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L'incroyable histoire du sexe #1
The Story of Sex: A Graphic History Through the Ages
The first graphic history of sex chronicles sexuality and human intimacy through the ages, from our primate pasts to our robotic futures.
Humans have had sex on the brain since pre-civilization either for pleasure, power, revenge, a desire for children, or simply because it isn't allowed. Today, sex is all around us but it's rarely explained and almost never taught. In The Story of Sex, sexologist Phillipe Brenot combines anthropology, sociology, psychology and history with witty comics by Latetita Coryn for an in-depth explanation of this essential aspect of humanity.
Organized chronologically into sections like Babylon: Free Love, The Middle Ages: Heaven and Hell, and The 20th Century: Sexual Liberation, Brenot explores what eroticism really is, how our ancestors behaved sexually, when the first couple was established, how superstition and morality laws shaped sexuality, the use of pornography in the digital age, and how some ancient civilizations were far ahead of their time when it came to gender equality.
Full of fascinating details like Cleopatra's invention of the vibrator and a Dutch shopkeeper's accidental discovery of the existence of sperm - all accompanied by hilarious comics and dialogue - The Story of Sex is informative, unique, and entertaining book.
Humans have had sex on the brain since pre-civilization either for pleasure, power, revenge, a desire for children, or simply because it isn't allowed. Today, sex is all around us but it's rarely explained and almost never taught. In The Story of Sex, sexologist Phillipe Brenot combines anthropology, sociology, psychology and history with witty comics by Latetita Coryn for an in-depth explanation of this essential aspect of humanity.
Organized chronologically into sections like Babylon: Free Love, The Middle Ages: Heaven and Hell, and The 20th Century: Sexual Liberation, Brenot explores what eroticism really is, how our ancestors behaved sexually, when the first couple was established, how superstition and morality laws shaped sexuality, the use of pornography in the digital age, and how some ancient civilizations were far ahead of their time when it came to gender equality.
Full of fascinating details like Cleopatra's invention of the vibrator and a Dutch shopkeeper's accidental discovery of the existence of sperm - all accompanied by hilarious comics and dialogue - The Story of Sex is informative, unique, and entertaining book.
208 pages, Hardcover
First published April 13, 2016
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 197 reviews
October 20, 2016
Very odd, very French project to summarise the social and cultural history of human sexuality in the form of a comic strip. In some other cultures, perhaps, the absence of such a thing might not have been seen as a big gap in the market. The author, Philippe Brenot, is a psychiatrist who has published works on male sexual violence, fantasy, and masturbation, so the text does come with a certain academic cachet – sweetened here by the simple, playful illustrations of Laetitia Coryn, an artist known mainly for her work on the short-lived BD revue AAARG! Her pictures are all bold primary colours and minimal background detail, the characters realistic enough to be anatomically correct, but cartoonish enough to be fairly inoffensive no matter what activities they're engaged in.
With more than 200 pages here – the average BD album is usually around fifty – there is plenty of space to explore the subject, and indeed we get into a surprising amount of detail on subjects ranging from primate evolutionary biology, to Classical paederasty, medieval legends and religious sensitivity, the development of contraception, concepts of female virtue and virginity, masturbation, literary censorship, psychiatry, VR porn and almost everything in between – though never more than a page or so on each. Hard to know who the audience for this is supposed to be, but I quite enjoyed myself – and learnt a few things too. Not least about the French publishing market.
[Sep 16]
Somewhat to my amazement, the Telegraph just ran a whole feature on this book, clickbaitingly headlined Passion, porn and the truth about female fantasies: meet the man who taught the French about sex, where I learn with some surprise that Sex Story is ‘the book France won’t stop talking about, the book that sold 20,000 copies in its first month’. The authors certainly sound like they're enjoying themselves. Anyway, an English translation is forthcoming, so you, too, can soon be as bemused by it as I was.
[Oct 16]
With more than 200 pages here – the average BD album is usually around fifty – there is plenty of space to explore the subject, and indeed we get into a surprising amount of detail on subjects ranging from primate evolutionary biology, to Classical paederasty, medieval legends and religious sensitivity, the development of contraception, concepts of female virtue and virginity, masturbation, literary censorship, psychiatry, VR porn and almost everything in between – though never more than a page or so on each. Hard to know who the audience for this is supposed to be, but I quite enjoyed myself – and learnt a few things too. Not least about the French publishing market.
[Sep 16]
Somewhat to my amazement, the Telegraph just ran a whole feature on this book, clickbaitingly headlined Passion, porn and the truth about female fantasies: meet the man who taught the French about sex, where I learn with some surprise that Sex Story is ‘the book France won’t stop talking about, the book that sold 20,000 copies in its first month’. The authors certainly sound like they're enjoying themselves. Anyway, an English translation is forthcoming, so you, too, can soon be as bemused by it as I was.
[Oct 16]
November 29, 2017
This book had a lot of great information, but some sizable issues as well. There was racism: a Roman slave was depicted as black to contrast with other "white" Roman women, even though race as we know it today came about due to the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, and stratification in Roman society would be based on class and nation of origin. Rome, having conquered many territories, was made of people we would consider today as black, white, North African, Western Asian, etc. There was also transmisogyny (referring to a trans woman as "he") and general misinformation on transgender issues - though I know this was translated from French so I understand language may have gotten muddled in the process.
There is also a clear lack of any non-European history, save for Ancient Egypt, Ancient Persia, and our distant ancestors in East Africa. I guarantee you, humans were having sex in Asia, Africa, and the Americas before colonization. It would have been nice to see some more information about those many diverse peoples.
All in all, this was an entertaining read.
There is also a clear lack of any non-European history, save for Ancient Egypt, Ancient Persia, and our distant ancestors in East Africa. I guarantee you, humans were having sex in Asia, Africa, and the Americas before colonization. It would have been nice to see some more information about those many diverse peoples.
All in all, this was an entertaining read.
