Sexual attraction is one of life’s greatest mysteries. Why are we attracted to unavailable people? How to link love with lust? What place do our fantasies have in the bedroom? What ARE our fantasies? In “The Erotic Mind,” psychologist Jack Morin presents an explanation he calls The Erotic Equation:
ATTRACTION + OBSTACLES = EXCITEMENT
What kinds of obstacles? Morin identifies four major themes, known as "The Four Corners of Eroticism:" - Longing & Anticipation - Violating Prohibitions - Searching for Power - Overcoming Ambivalence While we each have our own individual histories, all of us participate in the same realities of human existence. Morin suggests these are the four existential sources of arousal that transcend personal narrative.
The Four Corners of Eroticism play key roles in developing our erotic blueprints.
☞ Which ones play a part in your most compelling sexual events?
Instruction: Think back over all your sexual encounters with other people. Allow your mind to focus on two specific encounters that were among the most arousing of your entire life. What are your ideas about what made each of these encounters so exciting?
☞ Can you uncover any of these themes in your earliest sexual memories?
Instruction: Think back as far as your memory will take you, to the very first time you felt anything that seems even a little sexy or arousing. What do you remember about the circumstances surrounding this earliest experience of arousal?
For more descriptions of each, check out “The Erotic Mind” by Jack Morin or come in to talk with us about them!