The Nature of Eroticism

Eroticism is an experience of sexual stimulation, the process by which an individual is awakened to the possibility of sexual activity. The first point to note here is that while the author makes it clear that he is, in general, speaking of person-to-person eroticism, the term can also apply to other forms of sexual stimulation, to erotica (suggestive) as opposed to pornography (explicit). The second noteworthy point is that when eroticism comes into a relationship between two people, it becomes a dialogue, a sharing, a give and take in which both the displayer and viewer are aroused to considerations of participating in a sexual act.

The core themes of the book are grounded in the author's carefully researched contention that that eroticism became an essential component of the human sexual experience in response to the evolution of humanity from its pre-historic, near animal existence to...