March 8, 2018
Tutto quello che avreste voluto sapere sul sesso (ma non avete mai osato chiedere)
Che bello quando si trovano libri che con piacevolezza e ironia riescono a mescolare efficacemente rigorose informazioni storiche con temi di interesse e curiosità.
Questo volumone racconta l'evoluzione della sessualità per immagini dall'origine del mondo fino al XXI secolo. Nessun erotismo, nessuna pornografia, solo strisce a fumetti che spiegano i vari comportamenti in modo obiettivo e senza giudizi morali.
Pudore, erotismo, amore, omosessualità, differenza tra piacere e riproduzione, tabù, matrimonio, contraccezione, masturbazione, condizione femminile, case chiuse, prostituzione. Ma anche richiami a Cleopatra, al Rinascimento, a Leonardo, a Michelangelo, ai romani, ai greci, a Courbet, a Napoleone e a Brummel.
Tante pagine, tante cose; nulla di sconvolgente, ma il tutto è accostato con buon gusto e in modo intelligente. E come sempre in questi casi, rivedere tutto il film dall'inizio serve a farci un po' riflettere su tante cose cui non avevamo pensato.
Un libro intelligente, sia per adulti che per ragazzi.
August 1, 2022
почала читати книжку на початку лютому, було дуже дивно повернутися до неї після перерви у пів року. загалом розважально і цікаво, не впевнена, що запам'ятаю всі факти, але очевидно, що в усі часи були люди, яким подобалося займатися сексом, і були люди, які хотіли це контролювати/обмежити/заборонити. вигрібали від цього контролю/обмежень/заборон переважно жінки. не сподобався тільки останній розділ, де автор фантазує як буде розвиватися сексуальне життя через сто годів.
March 8, 2019
Na povinné prečítanie požičané od Iwka
Toto je presne o tom, o čom hlása nadpis, o sexe. Veľký A4 formát, tvrdá väzba a veľa podnetných informácií. O vývoji človeka, jeho vťahu k rozmonožovaniu, sexu, láske i partnerským vzťahom, to všetko nájdete na stranách tejto knihy. Obrázky sú zjednodušené a ľahko čitateľné všetkým, začínajú v dávnej minulosti, keď človek ešte ani človekom, ale skôr opicou bol, cez staroveké národy Egypta, Grécka a Ríma prechádza k prehľadu európskych zvykov až do dnešných čias a dokonca skúša prísť s predstavou blízkej budúcnosti.
Plus:
Kým niektoré obrázky sú vtipné (ako vynález vibrátora kráľovnou Kleopatrou) iné sú skôr na zamyslenie ako idea pederastie, či práva žien v manželstve a tresty za neveru. Myslím, že knihu by sme si mali prečítať všetci a mala by byť súčasťou sexuálnej výchovy na školách, pretože sa na predmet pozerá jednoduchým okom, bez snahy posudzovať či súdiť. Zároveň jasne vysvetľuje historické fakty, vývoj udalostí aj postojov ľudí k téme sexu.
Mínus:
Že táto kniha nie je súčasťou školského kurikula, ale s tým neviem či práve teraz vieme niečo spraviť.
Prvá veta:
Sexkomiks pootevíra dveře vedoucí k dobře střeženým tajemstvím i nepublikovaným historkám a spřáda z nich dějiny, o kterých SE mlčelo - dějiny sexu a lásky.
Posledná veta:
V dnešní době mohou dva dospělí po dohodě prožívat svobodný sexuální vztah za podmínky, že budou dodržovat tyto základní zákazy a kromě nich jedno prosté pravidlo: nedelěj nic, co by druhému mohlo vadit.
Goodreads Challenge 2019: 15. kniha
Toto je presne o tom, o čom hlása nadpis, o sexe. Veľký A4 formát, tvrdá väzba a veľa podnetných informácií. O vývoji človeka, jeho vťahu k rozmonožovaniu, sexu, láske i partnerským vzťahom, to všetko nájdete na stranách tejto knihy. Obrázky sú zjednodušené a ľahko čitateľné všetkým, začínajú v dávnej minulosti, keď človek ešte ani človekom, ale skôr opicou bol, cez staroveké národy Egypta, Grécka a Ríma prechádza k prehľadu európskych zvykov až do dnešných čias a dokonca skúša prísť s predstavou blízkej budúcnosti.
Plus:
Kým niektoré obrázky sú vtipné (ako vynález vibrátora kráľovnou Kleopatrou) iné sú skôr na zamyslenie ako idea pederastie, či práva žien v manželstve a tresty za neveru. Myslím, že knihu by sme si mali prečítať všetci a mala by byť súčasťou sexuálnej výchovy na školách, pretože sa na predmet pozerá jednoduchým okom, bez snahy posudzovať či súdiť. Zároveň jasne vysvetľuje historické fakty, vývoj udalostí aj postojov ľudí k téme sexu.
Mínus:
Že táto kniha nie je súčasťou školského kurikula, ale s tým neviem či práve teraz vieme niečo spraviť.
Prvá veta:
Sexkomiks pootevíra dveře vedoucí k dobře střeženým tajemstvím i nepublikovaným historkám a spřáda z nich dějiny, o kterých SE mlčelo - dějiny sexu a lásky.
Posledná veta:
V dnešní době mohou dva dospělí po dohodě prožívat svobodný sexuální vztah za podmínky, že budou dodržovat tyto základní zákazy a kromě nich jedno prosté pravidlo: nedelěj nic, co by druhému mohlo vadit.
