A Vida Sexual (1901-1933) de Egas Moniz: um discurso médico-científico sobre os corpos sexuados

Abstract

The purpose of this dissertation is to analyze the construction of notions of normal and pathological sexuality proposed by the Portuguese neurologist Egas Moniz (1874-1955) in two volumes of the book A Vida Sexual (1901-1933). The book is constructed by the intersection of different discourses from several knowledge fields, such as psychiatry and psychoanalysis. We propose a historical analysis of the context of production of the book and its medical contents from a gender point of view. Our attempt is to discuss, therefore, the production of a medical knowledge that determines the pattern of healthy and pathological sexuality which is grounded in a model of sexual differentiation developed in the Western, with contribution of medical discourses produced since the eighteenth century. By categorizing what was considered a deviant sexuality and, accordingly, its clinical control, Moniz,similar to a wide bibliography from this context, also sought to regulate women social behavior, in order to respond to contemporary challenges on the existing gender roles.