Society has forced anal intercourse into a very uncomfortable place – trapped between morality and modernity, straddling the line between masculinity and homosexuality.

The practice carries with it a strong social stigma, fueled by religious prohibitions and negative associations with gay men. This taboo often stifles educated discussion of the subject and contributes to a swirling atmosphere of medical myths and misinformation.

Despite the shroud of mystery, Dr. Joe Fanelli, a child and family therapist and human sexuality professor at Syracuse University, says that about 25 percent of adults have engaged in anal intercourse at least once. And some students that haven’t are just waiting for an opportunity.

‘I wouldn’t go out of my way,’ said Matt Silvester, a sophomore advertising design major. ‘But I’m mentally prepared.’

Many men say that anal intercourse, which often puts one partner in a submissive position, is a way of dominating and degrading a woman. They say anal sex seems to provide women less opportunity for pleasure than vaginal intercourse.

‘Men only do it because it demoralizes women,’ said Ryan Pierce, a freshman broadcast journalism major. He says couples sometimes choose anal sex over vaginal intercourse because it eliminates the risk of pregnancy, but he still worries that it’s not as pleasurable for women.

‘A lot of girls would be against it,’ said Michael Davieau, a freshman civil engineering major. His female friends agreed and added that many students avoid anal sex because they feel it’s disgusting or unnatural.

‘People are into some kinky shit,’ said Ron Hyatt, a sophomore film major who opposes the idea of anal sex. ‘There’s in holes and there’s out holes. That’s an out hole.’

Justin Welch, a junior public relations major, says many people are uncomfortable with and embarrassed by anal sex because of its association with non-vaginal penetration and homosexuality.

‘When you think about it, it is kind of weird,’ Welch said. ‘But then I think about sticking things in vaginas, and I think that’s kind of weird too.’

Many students say they immediately link anal intercourse with the sexual behavior of gay men – an association that some members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community say spawns intolerance.

‘Orientation, behavior and identity – they’re three totally different things,’ said Patty Hayes, a graduate assistant at the university’s LGBT Resource Center. She says it’s inappropriate to link a particular identity with a certain set of behaviors, and she warns that this can fuel negative stereotypes.

‘It’s a bad thing that it’s just associated with gay men, because I feel as if everyone can enjoy it and do it,’ Welch said. ‘It should be for straight and gay people.’

* * *

Interpretations of the Old Testament, a major element of the Judeo-Christian belief system, suggest that anal sex – especially between men – is immoral and disgraceful. Interpretations of Islamic scripture take this condemnation a step further, forbidding anal sex, even between a married man and woman.

The word sodomy, which encompasses any non-vaginal intercourse, is derived from the book of Genesis, the first in the Old Testament. Chapter 19 of Genesis tells the story of the city of Sodom, which the Lord destroys because of the iniquity, or tremendous sin, of its inhabitants.

That sin is committed by men in Sodom who try to have sex with visiting angels that are disguised as men. To punish these men, whom the scripture classifies as sinners, the Lord rains fire and brimstone upon Sodom, destroying the city.

Many interpret the Lord’s reaction in this passage as a condemnation of anal intercourse and homosexuality, and the implications of Sodom’s demise have been deeply ingrained in both the English language and the modern religious community.

‘God says not to do it,’ said Rachel Roy, the worship leader of Baptist Campus Ministries and a junior voice performance major. ‘It’s not one of the Ten Commandments, but there is so much more to the Bible than the Ten Commandments.’

Roy believes that the presence of anal intercourse as an option for sexual pleasure indicates the disintegration of society’s moral values and standards. Though she says she has friends who identify as gay, she disapproves of their orientation on religious grounds.

Religious teachings commonly link anal sex with homosexuality and sin, casting a narrow and often negative light on orientation and sexual behavior.

‘I came from a religious background, so I tend to associate it with being gay,’ said Jose Rodriguez, a junior engineering and computer science major. Rodriguez grew up in Puerto Rico and attended an all-Catholic school, which he says instilled in him the tie between anal intercourse and homosexuality.

The time he has spent at SU, however, has exposed him to a wider range of sexual practices and ideals. He says he’s built a tolerance to behaviors that would have appalled him when he arrived at the university.

‘I heard some weird shit freshman year,’ he said. ‘But now I hear it, and I’m like, ‘OK.”

The development of Rodriguez’s tolerance to behaviors like anal intercourse echoes the goals of groups that promote gay rights and acceptance, including the LGBT Resource Center.

‘The key to remember is how people are reading and interpreting that scripture,’ Hayes said.

Religious texts are often interpreted literally when it fits the agenda of the reader, she said. And while passages regarding anal intercourse and homosexuality are interpreted strictly and literally, she added, believers often preach a more liberal interpretation of stories related to women’s rights and slavery.