Goodreads Challenge 2019: 15. kniha
October 24, 2017
In einer übersexten Gesellschaft, in der jeder 10-jährige bereits Pornos in jeglicher Intensität zu jeder Zeit und unbegrenzt im Internet zur Verfügung hat, ist ein Buch wie "Sex Story" fast schon wieder ein bisschen lächerlich-mitleidig - ähnlich dem Dessoukatalog, der am Ende des Buches in einer Comicszene von einem "aufgeklärten" Zeigenossen belächelt wird, wo man doch Youporn und andere Seiten zum persönlichen Amusement nutzen kann. Doch wenn man mit der Lektüre fertig ist - und das ist trotz Comic-Stils nicht in ein paar Minuten getan! - macht sich irgendwie ein anderes Gefühl von Aufgeklärtheit breit. Denn es geht in diesem Buch nicht um das übliche Drei-Minuten-Gerammel der Pornowelt, sondern um eine durchaus wissenschaftliche Aufarbeitung der Sexualität von den Anfängen der Menscheheit bis in die Gegenwart hinein und darüber hinaus, indem ein Blick in die Zukunft gewagt wird.
Philippe Brenot ist Anthropologe, und das merkt man "Sex Story" auch an. Mit viel Humor und Esprit beschreibt er die Trennung von Geschlechtsverkehr rein zu Fortpflanzungszwecken oder Lustgewinn, und beschreibt anschaulich bis leicht drastisch, wie sich die Sexualität im Laufe der Zeit verändert und gewandelt hat. Die einzelnen schlüpfrigen Anekdoten bekannter Zeitgenossen waren interessant und teilweise ein Augenöffner (ich wusste z. B. nicht, dass Casanova ein Kinderschänder war und mit seiner eigenen Tochter ein Kind hatte), doch mehr von Interesse waren die doch gravierenden Unterschiede zwischen männlicher und weiblicher Sexualität, und auch, leider, wie die Sexualität dazu beigetragen hat, die Frauen bis in die Jetzt-Zeit zu unterdrücken. Und zwar keine verschämt-kichernde "Pflück-mich-Unterdrückung", sondern eine extrem menschenfeindliche Unterdrückung.
Während Frauen mit vielen Bettgeschichten durchweg als Nutten, Huren und Schlampfen tituliert wurden und werden (z. B. Cleopatra), wird der gleiche Lebenswandel bei Männern als Anerkennung und heimlichem "Das will ich auch" - Geraune anderer Männer toleriert - auch wenn, wie oben bemerkt, diese tollen Hengste Schürzenjäger der übelsten Sorte waren. Bei Ehebruch wurde immer nur die Frau bestraft, bei einer Vergewaltigung war immer nur die Frau schuld, da es "nicht möglich ist, eine erwachsene Frau gegen ihren Willen zu Geschlechtsverkehr zu zwingen" und - und das fand ich sehr interessant - sobald es in der weiblichen Sexualität zur leisesten Lockerung der Zwänge kam, schwenkte die Gesellschaft um, um die Frauen nur noch mehr und härter zu sanktionieren. Dass wir davon heute, im 21. Jahrhundert, immer noch nicht allzuweit weg gekommen sind, ist beschämend.
Die Aufmachung des Buches hat mich sehr angesprochen, die Zeichnungen sind ein richtiger Augenschmaus. Das Cover hätte man, angelehnt an das französische Original, ein bisschen hübscher gestalten können, aber es kommt ja auf den Inhalt an.
Leseempfehlung!
Philippe Brenot ist Anthropologe, und das merkt man "Sex Story" auch an. Mit viel Humor und Esprit beschreibt er die Trennung von Geschlechtsverkehr rein zu Fortpflanzungszwecken oder Lustgewinn, und beschreibt anschaulich bis leicht drastisch, wie sich die Sexualität im Laufe der Zeit verändert und gewandelt hat. Die einzelnen schlüpfrigen Anekdoten bekannter Zeitgenossen waren interessant und teilweise ein Augenöffner (ich wusste z. B. nicht, dass Casanova ein Kinderschänder war und mit seiner eigenen Tochter ein Kind hatte), doch mehr von Interesse waren die doch gravierenden Unterschiede zwischen männlicher und weiblicher Sexualität, und auch, leider, wie die Sexualität dazu beigetragen hat, die Frauen bis in die Jetzt-Zeit zu unterdrücken. Und zwar keine verschämt-kichernde "Pflück-mich-Unterdrückung", sondern eine extrem menschenfeindliche Unterdrückung.
Während Frauen mit vielen Bettgeschichten durchweg als Nutten, Huren und Schlampfen tituliert wurden und werden (z. B. Cleopatra), wird der gleiche Lebenswandel bei Männern als Anerkennung und heimlichem "Das will ich auch" - Geraune anderer Männer toleriert - auch wenn, wie oben bemerkt, diese tollen Hengste Schürzenjäger der übelsten Sorte waren. Bei Ehebruch wurde immer nur die Frau bestraft, bei einer Vergewaltigung war immer nur die Frau schuld, da es "nicht möglich ist, eine erwachsene Frau gegen ihren Willen zu Geschlechtsverkehr zu zwingen" und - und das fand ich sehr interessant - sobald es in der weiblichen Sexualität zur leisesten Lockerung der Zwänge kam, schwenkte die Gesellschaft um, um die Frauen nur noch mehr und härter zu sanktionieren. Dass wir davon heute, im 21. Jahrhundert, immer noch nicht allzuweit weg gekommen sind, ist beschämend.
Die Aufmachung des Buches hat mich sehr angesprochen, die Zeichnungen sind ein richtiger Augenschmaus. Das Cover hätte man, angelehnt an das französische Original, ein bisschen hübscher gestalten können, aber es kommt ja auf den Inhalt an.
Leseempfehlung!
August 10, 2018
With a title like that, how could I resist picking this up? Sadly though, Brenot’s humorous historical account of sex was lacking for me.
The first major flaw is scope: unsurprisingly, this is very Euro-centric with some forays in Persia and Egypt. Otherwise, Brenot only examines sex in the Western world, which is fine, but also a bit disappointing. Also, despite this relatively narrow scope, it also felt like Brenot tried to cram too much information into too-short a page count. I feel a bit guilty being hypocritical like this, but if you’re going to tackle a subject like this, I think it would work much better to clearly narrow the focus and dive deeper into said subject.
Of course, mileage will vary greatly with my above critique, but something to keep in mind if you’re thinking of picking this up!
Secondly, Brenot doesn’t seem to have a firm grasp on sexuality that isn’t hetero. There was quite a bit of material that went over homosexuality, but almost strictly between men. There was a handful of pages that talked about Sappho and her work, but otherwise, I can’t remember any other mention of lesbian/sapphic women (though please correct me if I’m wrong). Brenot attempts to broach the trans spectrum, but he mostly stumbles through it (ie. a trans woman is referred to as ‘he’). As other reviews have pointed out, this may be an issue of translation, but it’s an issue nonetheless.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of this work was the art. Coryn’s cartoony style isn’t groundbreaking, but it certainly injects a good dose of humour into the work which I loved. And, to be fair to Brenot, I did learn a lot of fun factoids. This was a decent, though far from great, overview of this sometimes still taboo subject.
A lukewarm recommendation, but far from terrible!
The first major flaw is scope: unsurprisingly, this is very Euro-centric with some forays in Persia and Egypt. Otherwise, Brenot only examines sex in the Western world, which is fine, but also a bit disappointing. Also, despite this relatively narrow scope, it also felt like Brenot tried to cram too much information into too-short a page count. I feel a bit guilty being hypocritical like this, but if you’re going to tackle a subject like this, I think it would work much better to clearly narrow the focus and dive deeper into said subject.
Of course, mileage will vary greatly with my above critique, but something to keep in mind if you’re thinking of picking this up!
Secondly, Brenot doesn’t seem to have a firm grasp on sexuality that isn’t hetero. There was quite a bit of material that went over homosexuality, but almost strictly between men. There was a handful of pages that talked about Sappho and her work, but otherwise, I can’t remember any other mention of lesbian/sapphic women (though please correct me if I’m wrong). Brenot attempts to broach the trans spectrum, but he mostly stumbles through it (ie. a trans woman is referred to as ‘he’). As other reviews have pointed out, this may be an issue of translation, but it’s an issue nonetheless.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of this work was the art. Coryn’s cartoony style isn’t groundbreaking, but it certainly injects a good dose of humour into the work which I loved. And, to be fair to Brenot, I did learn a lot of fun factoids. This was a decent, though far from great, overview of this sometimes still taboo subject.
A lukewarm recommendation, but far from terrible!
Shelved as 'dnf'
March 1, 2019this has some really blatant issues with heteronormativity that i could have ignored, but it’s also racist? no thanks
December 23, 2018
Pop Sugar Reading Challenge 2018
Un libro con una alteración en el título.
Un libro con una alteración en el título.
March 29, 2024
Насправді доволі пізнавально в плані бачення картини європи та США в різні періоди людства, а ще доволі фамістично й ліберально, ілюстрації гарні, дуже дивує, що книга 12+ звісно, це шок
October 7, 2017
Přečíst! Tečka.
Dozvíte se třeba, že ius primae noctis je jen pověra. Že Kleopatra měla docela crazy nápady. Že mýty o stvoření světa jsou mnohem zábavnější než historie, kterou známe ze školy.
A Sexkomiks se vám bude líbit, protože je vkusný a vtipný a poučný (i když muž říkal, že některé info v něm nejsou pravdivé).
Dozvíte se třeba, že ius primae noctis je jen pověra. Že Kleopatra měla docela crazy nápady. Že mýty o stvoření světa jsou mnohem zábavnější než historie, kterou známe ze školy.
A Sexkomiks se vám bude líbit, protože je vkusný a vtipný a poučný (i když muž říkal, že některé info v něm nejsou pravdivé).
September 22, 2018
This book was graphic, funny, and informative. Not just about sex and relationships, but with the travel through history, and how society and roles have really shaped the way we look at people, sex dynamics, and just humans in general. I loved the history behind everything.
April 1, 2020
Kreslená exkurze do dějin sexu. Nejspíš se najde hodně čtenářů, kterým bude Sex Komix připadat vulgární (ano, je tam hodně nahoty a ztopořených pyjů), ale ti si klidně můžou jít číst Pýchu a předsudek a dál natahovat cudný dečky nohám od stolů a židlí.
Podle mě je vtipný, rozumný a příjemně edukativní. Dokážu si představit, že až bude našemu dítěti +-15, bez výčitek a zbytečnýho ostychu mu dám knihu přečíst.
Podle mě je vtipný, rozumný a příjemně edukativní. Dokážu si představit, že až bude našemu dítěti +-15, bez výčitek a zbytečnýho ostychu mu dám knihu přečíst.
May 16, 2022
Весело-пізнавальна книжка для вікової категорії 14-20 років.
February 14, 2020
Spassoso. Si passa attraverso momenti di scroscianti risate a riflessivi risolini. Garbatamente, "o quasi per niente", si toccano tutte le varie epoche attraverso le usanze e i costumi più intimi che più gli appartenevano. Alcuni dati sono comunque sconcertanti.. E sopratutto alcune pratiche assolutamente inconcepibili ancora in uso.
Esperimento riuscito, simpatico e sicuramente informativo questo bel librone illustrato si fa leggere scorrevolmente, se non fosse per la necessità di far riposare le braccia ogni tanto a causa del peso importante del testo.
Esperimento riuscito, simpatico e sicuramente informativo questo bel librone illustrato si fa leggere scorrevolmente, se non fosse per la necessità di far riposare le braccia ogni tanto a causa del peso importante del testo.
August 16, 2022
Чудово ілюструє розвиток та занепад суспільного сприйняття інтимної сфери, із забобонами, проривами, заборонами та помилками, підкріпленими історичними фактами, про які не дуже часто говорять історики в контексті тієї чи іншої епохи. Бо встидно, коллєги не так зрозуміють, і люди шось скажуть, і мораль суспільна страшно спогляда із свого химерного кута, виблискуючи застрашеними очиськами (географічно це більше стосується наших країв).
