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 connection between sex and power.
Richard Bernstein defines the East widely—northern Africa, the Middle East, Asia, the Pacific Islands—and frames it as a place where sexual pleasure was not commonly associated with sin, as it was in the West, and where a different sexual culture offered the Western men who came as conquerers and traders thrilling but morally ambiguous opportunities that were mostly unavailable at home.
Bernstein maps this erotic history through a chronology of notable personalities. And throughout, Bernstein explores the lives of those women who suffered for or profited from the fantasies of Western men.
A remarkable work of history: as unexpected as it is lucid, and as provocative as it is brilliantly illuminating. He lives in New York City. Bohemians at Home and AbroadSometime in , a foreign English teacher in Shanghai posted a message on the Internet in which he bragged about how easy it was for him to have sex with young Chinese women, mostly his former students. I sent Susan an e-mail to flirt with her, and I professed my love to Wendy on her blog. In any case, he gave no name or other clearly identifying detail about himself, which was perhaps not very brave, though maybe a life- saving precaution, given the murderously furious response he elicited from Chinese men.
Do you still want to treat the foreigners as important? Do you still quiver when you see foreigners? Please straighten out your backbones. He disclosed details about his sex partners—for example, that the woman he called Tingting was a married doctor—and these bits and pieces of information could be put together to identify the foreigner. It should be noted here that, while it is illegal in China to lure women into prostitution, there is no law against consensual sexual relationsbetween adults, even when one of those adults is a boastful foreigner and the other an innocent Chinese woman.
