ABSTRACT
Fisher (this volume) would like us to understand the biological substratum that creates or influences our romantic, sexual, and affiliative behavior and feelings. If I were a devout social constructionist, I would be offended. Orthodox social constructionists would reinterpret Fisher's findings as a cultural inteipretation of biological and social data according to the meanings our culture has given palpitations, brain waves, and states of mind, rather than interpreting those states of mind as productive of states of being. The social construction of desire would be based more on the famous W. I. Thomas dictum, "What is seen as real, is real in its consequences". We define sweaty palms, increased heart rate, and nervousness as a sign of love rather than as a sign of, say, fear of rejection, and create a scale of emotions based on our initial category system.
