Book Review: The Politics of Sexuality: Identity, Gender, Citizenship
| Date | 01 March 2000 |
| Author | Sharon Cowan |
| Published date | 01 March 2000 |
| DOI | 10.1177/096466390000900111 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
are terminating what was initially a wanted pregnancy. As a result the decision to ter-
minate is reached after serious consideration and determination that it is the most
appropriate course of action. It is clear that public opinion is shaped by the media’s
handling of reproductive issues, a point developed by Tizzard in her contribution.
Furedi’s defence of termination for fetal abnormality should be contrasted with
Hadley’s account of the ‘Blessings and Burdens’ associated with the tests providing
information which may result in the pregnancy being terminated. She contends that
the promotion of such diagnostic procedures coupled with a reduction of spending
on welfare services amount to a ‘covert eugenic system’.
The book ends with two chapters considering the position of men within the
current debate. Fox acknowledges that the medicalisation of abortion has effectively
ruled out the possibility of third party claims preventing a medically authorised ter-
mination. While this is justified as a result of the fact that men are simply not in the
same position as pregnant women, she calls for dialogue and a more meaningful role
for men in the decision-making process. Nolan acknowledges that such discussions
often take place but stresses that in the event of disagreement the final decision must
rest with the woman concerned.
This book is recommended to all those interested in understanding the current state
of the abortion debate both in the UK and abroad. It clearly succeeds in its objectives
of promoting discussion and highlighting problems for those advocating reform of
the status quo.
DAVID R. ROBERTS
School for Policy Studies, University of Bristol, UK
TERRELL CARVER AND VERONIQUE MOTTIER (Eds), The Politics of Sexuality: Iden-
tity, Gender, Citizenship. London: Routledge, 1998, xv + 200pp., £55.00 (hbk).
This is an international collection of essays, bringing together work from the UK,
Holland, Spain, Australia and Israel, and arising directly from a workshop called ‘The
Politics of Sexuality’ at the 1996 European Consortium for Political Research. The
book is divided into three parts: the first is an exploration into state discourses around
sexuality and sexual difference, particularly the debates concerning the application of
equal rights to the area of sexuality; the second presents a range of discourse analyses
of selected theoretical approaches to sexuality and identity; and the third part con-
centrates on empirical work on international social policies on sexuality. Each of the
17 essays is fairly short, providing an overview of the area covered. The series editor
claims that this collection is novel, and the editors, Carver and Mottier, suggest that
the essays not only explore theoretical approaches to sexuality but also describe the
way in which such theoretical concerns have found their way into political science
and research. The common theme, they say (and a common theme there is, though
the essays are remarkably diverse), is the poststructuralist lens through which each
writer views the issue of sexuality. The editors further identify the use of a construc-
tionist viewpoint, though this is more obvious in the first two parts of the book than
in the third part.
There are also common themes within each section of the book. In the first section,
for example, concepts such as citizenship and equality are challenged as being social
constructs. The essays here examine issues such as the age of consent debate, the
Spanner case, European anti-discrimination law and the anti-homosexual policy of
the armed forces, while also asking more theoretical questions such as whether the
use of an equal rights approach (which is seen as an essentialist approach) is the most
168 SOCIAL & LEGAL STUDIES 9(1)
08 Reviews (jl/ho&k) 1/2/00 3:26 pm Page 168
To continue reading
Request your trial