ABSTRACT
Ever since Viagra put a spring in the step of millions of impotent men after coming onto the market in March, attention has been focused on the more mysterious key to sexual gratification among women. The problem has been that before pink Viagras or other such products could be tested, approved, and sold to the public, there had to be clarity on exactly what disease or disorder the drug would be treating. Clarifying women's sexual function and dysfunction has become not only complicated, but contentious, and therein lies an interesting story about sexuality, medicalization, globalization and feminism. Background social shifts such as increased longevity, a new freedom of choice about relationships, and new goals for recreation and physical wellbeing set the stage for changes in sexual life. Eventually, researchers might recognize that sexual life is contextualized for both men and women, and that men are not simply sexual robots. The global pharmaceutical industry is extremely large, wealthy and powerful.
