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Intermediate Types Among Primitive Folk: A Study in Social Evolution
Excerpt from Intermediate Types Among Primitive Folk a Study in Social Evolution
That between the normal man and the normal woman there exist a great number of intermediate types - types, for instance, in which the body may be perfectly feminine, while the mind and feelings are decidedly masculine, or vice vend - is a thing which only a few years ago was very little under stood. But to-day - thanks to the labours of a number of scientific men - the existence of these types is gen erally recognised and admitted; it is known that the variations in question, whether affecting the body or the mind, are practically always congenital; and that similar variations have existed in consider able abundance in all ages and among all races of the world. Since the Christian era these inter mediate types have been much persecuted in some periods and places, while in others they have been mildly tolerated; but that they might possibly fulfil a positive and useful function of any kind in society is an idea which seems hardly if ever to have been seriously considered.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
That between the normal man and the normal woman there exist a great number of intermediate types - types, for instance, in which the body may be perfectly feminine, while the mind and feelings are decidedly masculine, or vice vend - is a thing which only a few years ago was very little under stood. But to-day - thanks to the labours of a number of scientific men - the existence of these types is gen erally recognised and admitted; it is known that the variations in question, whether affecting the body or the mind, are practically always congenital; and that similar variations have existed in consider able abundance in all ages and among all races of the world. Since the Christian era these inter mediate types have been much persecuted in some periods and places, while in others they have been mildly tolerated; but that they might possibly fulfil a positive and useful function of any kind in society is an idea which seems hardly if ever to have been seriously considered.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
- GenresSexualityNonfiction
185 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2003
1 person is currently reading
36 people want to read
About the author
Edward Carpenter
378 books63 followersEdward Carpenter was an English socialist poet, socialist philosopher, anthologist, and early gay activist.
A leading figure in late 19th- and early 20th-century Britain, he was instrumental in the foundation of the Fabian Society and the Labour Party. A poet and writer, he was a close friend of Walt Whitman and Rabindranath Tagore, corresponding with many famous figures such as Annie Besant, Isadora Duncan, Havelock Ellis, Roger Fry, Mahatma Gandhi, James Keir Hardie, J. K. Kinney, Jack London, George Merrill, E D Morel, William Morris, E R Pease, John Ruskin, and Olive Schreiner.[1]
As a philosopher he is particularly known for his publication of Civilisation, Its Cause and Cure in which he proposes that civilisation is a form of disease that human societies pass through. Civilisations, he says, rarely last more than a thousand years before collapsing, and no society has ever passed through civilisation successfully. His 'cure' is a closer association with the land and greater development of our inner nature. Although derived from his experience of Hindu mysticism, and referred to as 'mystical socialism', his thoughts parallel those of several writers in the field of psychology and sociology at the start of the twentieth century, such as Boris Sidis, Sigmund Freud and Wilfred Trotter who all recognised that society puts ever increasing pressure on the individual that can result in mental and physical illnesses such as neurosis and the particular nervousness which was then described as neurasthenia.
A strong advocate of sexual freedom, living in a gay community near Sheffield, he had a profound influence on both D. H. Lawrence and E. M. Forster.
A leading figure in late 19th- and early 20th-century Britain, he was instrumental in the foundation of the Fabian Society and the Labour Party. A poet and writer, he was a close friend of Walt Whitman and Rabindranath Tagore, corresponding with many famous figures such as Annie Besant, Isadora Duncan, Havelock Ellis, Roger Fry, Mahatma Gandhi, James Keir Hardie, J. K. Kinney, Jack London, George Merrill, E D Morel, William Morris, E R Pease, John Ruskin, and Olive Schreiner.[1]
As a philosopher he is particularly known for his publication of Civilisation, Its Cause and Cure in which he proposes that civilisation is a form of disease that human societies pass through. Civilisations, he says, rarely last more than a thousand years before collapsing, and no society has ever passed through civilisation successfully. His 'cure' is a closer association with the land and greater development of our inner nature. Although derived from his experience of Hindu mysticism, and referred to as 'mystical socialism', his thoughts parallel those of several writers in the field of psychology and sociology at the start of the twentieth century, such as Boris Sidis, Sigmund Freud and Wilfred Trotter who all recognised that society puts ever increasing pressure on the individual that can result in mental and physical illnesses such as neurosis and the particular nervousness which was then described as neurasthenia.
A strong advocate of sexual freedom, living in a gay community near Sheffield, he had a profound influence on both D. H. Lawrence and E. M. Forster.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
December 2, 2021
I like to grab random old books at the library which don't look like they've been checked out for the last 20 years. It's enriching to get some insight into what the forgotten words of the past had to say even if I may find them somewhat outdated or unfounded. Then sometimes the book is like this one which make you wonder why people are so behind it, even those who would suspect they are ahead of it.
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July 23, 2022“Draws a parallel between the androgynous shaman found in some non-western cultures and the modern forward-looking homosexual.”
June 18, 2013
Men who don't love fight or hunt and Women who refuse to spent their life in the house, discover necesserily other interests and occupations in order to vent their energies. And so these intermediate types become the beginners of new activities as life's scholars, magician, wizards, art teacher, prophets, medicine men, founder of science and literature. The fusion of feminine and masculine temperament produces people whose perception are so subtle, complex and rapid to be defined genial.
July 10, 2009
fascinating OLD OLD book about homosexuality - why are their gay people? what evolutionary purpose is served by having some people attach emotionally to others of the same gender?
soooo interesting!
soooo interesting!
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews