Sinners and Citizens
Bestiality and Homosexuality in Sweden, 1880-1950
432 pages
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18 halftones, 2 maps, 6 figures, 13 tables
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6 x 9
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© 2003
Sinners and Citizens explores how sexual habits changed in Sweden during its development from an agrarian society into a modern welfare state. Jens Rydström examines the history of homosexuality and bestiality in that country to consider why these sexual practices have been so closely linked in virtually all Western societies. He limns sharply the distinctive experience of rural life, showing that to regularly witness farm animals stirred passions and sparked ideas, especially among young farmhands.
Based on medical journals, psychiatric reports, and court records from the period, as well as testimonies from men in diaries, letters, and interviews, Sinners and Citizens reveals that bestiality was once a dreaded crime in Sweden. But in time, mention of the practice disappeared completely from legal and medical debates. This, Rydström contends, is because models of penetrative sodomy shifted from bestiality to homosexuality as Sweden transformed from a rural society into a more urban one. As the nation's economy and culture became less identified with the countryside, so too did its idea of deviant sexual behavior.
Based on medical journals, psychiatric reports, and court records from the period, as well as testimonies from men in diaries, letters, and interviews, Sinners and Citizens reveals that bestiality was once a dreaded crime in Sweden. But in time, mention of the practice disappeared completely from legal and medical debates. This, Rydström contends, is because models of penetrative sodomy shifted from bestiality to homosexuality as Sweden transformed from a rural society into a more urban one. As the nation's economy and culture became less identified with the countryside, so too did its idea of deviant sexual behavior.
Committee on Lesbian and Gay Hist, AHA: John Boswell Prize
Won
"Rydstrom’s book is a valuable addition to our knowledge about sodomy, male homosexuality, and the impact of modern discourses about sexuality on people’s lives. His biggest accomplishment is laying out the many ways that bestiality and same-sex contact were linked not only in person’s minds, but also sometimes in practice. . . . It is the combination of fascinating, often moving, stories and sophisticated analysis that makes this book a must-read for anyone interested in homosexuality or male sexuality . . . between 1880 and 1950.”—Clayton Whisnant, H-Net Reviews
“Sinners and Citizens is a highly original work. Jens Rydström offers countless new insights into the conceptual links between same-sex desire and bestiality in Sweden and beyond. This is truly a landmark study in the history of sexuality.”
"[An] important and sophisticated demonstration of the benefits of longue-durée analysis."
"A wonderfully readable study on Sweden's sexual varieties. [The author] adds another set of arguments to the continuing debate on the societal shift from criminalizing acts of 'sodomy' to the conscious expression of sexual identities."—Gert Hekma, European History Quarterly
Contents
List of Illustrations
List of Tables
Preface
Introduction
Theoretical Considerations
Structure of the Study
Method
Ethical Considerations
PART ONE: 18801920: THE SODOMY PARADIGM
1. A Broken Silence: Legislation and Society, 18801920
The Supreme Court
"Exceptional People"
Conclusions
2. Life in the Village: Bestiality in the Countryside, 18801920
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Forensic Psychiatry
Conclusions
3. Bedfellows and Sodomites: Sexuality between Men in the Countryside, 18801920
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Conclusions
First Interlude: "I Was Bolsius": Religious Fervor in Värmland, 18981901
4. Urban Cowboys and Small-Town Romance: Bestiality and Male Same-Sex Sexuality in the City, 18801920
Urban Bestiality
Male Same-Sex Sexual Practice
Social Control
Forensic Psychiatry
Conclusions
Second Interlude: "Then You Understand": Romantic Friendship in Härnösand, 1918
PART TWO: 19201950: THE HOMOSEXUAL PARADIGM
5. A Legal Dilemma: Legislation and the Central Government, 19201950
Punishment or Treatment?
Legislative Reform
The Church
The Supreme Court
Conclusions
6. A Tenacious Tradition: Bestiality in Rural Sweden, 19201950
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Forensic Psychiatry
Conclusions
7. Classified Ads and Hermaphrodites: Male Same-Sex Sexuality in Rural Sweden, 19201950
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Conclusions
Third Interlude: Looking for a Friend: Sodomy and Sexuality in Lapland, 19361944
8. Policing Male Networks: Male Same-Sex Sexuality in Urban Sweden, 19201950
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Forensic Psychiatry
Conclusions
Fourth Interlude: "I'm an Ordinary Bög": Urban Homosexual Culture Transposed
9. A Well of Desire: Female Same-Sex Sexuality, 18801950
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Conclusions
Concluding Discussion
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Paradigmatic Change
Appendix: Questions in Special Questionnaire Sp 226
Notes
Works Cited
Index
List of Tables
Preface
Introduction
Theoretical Considerations
Structure of the Study
Method
Ethical Considerations
PART ONE: 18801920: THE SODOMY PARADIGM
1. A Broken Silence: Legislation and Society, 18801920
The Supreme Court
"Exceptional People"
Conclusions
2. Life in the Village: Bestiality in the Countryside, 18801920
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Forensic Psychiatry
Conclusions
3. Bedfellows and Sodomites: Sexuality between Men in the Countryside, 18801920
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Conclusions
First Interlude: "I Was Bolsius": Religious Fervor in Värmland, 18981901
4. Urban Cowboys and Small-Town Romance: Bestiality and Male Same-Sex Sexuality in the City, 18801920
Urban Bestiality
Male Same-Sex Sexual Practice
Social Control
Forensic Psychiatry
Conclusions
Second Interlude: "Then You Understand": Romantic Friendship in Härnösand, 1918
PART TWO: 19201950: THE HOMOSEXUAL PARADIGM
5. A Legal Dilemma: Legislation and the Central Government, 19201950
Punishment or Treatment?
Legislative Reform
The Church
The Supreme Court
Conclusions
6. A Tenacious Tradition: Bestiality in Rural Sweden, 19201950
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Forensic Psychiatry
Conclusions
7. Classified Ads and Hermaphrodites: Male Same-Sex Sexuality in Rural Sweden, 19201950
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Conclusions
Third Interlude: Looking for a Friend: Sodomy and Sexuality in Lapland, 19361944
8. Policing Male Networks: Male Same-Sex Sexuality in Urban Sweden, 19201950
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Forensic Psychiatry
Conclusions
Fourth Interlude: "I'm an Ordinary Bög": Urban Homosexual Culture Transposed
9. A Well of Desire: Female Same-Sex Sexuality, 18801950
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Conclusions
Concluding Discussion
Sexual Practice
Social Control
Paradigmatic Change
Appendix: Questions in Special Questionnaire Sp 226
Notes
Works Cited
Index
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