Kinsey Response

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Kinsey Response

In the film “Kinsey”, Foucault’s concept of power can be seen in regards to sexuality. The dominant discourse shown at the beginning of the film was the Judeo-Christian discourse on sexuality. This discourse provided narratives for sex which perpetuated the belief that there was a “normal” way to have sex. For example, Dr. Kinsey asked a married couple if the husband performed oral sex on his wife, the husband replied that he in fact did not because such things would lead to cancer. When Dr. Kinsey asked where the couple heard of that absurd idea they said they learned it from a book on ideal sexual techniques for married people. From this point on in the film, Dr. Kinsey goes on a mission to de-center the dominant Christian discourse on sexuality. Kinsey debunks the sexual myths propagated in his society through a scientific approach. However, Kinsey in his attempts to de-center creates a new scientific center. There are other drawbacks to Kinsey’s approach including his negation of the emotional aspects of sexuality. Kinsey’s approach also becomes problematic in regards to the politics of drawing lines. Where does Kinsey draw the line? Does he view pedophilia only as a sexual variation?