unfamiliar situations. 15 The promise of new and ‘exotic’ sexual experiences was thus
used to encourage and justify colonial expansion and to create a sense of adventure
and excitement amongst colonists. The promise of exotic sexually available women
allowed for “escapism of sexual fantasy” as it became portrayed as a “place where one could look for sexual experience unobtainable in Europe”. 16
Mytheli Sreenivas uses the example of the representations of Filipina
women’s bare breasts that were used to depict the Filipino population as savage and perverse, justifying the need for American imperial control. 17 As a result, white male
sexual continence became a defining virtue of white male identity. It was believed
that white men had greater control over their sexual desires than non-white populations and all women. 18 This reputation for superior self-control underscored white racial superiority compared to native communities. 19 The interconnected
histories of race and sexuality emphasise how both have been employed to justify
and advance colonialism. Imperialist control and intervention in sexuality served as
tools for imperial control over colonised bodies. This underscores the importance of
critically examining how these social constructions intersect with one another to
comprehend the broader patterns of power and domination that prevailed during
colonialism. Such an examination is necessary to understand the lasting
ramifications these constructs have on modern society.
The establishment of racial and sexual ideologies in colonial contexts,
coupled with colonial sexual encounters, gave rise to fears of interracial children who
would literally challenge existing power dynamics. This, in turn, fuelled a demand for regulation and control over interracial relationships. 20 The regulation of sexuality, in
this context, played a crucial role in promoting the notion of white supremacy and
maintaining colonial power. Through forms of intervention, colonial authorities sought
to control sexual behaviour in order to assert and uphold their racial desires and
supposed superiority. Furthermore, the presence of interracial babies made sexual
15 Ronald Hyam, Empire and Sexuality: The British Experience (Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1990)
16 Edward Said, Orientalism (London: Routledge, 1978), pp. 190. 17 Robert M. Buffington, Donna J. Guy, and Eithne Luibheid, pp. 67. 18 Robert M. Buffington, Donna J. Guy, and Eithne Luibheid, pp. 69. 19 ibid. 20 Robert M. Buffington, Donna J. Guy, and Eithne Luibheid, pp 57.
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