- ISBN13: 9780375414091
- Condition: NEW
- Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
Product Description
A rich and seductive narrative of the powerful erotic pull the East has always had for the West—a pervasive yet often ignored aspect of their long historical relationship—and a deep exploration of the intimate connec… More >>
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The East, the West, and Sex: A History of Erotic Encounters
An insightful and masterly review of a fascinating and intricate subject that has been a taboo for too long. Mr. Bernstein’s sense of history, his familiarity with the settings and his personal experience enrich every page.
Rating: 5 / 5
Rings true to my self-referential if anecdotal experience. The very day I registered for the draft I also purchased a copy of Sir Richard “Dirty Dick” Burton’s Tales of the Arabian Nights. Later in Southeast Asia I queried my First Sergeant on condoms of choice: “Red, White, & Blue son.” Yankee Imperialism y-e-s! Off to wise old mommy san in her 20′s–compared to her younger sisters who looked like what I danced with in junior high school. I survived to live in Trieste, Italy, once home to Burton himself, where bookstores “stocked” (Stock furnishes the local wine and spirits) his works. Yet shortly before Hong Kong retrocessed from Crown Colony, outpost of empire, to Chinese sovereignty, nary a copy of Rudyard Kipling was to be found. One could still drink with Gurkhas in Aussie-Kiwi owned Oirish pubs with Filipina maids–and Gunga Dins hustling fools in the East. But by then massages and suchlike creature comforts cost as much as back home.
Compare Sheridan Prasso’s earlier and excellent work “The Asian Mystique: Dragon Ladies, Geisha Girls, and Our Fantasies of the Exotic Orient.” I met herself signing books at the China Institute in New York City, took in her slender petite form and concluded (1) she could put Asian ladies of like size at complete ease, and (2) she hopefully couldn’t resist the urge to don a Geisha’s kimono and pose for a photo. Thankfully she did. Bernstein by comparison in a fellow male light-skinned round-eyed infiltrator. Whether or not we made the slightest impression on Asia–Asia left an indelible mark on us.
I’m acquainted with a Chinese born American woman (CBA instead of American born Chinese ABC). Her father reflected Bernstein’s depicture. I know Indian women of various ages true to Bernstein’s observations on both the British raj and following. And I have Thai lady friends and friends who are quite simply ladies. To quote my late father: “Seventeen years in Sunday school–one night in Bangkok.” Now more mature there’s things I would do again, thing I wouldn’t do again, and things I couldn’t do again.
This is both a sweet and bittersweet read.
Rating: 5 / 5
THIS BOOK TOOK ABOUT 300 PAGES TO TELL US WHAT WE ALREADY KNEW.LETS SEE ; Westerners during the age of discovery found the East was more open to sex then the Victorians;the East had Harems and cheap ,casual sex for rich and powerful Western guys who acted like kids in a candy store. GOSH — what a revelation. Only it can be stated in one paragraph. Didn’t need a whole book to explore that dynamic.
Rating: 1 / 5
Despite the alluring title, this is a serious work of scholarship.
Bernstein’s readable, wide ranging book addresses Westerners fascination with the mysterious East from Victorian novelists slumming in Egyptian brothels to plane-loads of sex-tourists descending on Thailand. In some ways, this book is a counter-blast to Said’s Orientalism the premise of which was (in simplified form): sexual mores were no more lax in the East than in the West, it was just the Westerner’s need to project their own values on “the other”.
Bernstein combines a combination of historical research with contemporary interviews in a style that is lucid and readable. This book comes to some startling conclusions: Maybe there was a sexual reason why many American servicemen volunteered for repeat tours of duty in Vietnam, and there may be worse things in life than being a go-go dancer in a Thai bar catering to foreigners.
Rating: 5 / 5
The East has always had allure for the West, and has offered a place where sexual pleasure is not necessarily associated with sin. Its different culture and perspectives have long offered Westerners morally ambiguous opportunities mostly unavailable at home. The region’s erotic history is mapped in a survey of both individuals and nations, with a focus upon their interactions with Westerners. The result is a fine account for both college-level and general-interest collections.
Rating: 5 / 5