Viagra Nation: Sex and the Prescribing of Familial Masculinity

Abstract

This article takes as its focus the discourses that emerged around access to Viagra. More specifically, the construction and privileging of a legal familial masculinity is addressed. These responses to Viagra provide the focus for a number of reasons. The debates marked a shift in public consideration of masculine sexuality in a variety of ways. Most notably, it introduced a degree of transparency in the public consideration of what was and what was not appropriate, and hence deserving, masculinity. The article starts by outlining the understanding of masculinity that underpins the subsequent analysis. It then moves to introduce aspects of the relationship between law and masculinity. It considers how the discourses around access relate to broader legal and cultural matrices that privilege a certain masculinity, one which is heterosexual, genito-centric, naturalistic, and above all familial. Importantly, the privileging of penile/ vaginal contact denies the legitimacy of other connections that do not exist within this economy. Finally, consideration is given to the wider question of what Viagra tells us about techniques of social organization.