Chumps

August 23, 1:02 PMSF Literary ExaminerSonny Smith

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photo by: Phyllis Christopher

When folks see SEX and BOOKS they think it’s all ‘wang in hand’ type stuff, not so chumps, sex in literature can be romantic, even philosophic: 

“Another bed which was an aphrodisiac was the Bohemian mattress on the floor. Escaping from the elevation seemed also to bring one closer to the earth, to flesh, and there was no fear of rolling away from the bed, falling. It suggested a lair, closer to primitive life, Oriental life, closer to the senses, travel and camping in the deserts, closer to human and animal nature. It reminded me of Fatima in Morocco, of harems, tents of A Thousand and One Nights..." (Anais Nin)

Or more pastoral:  “He’d put his left arm about her waist and cupped her left breast in his hand. His look, at once confident and demanding, had hypnotized hers. Then his right hand had moved over her stomach. She had raised her hips so he could slide her panties from underneath her. The hot wet flame of her passion had grown unbearable.” (Chester Himes)

And finally, cartoonish: “His cock was throbbing like an arrow after it hits the bull’s-eye…” etc. etc. and on an on.  (Dana Mueller)

The first record of sex in literature comes from the ancient texts of Hinduism, Buddhism, and Jainism. The epics of ancient India, the Ramayana and Mahabharata, support the view that in ancient India, sex was considered a mutual duty between a married couple, where husband and wife pleasured each other equally…skip about twenty five hundred years to Chuck Palahniuk with his stories about masturbation that make people faint! William T. Vollman with his eye (and ear) on prostitution, Aimee Bender and the ole librarian/secret sex pervert shtick, well, sex is just great even when only reading about it. 

Here in San Francisco there is Carol Queen, let’s say she’s the Ramayana. Then there is Michelle Tea as the Mahabharata. They will be putting a show together at the Center for Sex and Culture called the Origin of Sin, a night of sex writings and performances. The Center shall be the mattress, or the Fatima, the harem or those tents. Madison Young can be the cartoonish. Kentucky Fried Woman can be the cock and Ms. Cherry Gallete can be the bull’s-eye. Miss Poppy Foxheart shall be the throbbing. Billie Sweet will be the hot wet flame and Lynn Breedlove, Sadie Lune, Wendy Delorme and T.R. Moss the thousand and one nights.