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Perversity, Pornography, and the Psychology of the Male Species: An Overdue Rethinking of Robert Stoller’s Gender Theories

Author(s) : Richard Tuch

Reviews and Endorsements

This re-examination of the work of Robert Stoller in the light of contemporary thinking offers psychoanalysts a unique and thoughtful perspective, free from the rhetoric and ideology of political correctness and culture wars on gender, core gender identity, sexual excitement, sexual fantasy and the erotic lives of humans. In doing so, it reaffirms the rightful place of sexuality as a subversive force in the psychoanalytic understanding of the individual, as it advances a robust theory about the psychological and emotional development of the male specie.
Howard B. Levine, Editor-in-Chief of The Routledge W.R. Bion Studies Series; and Editor-in-Chief of French Psychoanalysis: Contemporary Voices, Classical Texts (Karnac)

In this engaging, clearly written, and scholarly book, Richard Tuch offers his readers a sorely needed rediscovery of his esteemed teacher, Robert Stoller’s original thinking about perversity, fetishization, and pornography. Calling attention to an overlooked aspect of Stoller's work, a deeper appreciation of the complexity of male psychological development is provided. In an era of “toxic masculinity” and attacks on the “feminine,” this unique book delivers important understandings to clinical practitioners and analytically-oriented social theorists alike.
Michael J. Diamond, Ph.D, Training and Supervising Analyst, Los Angeles Institute and Society for Psychoanalytic Studies; author, Masculinity and Its Discontents: The Male Psyche and the Inherent Tensions of Maturing Manhood and Ruptures in the American Psyche: Containing Destructive Populism in Perilous Times (Karnac)

Richard Tuch, M.D., has written a much-needed reconsideration of the psychoanalytic theories of the great American psychiatrist, Robert J. Stoller, M.D., whose work shined a light on marginal populations and enriched our understanding of normal sexuality and perversity. This thoughtful and long overdue study of Stoller’s work provides insight into the role that fantasy, fetishization, and arousal play in the development of the male psyche.
Gilbert Herdt, PhD, anthropologist and author of Guardians of the Flutes, Intimate Communications: Erotics and the Study of Culture (co-authored with Robert J. Stoller), and Third Sex, Third Gender

Tuch traces Stoller's understanding of core gender identity and the ongoing discussion of that topic in the psychoanalytic literature. He illustrates the power of Stoller's ideas in our understanding of fetishes, perversions, pornography, and their appearance in art and in life. He does this with a writing style that recalls that of Stoller - clear, jargon-free, and straightforward.
Robert Michel, MD, Emeritus University Professor of Psychiatry, Cornell University, Former Joint Editor-in-Chief International Journal of Psychoanalysis