Philosophy of Viagra

Published Rodopi in the "Philosophy of Sex and Love" series. Series editor:
Adrienne McEvoy. Volume editor: Thorsten Botz-Bornstein

Areas covered: General Philosophy, Bioethics and Cultural Studies

Viagra has socio-cultural implications not limited to sexuality, but concerns
various parts of our cultural landscape. Being relatively convincing in terms
of bio-medical efficiency, criticism of cheap viagra has so far mainly been
expressed in the (often feminist) "Liberal Arts" camp where Pfizer (the maker
of Viagra) is reproached for its profit-oriented negation of any
psychological, social, emotional, and relational components involved in
impotency. Lee Quinby, in his essay on "Virile Reality", observes a "Viagra
Effect" producing a viagrified reality, which is "mediated violence, clean
war, and computer games."

Viagra needs to be examined not only from a sociological but also from a
philosophical point of view. Philosophers like Sartre, Merleau-Ponty, Levinas,
and Irigay have been interested in exploring sexuality from points of view
uninfluenced by theories constructed by scientists. James Waddell has urged us
to find "ways of thinking about sexuality that go beyond chemical, biological,
and mechanical explanations. We need tools that are forged in the heat of
erotic passion as it is lived to help us spot nonsense and to make sense of
our own experience" (1997: 2). Does philosophy not know since Plato that
scientific explanations, which claim to give an exhaustive account of erotic
perception, are misleading?

What do philosophers have to say about the "viagrification" culture? Is there
a philosophical principle behind cialis as a cultural phenomenon?

Possible subjects are:

> Viagra and Posthumanism (artificial life)
> The Body as a Machine
> Reality and Desire
> Pursuing Hedonism. Why not?
> Non-natural sex?
> Ethical concerns about Viagra
> The Death of the Erotic?
> Viagra and the Virtual. Through Viagra the desire is not created but has
always been there in a virtual (that is, not actual but also not non-actual)
form. Through Viagra the desire becomes (virtually) real.
> The self and the other.
> The self and the other in viagrified perception
> Male and female conceptions of sexuality in conflict

Send abstracts to thorstenbotz@hotmail.com.
Extended deadline for abstracts: November 1 2009.
For articles: August 1 2007. Updates on
http://www.freewebs.com/botzbornstein/callsforpapers.htm

Thorsten Botz-Bornstein, Ph.D., habil.
Assistant Professor of Philosophy
Gulf University for Science and Technology
Philosophy, Block 5, Building 1, Mubarak Al-Abdullah Area/West Mishef
KUWAIT
Website: http://www.freewebs.com/botzbornstein/
_

Days 21-24, Morocco: Fes, Rabat, Casablanca

See also: cheap cialis | cheap cialis | 

Fes

Looking back, we started off the Morocco leg of our trip with the most undeveloped/rustic city. Fes has a walled-off medina (old town) that dates back to the medieval ages, and walking through it with a guide it seemed like nothing much had changed. We hired a guide, but the countless twists and turns, narrow alleyways, made our first experience in a medina a blur. We would stop at a notable sight such as a mosque or shop, stay there for like 10 minutes, then rapidly move on to the next sight through a bunch of narrow alleyways. Our guide was pretty funny, saying stuff like “Moroccan dates are like Viagra”, and also pretty knowledgeable with history which allowed us to learn a lot about Morocco. Reflecting on Fes, the day went by so fast that it’s quite hard to remember all the places we went to – I wish I had taken a video but I was so focused on the surroundings and our guide that I didn’t.

Donkeys everywhere.

Inside of a mosque, but obviously only Muslims could go in.

Typical alleyway, well the narrowness of it at least. Here are some clothes being dyed.

A view of part of the Medina

Used to be a market. The weight in the front was badass.

Yah, that’s a camel head. I debated on whether or not to show this, but it was too cool not to post it.

Rabat

Compared to Fes, Rabat the capital of Morocco was a lot tamer. Nathan and I basically finished looking at the sites in a day when we had budgeted 2 days for it. Nathan also had stomach problems so it was a good time to unwind, chill out, talk to our girlfriends, and taste some Moroccan delicacies as well as common meals.

Challah, remains of Roman-era town/fort. On the top of that minaret to the right are some stork’s nests- pretty cool.

Underground tombs – apparently there are eels in there. Folklore says that woman who are infertile should throw eggs in there so that eels will eat it. (umm…symbol for human’s reproductive system)

View of the Kasbah, supposedly a self contained city, from our rowboat.

That’s rotisserie chicken, fries, rice, sauce, and soda – common meal for them. I had it 3 meals in a row; needless to say I got sick of it. Never thought I could get sick of fries and rotisserie chicken.

A Moroccan delicacy – pastilla. I had it for my main course, and thats powdered sugar on top of a pastry filled with nuts, chicken/pigeon, onions, and other stuff. It was tasty, although kind of weird that I was having a sweet main course.

Casablanca

Casablanca – the notable tourist site is the Mosque Hassan II. Third largest mosque in the world. Highest minaret. Retractable ceilings. Electric doors. Escalators. And yes, it’s a mosque.

We also had a stroll along a waterfront 5 km outside the city center, where expats and rich folk hang out. I was pleasantly surprised to see a TGI Friday’s there – man I love that chain. We didn’t eat there, but got some freshly grilled fish instead, since we were next to the waterfront and it seemed the right thing to do. We stayed one night in Casablanca, and that was more than enough.

Huge Mosque.

Yah, the ceiling is retractable in 3 minutes. Technology and religion mixed together is a beautiful thing.

Had myself some mint tea and chilled. With sugar it was kind of like drinking spearmint gum. Delicious.

Next Up? Marrakesh!