Оргії на честь старих богів, розкута Античність, церковний контроль над сексуальним життям, поява секс-іграшок, цікавинки з життя історичних особистостей, еволюція шлюбу та поняття кохання - і це далеко не все, що тут можна знайти. Плюс гумор, його тут достатньо, і він непоганий.
Хотілося б чогось подібного про зміну відношення до сексу в українському суспільстві.
Намальовано як треба. Перекладено чудово. Чому ви ще собі не придбали - незрозуміло. От тільки не кажіть, що вас лякають чи обурюють малюнки піструнів, піхв чи грудей. Бо це якась надмірна заскорузлість.
Оргії на честь старих богів, розкута Античність, церковний контроль над сексуальним життям, поява секс-іграшок, цікавинки з життя історичних особистостей, еволюція шлюбу та поняття кохання - і це далеко не все, що тут можна знайти. Плюс гумор, його тут достатньо, і він непоганий.
Хотілося б чогось подібного про зміну відношення до сексу в українському суспільстві.
Намальовано як треба. Перекладено чудово. Чому ви ще собі не придбали - незрозуміло. От тільки не кажіть, що вас лякають чи обурюють малюнки піструнів, піхв чи грудей. Бо це якась надмірна заскорузлість.
September 25, 2020
Excelente! Uma descrição histórica humorística da evolução da sexualidade humana, sem medo nem taboos. Óptimo para jovens psiquiatras ainda a abrir horizonte acerca da abordagem destas temáticas. A utilização da BD é divertidíssima. Cinco estrelas!
June 4, 2023
Мінус одна зірочка за те, що в цілій книжці не знайшлося місця ні клітору, ні вульві, на противагу абсолютному різноманіттю форм, розмірів і кольорів членів.
October 1, 2017
Ich habe mich sehr auf das Erscheinen dieses etwas anderen Buchprojekts aus Frankreich gefreut. Hierbei handelt es sich um einen kulturgeschichtlichen Abriss der schönsten Nebensache der Welt im Comicformat.
Das Cover von "Sex Story" ist sehr schlicht, das großformatige, gebundene Buch macht allerdings einiges her. Die Illustrationen sind alle farbig gestaltet und wie ein Comic aufgebaut. Der Zeichenstil ist teilweise einfach und je nach Bedarf filigraner und detailreicher. Das ergibt einige tolle großflächige Bilder. Es ist nicht mein Lieblingszeichenstil, aber insgesamt habe ich wahnsinnig gerne durch das Buch geblättert und die einzelnen Abschnitte entdeckt.
Es beginnt zeitlich mit dem Homo habilis und schraubt sich bis über die Gegenwart sogar zu einem Zukunftsausblick hinaus. Es werden die Entstehungsgeschichte der Sexualität laut Bibel, ägyptischer und persicher Kultur erläutert. Teilweise waren da so "abgedrehte" Glaubensansichten dabei, das ich mich fragen musste, ob so etwas absurdes tatsächlich angenommen wurde. Gleichzeitig war es total spannend neues über das Sexualleben anderer Völker und Kulturen zu lernen.
Vieles war mir aber auch schon bekannt, wie zum Beispiel die Bordell-Situation in Rom und Pompej. Der Umgang von Männern und Knaben in Griechenland oder die Prüderie im 19. Jahrhundert.
Dann gab es aber auch noch unbekannte, pikante Fakten über berühmte Persönlichkeiten der Geschichte wie Cleopatra oder Queen Victoria.
Man sollte sich bewusst sein, dass man auf 200 Seiten nur einen allgemeinen Blick über die Jahrhunderte hinweg mit wenig Tiefgang bekommt. Ich empfand die Leute und Themen aber als gute Möglichkeit, je nach Interesse, selbst einmal genauer zu recherchieren. Dafür machen die freizügigen Illustrationen "Sex Story" zu einem besonderen Leseerlebnis, dass ich nicht missen möchte.
Der Abriss einer sexuellen Kulturgeschichte in Bildern ist spannend, anschaulich und informativ. Ich finde es toll, dass sich der btb-Verlag diesem außergewöhnlichen Buchprojekt abgenommen hat.
Das Cover von "Sex Story" ist sehr schlicht, das großformatige, gebundene Buch macht allerdings einiges her. Die Illustrationen sind alle farbig gestaltet und wie ein Comic aufgebaut. Der Zeichenstil ist teilweise einfach und je nach Bedarf filigraner und detailreicher. Das ergibt einige tolle großflächige Bilder. Es ist nicht mein Lieblingszeichenstil, aber insgesamt habe ich wahnsinnig gerne durch das Buch geblättert und die einzelnen Abschnitte entdeckt.
Es beginnt zeitlich mit dem Homo habilis und schraubt sich bis über die Gegenwart sogar zu einem Zukunftsausblick hinaus. Es werden die Entstehungsgeschichte der Sexualität laut Bibel, ägyptischer und persicher Kultur erläutert. Teilweise waren da so "abgedrehte" Glaubensansichten dabei, das ich mich fragen musste, ob so etwas absurdes tatsächlich angenommen wurde. Gleichzeitig war es total spannend neues über das Sexualleben anderer Völker und Kulturen zu lernen.
Vieles war mir aber auch schon bekannt, wie zum Beispiel die Bordell-Situation in Rom und Pompej. Der Umgang von Männern und Knaben in Griechenland oder die Prüderie im 19. Jahrhundert.
Dann gab es aber auch noch unbekannte, pikante Fakten über berühmte Persönlichkeiten der Geschichte wie Cleopatra oder Queen Victoria.
Man sollte sich bewusst sein, dass man auf 200 Seiten nur einen allgemeinen Blick über die Jahrhunderte hinweg mit wenig Tiefgang bekommt. Ich empfand die Leute und Themen aber als gute Möglichkeit, je nach Interesse, selbst einmal genauer zu recherchieren. Dafür machen die freizügigen Illustrationen "Sex Story" zu einem besonderen Leseerlebnis, dass ich nicht missen möchte.
