Castration: An Abbreviated History of Western Manhood

This work looks at the West's fascination with, and misunderstanding of, castrated males, focusing on three key periods: the Early Church, the Early Modern, and the 20th century, where, Taylor argues, Freud got it wrong.

Table of Contents:
What Does Manhood Mean? 1. Contest of Texts: Christianity, Freudianity, Humanism 2. Contest of Males: The Power of Eunuchs 3. Contests of Organs: Genital Plural 4. Contest of Gods: Dream Divination 5. Contest of Reproductions: The Rise of the Penis, the Fall of the Scrotum 6. Contest of Genders: Castrating Women 7. Contest of Races: Castrated White Men 8. Contest of Kinds: Confusing Categories 9. Contest of Signs: Branded and Domesticated Male Animals 10. Contest of Times: What Would Jesus Do? The Future of Man AppendixL Thomas Middleton and A Game at Chess Acknowledgments

About the Author :
Gary Taylor is Professor of English and Director of the Hudson Strode Program in Renaissance Studies at the University of Alabama. His books include CulturalSelection: Why Some Achievements Stand the Test of Timeand Others Don't and Reinventing Shakespeare: A CulturalHistory from the Restoration to the Present. He is the general editor of the Oxford Shakespeare.

Review :
"...the good news is that Taylor is riveting on Middleton. ...Taylor knows his stuff..." -- Rowan Pelling, NewStatesman "The journey is entertaining and informativie..." -- Rowan Pelling, New Statesman "...Taylor seems as cheerily loony as his title. His prose style springs from the "groovy prof" school of writing, so Abelard and Foucault are quoted alongside Christina Aguilera and Tori Amos..." -- Rowan Pelling, New Statesman "Not for purists; great fun for anyone else." -- Choice, M.J. Emery, Cottey College "An absorbing treatise on the changing nature of manhood in Western culture. that uses a wide range of literature to explore male fears. It will reward sophisticated general readers with its wit and insight." -- PublishersWeekly "[An] absorbing treatise on the changing nature of manhood in Western culture. In this book, Taylor uses an imaginative analysis of the history and purposes of castration to examine the cultural construct of masculinity - specifically in relation to reproduction. Equally comfortable discussing the implications of pop singer Tori Amos's lyrics as he is reinterpreting the anti-sexual writings of church fathers Justin Martyr, Clement and Tertullian or Margaret Atwood's TheHandmaid's Tale, Taylor gracefully guides the reader through carefully constructed arguments that go so far as to declare that, in some times and cultures, being a eunich is a social advantage." -- Publishers Weekly "(continued) In a feat of bravura literary criticism, he uses a detailed explication of Thomas Middleton's obscure but important 1624 play A Game of Chess. as the centerpiece of his many-pronged cultural investigation - a move that is both audacious and illuminating. But while Taylor's expertise as a Renaissance scholar shines here, he shrewdly and subtly links the play's concerns to such varied historical events as the history of psychoanalysis and sexual racism toward blacks and Jews. Though of primary interest to literary scholars and historians of sexuality, this work will also reward sophisticated general readers with its wit. and insight." -- PublishersWeekly "This dense, scholarly yet thoroughly entertaining book examines the uses of castration... along with thousands of years' worth of popular attitudes about the male genitals. Taylor posits that understanding what it means to be biologically unmanned is an excellent way to understand what it means to be a man. You don't need to be enthusiastic about this thesis -- or even to be male -- to find Castration terrific reading." -- Salon "A passionate, provocative history of ideas about male sexuality--and the best account of castration you're ever likely to read." -- Maggie Paley, author of The Book ofthe Penis "Gary Taylor's Castration is learned, provocative, and surprisingly persuasive. It is entirely characteristic of its author, at once polemical and reasonable, historically detailed and wildly imaginative. I found it endlessly informative and compulsively readable." -- Stephen Orgel "Taylor's writing is "academic" in the best sense -- well-researched and unapologetically informed (and opinionated) about both high and popular culture. This isn't USA Today-style speculation about "trends" and"people." Taylor's ideas are so well-reasoned that thereader is gladly seduced into following each argument asfar as it goes. Taylor's uxtaposition of history,culture, and psychology, along with his comfort aboutsexuality, breaks new ground here. The reader'srelationship to genitalia -- his/her own and others' --is forever changed after reading this excellent book. Byexamining sexuality in its historical context, crucialfor understanding other civilizations, he makes thearbitrariness of our own erotic beliefs startlinglyvisible. - Marty Klein, Ph.D Libido: the Journal of Sexand Sensibility." "Taylor has written a thoroughly engaging and witty account of the history and misconceptions of castration... Castration provides a useful, original, lively, and long overdue look at one of mankind;s most essential physical and cultural components. -Virginia Quarterly Review."