Comparing Freud And Beauvoir's Theories Of Sexuality

Throughout history there have been many different theories of sexuality developed. Two well-known philosophers, Freud and Beauvoir have created their own ideas of what sexuality is and the ways in which it developed. These two different philosophers have created theories that can be compared and contrasted in ways in which makes one think about their own beliefs of sexuality. These two philosophers biggest difference is in the way in which they view feminine sexuality. In this paper I will compare and contrast the theories of Freud and Beauvoir and explain why I agree with Beauvoir’s understanding of sexuality more than I agree with Freud’s. Freud entails through his theories that feminine sexuality is passive by nature. By describing women as passive he is also labeling the man as aggressive in their roles of sexuality and sexual intercourse together. Freud believes because of this, that women only engage in sexual intercourse in order to reproduce. Throughout his explanations of feminine sexuality, Freud tends to argue that men are superior to women. In some of his earlier theories he even describes women simply as men without penises. Later on, he discusses a certain topic called penis envy. Penis envy was developed by Freud due to his belief of why children, little girls,
He developed stages in which the libido, or sex drive, was attracted to different zones. In each of the zones, built up sexual tension is able to be released. The first stage is the oral stage and relates to the child’s pleasure in nursing from their mothers breast. The second stage is the anal stage. This relates to the pleasure a toddler receives by controlling their bowels and releasing their bladder. The third stage is the phallic stage and is when the child explores the pleasure of their genitals. The fourth and final stage is the latency stage. In this last stage the sexual feelings of the child are