Der Abriss einer sexuellen Kulturgeschichte in Bildern ist spannend, anschaulich und informativ. Ich finde es toll, dass sich der btb-Verlag diesem außergewöhnlichen Buchprojekt abgenommen hat.
November 23, 2021
Français ci-dessous
Kind of hard to rate a graphic novel like this one. When the scope is so great, there's a lot of room for "holes" - either due to lack of historical/written evidence/documentation or because it's simply not possible to include every perspective in one volume. But there's a bit of speculation for both the distant past and the future so why not include more about the non dominant culture?
In the English reviews I noted complaints that there's no bibliography, but there is a limited one in the French version. Perhaps it wasn't included because the books referenced weren't available in English.
Also in french the secondary title calls it the "first" graphic novel about the history of sexuality, so it gives hope that there will be more histories published. The author later published two books about the history of sexuality with illustrations by the same graphic artist. How many reviews on Goodreads?
-vol 1 on Europe : 16
-vol 2 on Asia & Africa**: 8
**Mind you, lots of people mentioned that this perspective was missing from the graphic novel and they would rush out to buy something on this topic. Yeah sure.
Un peu difficile de donner des étoiles/une critique sur une BD comme celle-là. Même si le "scope" est trop large il y a forcément des trous, soit une manque d'évidence historique/écrit sur les femmes, soit car il n'était pas possible d'inclure chaque perspective. Elle s'appelle la "première histoire" donc on peut espérer que l'histoire continuera dans d'autres BD. Ils ont publié deux livres sur le même thème, vol 1 sur l'Europe, vol 2 sur l'Asie et l'Afrique - beaucoup de critiques sur Goodreads à ce sujet (la BD est trop eurocentrique), mais combien d'avis sur
-vol 1? 16...
-vol 2? 8.
Donc qu'est ce que vous voulez messieurs dames ?
Kind of hard to rate a graphic novel like this one. When the scope is so great, there's a lot of room for "holes" - either due to lack of historical/written evidence/documentation or because it's simply not possible to include every perspective in one volume. But there's a bit of speculation for both the distant past and the future so why not include more about the non dominant culture?
In the English reviews I noted complaints that there's no bibliography, but there is a limited one in the French version. Perhaps it wasn't included because the books referenced weren't available in English.
Also in french the secondary title calls it the "first" graphic novel about the history of sexuality, so it gives hope that there will be more histories published. The author later published two books about the history of sexuality with illustrations by the same graphic artist. How many reviews on Goodreads?
-vol 1 on Europe : 16
-vol 2 on Asia & Africa**: 8
**Mind you, lots of people mentioned that this perspective was missing from the graphic novel and they would rush out to buy something on this topic. Yeah sure.
Un peu difficile de donner des étoiles/une critique sur une BD comme celle-là. Même si le "scope" est trop large il y a forcément des trous, soit une manque d'évidence historique/écrit sur les femmes, soit car il n'était pas possible d'inclure chaque perspective. Elle s'appelle la "première histoire" donc on peut espérer que l'histoire continuera dans d'autres BD. Ils ont publié deux livres sur le même thème, vol 1 sur l'Europe, vol 2 sur l'Asie et l'Afrique - beaucoup de critiques sur Goodreads à ce sujet (la BD est trop eurocentrique), mais combien d'avis sur
-vol 1? 16...
-vol 2? 8.
Donc qu'est ce que vous voulez messieurs dames ?
January 16, 2020
Non fatevi trarre in inganno, perché non si tratta di un testo goliardico né infantile. Le informazioni contenute all’interno sono vere, anche se omesse dai libri di storia.
Il libro è strutturato in vari capitoli che partono dalle origini dell’uomo fino ad arrivare a ipotizzare un futuro non troppo lontano, popolato da uomini-macchine che non hanno più bisogno del contatto fisico per avere un orgasmo. Scorrendo le pagine, le curiosità relative a moltissimi personaggi storici che pensavamo di conoscere benissimo emergono a bizzeffe, contribuendo a completare i quadri relativi alle loro personalità.
...continua sul blog: https://tralemaniunlibro.blogspot.com...
Il libro è strutturato in vari capitoli che partono dalle origini dell’uomo fino ad arrivare a ipotizzare un futuro non troppo lontano, popolato da uomini-macchine che non hanno più bisogno del contatto fisico per avere un orgasmo. Scorrendo le pagine, le curiosità relative a moltissimi personaggi storici che pensavamo di conoscere benissimo emergono a bizzeffe, contribuendo a completare i quadri relativi alle loro personalità.
...continua sul blog: https://tralemaniunlibro.blogspot.com...
August 22, 2020
Very French-centric, but exceedingly informative too, especially in revealing the historical connotations of certain categories & ideas we have come to take for granted. Its progressive argument for the importance of teaching the history of sexuality is relevant and commendable.
July 16, 2023
Гарні малюнки, ��агато фактів без води, легко читається з будь-якого місця. Однаково цікаво для дорослих, а також доступно та без зайвих перебільшень для дітей — буде гарним подарунком і додатком до сімейної бібліотеки)
September 1, 2018
Interesting and ridiculously thorough (*cough cough*).
December 22, 2019
Napriek niektorým nepresnostiach je Sexkomiks dobrý spôsob, ako búrať rôzne tabu. Kniha dostala trvalé miesto v mojej knižnici.
January 17, 2023
Diluito lungo quasi due settimane.
L'hanno criticato perché è troppo concentrato sulla Francia (sfido io, è fatto da francesi!) e perché non descrive la vita sessuale dei Nambikwara dell'Amazzonia e questo vuol dire che è un libro razzista. Non facendo caso che si tratta solo della prima storia del sesso a fumetti.
L'hanno criticato perché i colori di alcuni personaggi sono troppo scuri e, visto che questi personaggi sono schiavi, allora le persone di colore sono sempre schiave ed è razzista.
