument etc.) or beauty as a virtue of a person’s character. In relation to beauty, it could also be polemical if Shusterman, for example, focused on the fact that it is asceticism that creates beauty and sexiness, which is characteristic of some ars erotica. It is interesting that in Christianity a virgin woman who dresses in a monastic style dress without any ornaments, accessories, fragrances and is simple in her behavior and speech, represents the highest level of beauty and attractiveness and that even if a virgin is not physically beautiful, her inner purity brightens her exterior and makes her beautiful. Plato also spoke about this when he wrote that although Socrates was physically ugly, he was considered the sexiest because of his divine insights. He displayed ascetic quality when he did not respond to sexual offers, for instance by Alcibiades, which made him even more attractive. Even Shiva, the Indian god and master of spiritual asceticism, who initially renounces all sexuality until Kama was ordered by Brahma to be seduced by Parvati, becomes a symbol of sexual power. His masterful devotion to purity (tapas) gives him a stunning power of attraction, as ascetic spirituality radiated a highly admired aura of attraction and represented a special reward for women who wanted to conquer ascetics to prove their seductive power (p. 207). In the same manner Chinese daoist, Zhunagzi writes in chapter on The Sign of Virtue Complete about about an ugly men named Ai Taito: No one ever heard him take the lead – he always just chimed in with other people. He wasn’t in the position of a ruler where he could save men’s lives, and he had no store of provisions to fill men’s bellies. On top of that, he was ugly enough to astound the whole world ... And yet men and women flocked to him. This is because, despite physical ugliness, Ai Taito radiated with perfect harmony the inner power or virtue that animates the body, which is what people really love and desire when they are attracted to another human’s body ... (p. 175) It would also be interesting to argue about contradictory notions of sexuality in relation to divinity and thus relativize these notions: if celibacy was commanded as the highest goal in Christianity and God was defined as asexual, not procreating at all, in China they are in complete opposition. thereby defining the deity with The Yellow Emperor, who had 1,200 women and concubines, and where celibacy was defined as something unnatural and illogical. But while Chinese ars erotica has distinctly focused on the health and genealogical aspect of ars erotica, Indian ars erotica is also relaxed and inclusive in terms of variety, playfulness, and indulgence in the pursuit of the divine, but the only one from God commanded sexual pleasure and reward of heavenly pleasures, is Muslim ars erotica. »In stark contrast to celibate prophets such as Jesus or Jeremiah, Muhammad enjoyed a very varied sex life. Sources suggest that he had about ten wives and at least four beautiful concubines.« (p. 257) Undoubtedly, the book is recommended to all those who want to learn in this field as »the beginners«, as it is an extremely erudite presentation of the already mentioned ars erotica concepts, which are related not only to the concepts of love but also to religion, cosmogeny, politics, history and especially aesthetics. Shusterman presents all of the above perfectly and extremely credibly, and this kind of reader can completely trust him to be in excellent hands. At last but not least, I wouldn't recommond this book to a feminist reader. On this planet, women had almost no influential role in love and the art of making love (unless they were mostly heteras or courtesans, i.e. paid mistresses to important men in one way or another). It seems quite incredible that in more than two thousand year history of ars erotica there is not a single famous lesbian or feminist author. And then people say that I'm exaggerating or imagining things when I say that lesbians and even feminists are the most overlooked, ignored and marginalized group of people on this planet. 1 Ovid writes: »'Be nice' because good looks 'never suffice . . . Tactful kindness is the key' ... Be generous in giving compliments, but material 'gifts . . . [get] pride of place'« (p. 91 He also claims that erotic value of knowledge »... is essential for the good lover, both in courting and in keeping the beloved by providing pleasures of beauty that transcend raw sensuality and require aesthetic taste and expertise … Ovid’s advice to women regarding the arts of somatic style goes well beyond cosmetics and grooming ... He explains what makes for attractive style in walking, talking, gesturing, laughing, crying, drinking, and eating. This beautifies not only the woman but the whole situation in which the erotic drama occurs … He also advises lover to 'Know yourself'. Only the man who knows himself can be intelligent in love and use his gifts to best effect to further every move ... Let the man with a good voice 'sing,' and the handsome man 'dazzle' with his looks ... Women, too, must acquire and deploy self-knowledge in order to display themselves to greater aesthetic advantage – by both hiding their 'body’s faults' and highlighting their advantages (p. 92-93)
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