Motifs in Sexual Science

This chapter places Ulrichs' scholarship within the larger constellation of sexual science. The major motifs discussed here include: the methodology of the case study, debates as to whether sexual research should become public knowledge or remain sequestered among experts, the civic meaning of discourses of nature, Ulrichs' influence on British sexologists, and an explanation of how the story of sexual science is altered by a narrative that commences with and centers around Ulrichs' legacy. The chapter shows how examinations of Ulrichs' political and scientific innovations are a wedge opening new insights into the history of sexual science, legal systems, and Western amatory codes.