L'hanno criticato perché usa i pronomi sbagliati per riferirsi a persone trans.
Qualcuno l'ha addirittura criticato perché i personaggi son tutti sani e non mancano arti o non ci sono difetti fisici evidenti. Perché si sa che nell'antichità le cure ospedaliere erano efficientissime e allora anche se uno perdeva un braccio, i dottori dell'epoca riuscivano subito a salvarlo.
Per quanto sia molto informativo e pieno di spunti interessanti, ho fatto veramente fatica a finirlo. Ho dovuto leggere un capitoletto per sera, mentre mangiavo i miei cereali. Insomma, son più che disposta a leggere anche il secondo... in francese. Però sì, un po' pesante.
L'unica mia critica sui contenuti - a parte il costante vittimismo di tutte le donne presenti - riguarda la pederastia. A pagina 62 gli autori dicono correttamente che per gli antichi greci i nostri orientamenti sessuali non sono comprensibili perché diversa è la loro visione del mondo e dell'amore. E fin qua tanto di cappello: è raro che qualcosa di moderno accetti che il mondo prima vedeva le cose in maniera diversa rispetto a quello che facciamo noi. Però poi la questione si fa spinosa.
Però, ecco, mi sembra che in questo frangente la descrizione di questi rapporti tra ragazzini e adulti sia stata un po' troppo... positiva? Gli autori hanno sottolineato solo gli aspetti positivi di questi rapporto, senza neanche menzionare possibili aspetti negativi. E la cosa mi ha lasciato con un po' di amaro in bocca.
Fabietto mi aveva avvertito che c'era un forte sentore di femminismo in questo libro. E ho dovuto dargli ragione: non è possibile che tutte le donne siano sempre e solo vittime del patriarcato. Perché adesso va di moda sentirsi sempre e comunque vittime di qualcosa?
Altro? Al momento non mi viene in mente nulla. Di certo ho intenzione di leggere anche il secondo volume dedicato all'Africa e all'Asia. E i miei poveri Nambikwara rimangono sempre fuori... :-)
L'hanno criticato perché è troppo concentrato sulla Francia (sfido io, è fatto da francesi!) e perché non descrive la vita sessuale dei Nambikwara dell'Amazzonia e questo vuol dire che è un libro razzista. Non facendo caso che si tratta solo della prima storia del sesso a fumetti.
L'hanno criticato perché i colori di alcuni personaggi sono troppo scuri e, visto che questi personaggi sono schiavi, allora le persone di colore sono sempre schiave ed è razzista.
L'hanno criticato perché usa i pronomi sbagliati per riferirsi a persone trans.
Qualcuno l'ha addirittura criticato perché i personaggi son tutti sani e non mancano arti o non ci sono difetti fisici evidenti. Perché si sa che nell'antichità le cure ospedaliere erano efficientissime e allora anche se uno perdeva un braccio, i dottori dell'epoca riuscivano subito a salvarlo.
Per quanto sia molto informativo e pieno di spunti interessanti, ho fatto veramente fatica a finirlo. Ho dovuto leggere un capitoletto per sera, mentre mangiavo i miei cereali. Insomma, son più che disposta a leggere anche il secondo... in francese. Però sì, un po' pesante.
L'unica mia critica sui contenuti - a parte il costante vittimismo di tutte le donne presenti - riguarda la pederastia. A pagina 62 gli autori dicono correttamente che per gli antichi greci i nostri orientamenti sessuali non sono comprensibili perché diversa è la loro visione del mondo e dell'amore. E fin qua tanto di cappello: è raro che qualcosa di moderno accetti che il mondo prima vedeva le cose in maniera diversa rispetto a quello che facciamo noi. Però poi la questione si fa spinosa.
«L'omosessualità come la intendiamo oggi è molto rara nella Grecia classica. È spesso condannata perché, paradossalmente, la società greca antica è in qualche modo "omofoba". Non accetta una relazione duratura tra due uomini.Magari sarò io che sto giudicando la faccenda con il metro di giudizio moderno, ma puoi chiamarla pederastia
Ad Atene si disprezzano la prostituzione omosessuale e il travestitismo, perché gli uomini non devono in nessun caso essere effeminati, cioè inferiori.
Il destino di un uomo è infatti prima di tutto sposarsi con una donna che gli dia dei figli. Il matrimonio, peraltro, è un accordo familiare, e non un legame amoroso tra gli sposi.
L'uomo può quindi intrattenere una relazione intima pedagogica, ma temporanea, con un giovinetto, definita "pederastia".
La pederastia ad Atene è una relazione pedagogica tra un giovane sposo - un cittadino di Atene - e un ragazzo in età prepuberale che sarà iniziato alla vita sociale e all'intimità amorosa per poter diventare a sua volta un "cittadino". In un certo senso si tratta di un rito iniziatico di passaggio all'età adulta e alla qualità di membro della comunità. Va anche precisato che il costume della pederastia esisteva solo all'interno di una certa classe aristocratica e poi, in maniera più ampia, borghese, ma non era una pratica comune.
L'amante (erastes) è un uomo di circa trent'anni, che sceglie l'amato (eromenos) per la sua bellezza e giovinezza.
L'efebo ha circa dodici anni, ma soprattutto è imberbe. È l'assenza di peli a determinare l'attrazione.
L'amante dedica tempo ed energia a fare del suo amato un "buon cittadino". In cambio l'amato si offre intimamente all'amante, che ha sempre un ruolo attivo. Fe***tio, rapporti intercrurali (tra le cosce), so***ia...
L'amante è fiero del suo amato, è dichiara pubblicamente il suo amore, considerato rispettabile.
Allo stesso tempo sarebbe sconveniente che un adulto trovasse attraente un altro adulto: l'amore tra uomini è considerato indegno di un cittadino onorevole.
Tuttavia la relazione è temporanea e destinata a terminare qualche anno dopo, con il passaggio alla pubertà.