Some interpreters of scripture also argue that people should reserve sex for the purpose of reproduction – and since anal sex can’t result in pregnancy, it’s an unacceptable behavior.

‘If you realize too that sex is part of having fun and enjoying it, anal sex is the same thing,’ Welch said. ‘It’s about having fun too.’

Hayes suggests that religious teachings would benefit from a modern reinterpretation of passages on sexuality.

‘It doesn’t make it any less holy,’ she said. ‘But it makes it more intelligible in light of today’s world.’

* * *

The anus is home to a rich supply of nerve endings, and there is some evidence that the prostate gland – part of the male reproductive system that helps stimulate ejaculation – can be massaged during anal penetration. These physical circumstances can help anal intercourse arouse the body in ways that vaginal sex can’t.

‘The anal sphincter is a very erotic place,’ Fanelli said.

The nerve endings in the anus make it an erogenous zone even in the absence of direct penetration. When the penis penetrates the anus and enters the rectum, a man can experience pleasure distinct from that of vaginal sex.

‘For the guy giving it, it feels different,’ Welch said. ‘I’ve heard that anal sex is tighter, so you get off faster.’

The rectum is often tighter than the vagina, Fanelli said, but the glands of the penetrating penis are stimulated in the same way during anal sex that they are during vaginal sex.

Deep penetration of a man’s rectum has the potential to trigger an erotic response unique to anal intercourse, said Dr. James Jacobs, director of Health Services at SU.

‘If you do something to stimulate the prostate,’ he said, ‘you’re going to do something to stimulate ejaculation.’

The prostate gland is located in the pelvis just below the bladder and can sometimes be massaged through the rectal wall. The 2000 film ‘Road Trip’ demonstrated the perceived effects of this technique, when a nurse provoked ejaculation by inserting her fingers deep into a man’s rectum. Jacobs warns, though, that this scene shows more hyperbole than medical reality.

‘I have no doubt that there’s some benefit,’ he said. ‘But it’s not as direct as ‘Road Trip’ would make you think.’

* * *

The potential benefits and distinctions of anal intercourse fall in stark contrast to the risks of internal damage and disease transmission associated with penetration.

‘While the rectum has a very rich nerve supply and is very sensitive to stimulation, it is also very delicate,’ Fanelli said.

The rectal wall lacks the elasticity of the vaginal wall, which is durable enough to withstand thrusting and penetration by a penis. The fragility of the rectal tissue and friction of penetration can lead to tearing, bleeding and increased fluid contact – and with fluid contact comes an opportunity for disease transmission.

‘Anal sex is clearly one of the riskiest of all sexual behaviors,’ Fanelli said.

That’s why the doctors recommend that those who engage in anal intercourse use a latex condom and enough water-based lubricant to allow comfortable penetration. The latex condom, Jacobs said, protects as well against sexually transmitted diseases for anal intercourse as it does for vaginal intercourse.

Every STD that can be transmitted through vaginal sex can be transmitted through anal sex, Jacobs said. Even if the partners have never engaged in anal intercourse, he said, they’re still prone to transmission of blood-borne viruses like hepatitis and HIV. He added that the natural bacteria in the rectum can cause urethritis, the inflammation of the tube that carries urine and semen out of the body through the penis.

Risks of infection and disease transmission increase if partners mix anal sex with other types of intercourse, Fanelli said. Switching from anal intercourse to vaginal intercourse, for example, can spread fluids and bacteria between parts of the body that wouldn’t otherwise interact.

Fanelli stresses that anal intercourse – and any sexual behavior – carries both pleasures and risks, and he says understanding sexuality is the best way to prevent a problem.

‘Ignorance stimulates inappropriate behavior,’ he said, ‘not knowledge.’

* * *

The erotic and emotional pleasures of sexual behaviors depend largely on the existence of comfort and love between partners, Fanelli said. He says this level of comfort correlates directly with how the pair treats sensitive issues of sexuality.

‘Usually it starts off as a joke,’ Pierce said of his sexual discussions with a former partner. ‘Then you kind of read her expression.’

Based on that reaction, he says he can gauge whether to continue with his proposition. And though his use of humor seems juvenile, it can effectively kindle a mature discussion of an otherwise taboo topic.

Still, Pierce acknowledges that many students engage in casual sex for physical pleasure rather than emotional culmination.

‘How often does sex really mean anything?’ he asked. ‘Especially in college.’

Even for swinging students, the ability to comfortably and candidly discuss sexuality seems to be the key to enjoying a healthy and uplifting love life.

‘Vaginal, oral, anal – it’s all the same,’ said Matthew Kiechle, health education and wellness coordinator at Health Services. ‘It’s about the relationships.’

Published on September 23, 2004 at 12:00 pm