The Sexologist Who Unlocked the Female Orgasm

"In 1976, her book "The Hite Report: A Nationwide Study of Female Sexuality" had become a huge best-seller. Its main takeaway was the then startling revelation that most women achieved orgasm not by means of vaginal intercourse alone-or what Hite, to the sniggering discomfiture of many audiences, often referred to as penile "thrusting"-but through manual or oral stimulation of the clitoris."

"Reported sightings of the clitoris were rare enough that the New York Times, in an article on Hite's research, felt the need to locate it for those still searching around with a headlamp: "a pea-sized hooded organ above the vagina that sexologists regard as the female sex organ equivalent to the penis of the male.""

"Men, in her most recent survey, had told her that they felt "a lot of pressures on them to perform. They had to get an erection, you have to have intercourse long enough for the woman to have an orgasm.""

Shere Hite, a sexologist, became a prominent media figure in the 1980s discussing previously taboo sexual topics including orgasm, masturbation, and the clitoris. Her 1976 bestseller "The Hite Report: A Nationwide Study of Female Sexuality" presented groundbreaking research showing that most women achieved orgasm through manual or oral clitoral stimulation rather than vaginal intercourse alone. This revelation was shocking for the era, with major publications like the New York Times needing to explain the clitoris's anatomical location to readers. Hite's work also addressed male sexual pressures and performance anxiety. Despite her significant cultural impact in popularizing frank discussions about female sexuality and pleasure, her name and contributions have largely faded from contemporary consciousness.

Read at The New Yorker