Una volta sposato, il giovane cittadino diventerà a sua volta l'amante e iniziatore di un altro efebo.
Però, ecco, mi sembra che in questo frangente la descrizione di questi rapporti tra ragazzini e adulti sia stata un po' troppo... positiva? Gli autori hanno sottolineato solo gli aspetti positivi di questi rapporto, senza neanche menzionare possibili aspetti negativi. E la cosa mi ha lasciato con un po' di amaro in bocca.
Fabietto mi aveva avvertito che c'era un forte sentore di femminismo in questo libro. E ho dovuto dargli ragione: non è possibile che tutte le donne siano sempre e solo vittime del patriarcato. Perché adesso va di moda sentirsi sempre e comunque vittime di qualcosa?
Altro? Al momento non mi viene in mente nulla. Di certo ho intenzione di leggere anche il secondo volume dedicato all'Africa e all'Asia. E i miei poveri Nambikwara rimangono sempre fuori... :-)
August 27, 2022
The Story of Sex is an ambitious book that attempts to go through the entire history of mankind and how our view on sex, sexuality, realtionships and all things related to love have changed throughout the centuries. It starts from the very beginning before humans learned to speak and continues all the way to the modern era.
The story itself is an interesting one, but it has quite a few flaws, the one main one beings what it wants to be and to what audience. It is praiseworthy how much the book wants to tell, there is a ton of stuff filled in to these pages, but because of it, only few subjects are thoroughly explored. This problem gets even worse in the 20th century where it is mostly namedropping events and people as there is all too much to really properly explore. It is not entirely bad thing, it really does cover a lot of bases and reveal a ton of stuff about the history of sex, but I was also frequently left dissapointed as interesting subjects were mentioned and then forgotten in the very next line. There are fascinating claims that the book makes but which are never explained and it can leave you borderline doubting if it is accurate or not. But, as said, it is also laudable how much they have here in a single book.
The other question that I kept nagging me was the question of audience: the artstyle is quite childish and simple, suggesting that the book was made for young adults interested in all of this, yet there are historical references and topics that seem to require a bit more from the reader. In the end, I felt like this might be somewhat lacking in the eyes of both parties: not bad, but not tailor-made for them, or anyone.
Overall, it is an interesting comic book that while revealed a lot, left me yearning to learn even more from topics that interested me.
The story itself is an interesting one, but it has quite a few flaws, the one main one beings what it wants to be and to what audience. It is praiseworthy how much the book wants to tell, there is a ton of stuff filled in to these pages, but because of it, only few subjects are thoroughly explored. This problem gets even worse in the 20th century where it is mostly namedropping events and people as there is all too much to really properly explore. It is not entirely bad thing, it really does cover a lot of bases and reveal a ton of stuff about the history of sex, but I was also frequently left dissapointed as interesting subjects were mentioned and then forgotten in the very next line. There are fascinating claims that the book makes but which are never explained and it can leave you borderline doubting if it is accurate or not. But, as said, it is also laudable how much they have here in a single book.
The other question that I kept nagging me was the question of audience: the artstyle is quite childish and simple, suggesting that the book was made for young adults interested in all of this, yet there are historical references and topics that seem to require a bit more from the reader. In the end, I felt like this might be somewhat lacking in the eyes of both parties: not bad, but not tailor-made for them, or anyone.
Overall, it is an interesting comic book that while revealed a lot, left me yearning to learn even more from topics that interested me.
April 1, 2024
C’était très intéressant! Il y a énormément de notions, mais c’est bien résumé. Certaines idées auraient pu être plus approfondies, comme la question de l’identité de genre qui est seulement effleurée et qui me semble beaucoup plus complexe. Je crois que ça aurait mérité un paragraphe dans les définitions de la fin. Chose certaine, la bd nous permet de bien remettre en perspective l’évolution de la sexualité au fil du temps, et de voir qu’on est chanceux de vivre à une époque et dans un pays beaucoup plus libres. Des préjugés vieux de plusieurs siècles sont toujours bien ancrés dans notre société, et il est important de savoir d’où ils viennent pour mieux continuer à lutter contre eux. Bravo! On a besoin d’en apprendre davantage sur l’histoire, surtout quand il s’agit d’un sujet encore si tabou!
December 11, 2021
https://nwhyte.livejournal.com/3818893.html
This is actually a lot less exciting than it sounds, a brisk history of white people's sexuality (a follow-up volume looks at Asia and Africa) looking also at historical understandings of marriage and other sexual arrangements. Philippe Brenot is a veteran French sexologist who has written two dozen other books on the subject, and artist Laetitia Coryn is a well-known bandes dessinées writer who is also an actor and voiceover artist. It's not especially erotic, though it's certainly descriptive. In general the points landed fairly and not too didactically; but the scope is not particularly broad.
This is actually a lot less exciting than it sounds, a brisk history of white people's sexuality (a follow-up volume looks at Asia and Africa) looking also at historical understandings of marriage and other sexual arrangements. Philippe Brenot is a veteran French sexologist who has written two dozen other books on the subject, and artist Laetitia Coryn is a well-known bandes dessinées writer who is also an actor and voiceover artist. It's not especially erotic, though it's certainly descriptive. In general the points landed fairly and not too didactically; but the scope is not particularly broad.
March 23, 2021
Komiks byl super, je v něm spousta informací, které dokáží vyvrátit některé fakty, které se u nás tradují jako "normální" a "tradiční", zároveň poukazuje na to, že je v pohodě být takový či takový. Osobně mi to ale občas přišlo takové, že autoři vlastně neví, na které straně stojí, hádám, že se pokoušeli o neutralitu a o to, aby vyvrátili ty špatné "fakta", ale nakonec mi přišlo, že komiks není moc neutrální, ale spíš beznázorový. Ale rozhodně doporučuju všem, kteří by věděli rádi něco z historie sexuality, myslím, že vám toho komiks spoustu dá :)
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