Joseph Daniel Unwin MC (6 December 1895 — August 1936) was an

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ethnologist and social anthropologist at

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and

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

Biography

Unwin was born on December 6, 1895, in

Haverhill, Suffolk Haverhill ( , ) is a market town and civil parish in the West Suffolk district, in the county of Suffolk, England, next to the borders of Essex and Cambridgeshire. It lies about southeast of Cambridge and northeast of central London. In 202 ...

. He was educated at Shewsbury School. His enrolment at

Oriel College, Oxford Oriel College () is Colleges of the University of Oxford, a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title for ...

was interrupted by the outbreak of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

in 1914. He served in the

Northamptonshire Regiment The Northamptonshire Regiment was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence from 1881 until 1960. In 1960, it was amalgamated with the Royal Lincolnshire Regiment to form the 2nd East Anglian Regiment (Duchess of Gloucester's O ...

and the

Tank Corps An armoured corps (also mechanized corps or tank corps) is a specialized military organization whose role is to conduct armoured warfare. The units belonging to an armoured corps include military staff, and are equipped with tanks and other armou ...

, where he was twice wounded and awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

. After the war, he spent some years in

Abyssinia Abyssinia (; also known as Abyssinie, Abissinia, Habessinien, or Al-Habash) was an ancient region in the Horn of Africa situated in the northern highlands of modern-day Ethiopia and Eritrea.Sven Rubenson, The survival of Ethiopian independence, ...

. In 1933, Unwin received his PhD in

anthropology Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, society, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behav ...

Peterhouse, Cambridge Peterhouse is the oldest Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England, founded in 1284 by Hugh de Balsham, Bishop of Ely. Peterhouse has around 300 undergraduate and 175 graduate stud ...

. His thesis was titled "Sexual Regulations and Cultural Behaviour". He expanded on his research in his 1934 book '' Sex and Culture''. Unwin also conducted research work for the

Home Office The Home Office (HO), also known (especially in official papers and when referred to in Parliament) as the Home Department, is the United Kingdom's interior ministry. It is responsible for public safety and policing, border security, immigr ...

on the imprisonment of debtors, publishing "Imprisonment for Debt" in 1935. His expertise in social conditions and problems led to his appointment as head of

Cambridge House Cambridge House is a Grade I listed former townhouse in central London, England. It sits on the northern side of Piccadilly at number 94, in the fashionable district of Mayfair. , the property is being converted into a luxury hotel and seven r ...

, a social settlement in South London. Unwin died in August 1936, at the age of 40, following an unsuccessful medical operation.

Contributions to anthropology

In '' Sex and Culture'' (1934), Unwin studied 80 primitive tribes and six known civilizations through 5,000 years of history. He claimed there was a positive correlation between the cultural achievement of a people and the sexual restraint they observe.

Aldous Huxley Aldous Leonard Huxley ( ; 26 July 1894 – 22 November 1963) was an English writer and philosopher. His bibliography spans nearly 50 books, including non-fiction novel, non-fiction works, as well as essays, narratives, and poems. Born into the ...

described ''Sex and Culture'' as "a work of the highest importance" in his literature. According to Unwin, after a nation becomes prosperous, it becomes increasingly liberal concerning

sexual morality Sexual ethics (also known as sex ethics or sexual morality) is a branch of philosophy that considers the ethics or morality of Human sexual behaviour, sexual behavior. Sexual ethics seeks to understand, evaluate and critique interpersonal relatio ...

. It thus loses its cohesion, impetus, and purpose, which he claims is irrevocable. Unwin also stated, "In the past, too, the greatest energy has been displayed only by those societies which have reduced their sexual opportunity to a minimum by the adoption of absolute monogamy .. In every case the women and children were reduced to the level of legal nonentities, sometimes also to the level of chattels, always to the level of mere appendages of the male estate. Eventually they were freed from their disadvantages, but at the same time the sexual opportunity of the society was extended. Sexual desires could then be satisfied in a direct or perverted manner .. So the energy of the society decreased, and then disappeared." He further notes, "No society has yet succeeded in regulating the relations between the sexes in such a way as to enable sexual opportunity to remain at a minimum for an extended period." And thus, all societies have collapsed. His hope for the future is that, "by placing the sexes on a level of complete legal equality, and then by altering its economic and social organization in such a way as to render it both possible and tolerable for sexual opportunity to remain at a minimum for an extended period," a society may flourish.

Works

* ''Sexual Regulations and Human Behaviour.'' London: Williams & Norgate, 1933. * '' Sex and Culture.'' London: Oxford University Press, 1934. * ''The Scandal of Imprisonment for Debt.'' London: Simpkin Marshall, 1935. * ''Sexual Regulations and Cultural Behaviour.'' London: Oxford University Press, 1935. * ''Sex Compatibility in Marriage.'' New York: Rensselaer, 1939.
''Hopousia: Or, The Sexual and Economic Foundations of a New Society,''
with an introduction by Aldous Huxley. New York: Oskar Piest, 1940. ** ''Our Economic Problems and Their Solution (An Extract from "Hopousia.")'' London: George Allen & Unwin, Ltd., 1944.

Selected articles

* "Monogamy as a Condition of Social Energy," ''The Hibbert Journal,'' Vol. XXV, 1927. * "The Classificatory System of Relationship," ''Man,'' Vol. XXIX, Sep., 1929. * "Kinship," ''Man,'' Vol. XXX, Apr., 1930. * "Reply to Dr. Morant's 'Cultural Anthropology and Statistics'," ''Man,'' Vol. XXXV, Mar., 1935.

Other

* ''Dark Rapture: The Sex-life of the African Negro,'' with an Introduction by J. D. Unwin. New York: Walden Publication, 1939.

References

External links

Obituary
*
Works by J. D. Unwin
at

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Unwin, Joseph Daniel

Sex and Culture
{{DEFAULTSORT:Unwin, J. D. 1895 births 1936 deaths 20th-century British anthropologists Academics of the University of Cambridge Academics of the University of Oxford British ethnologists British male feminists English feminists Recipients of the Military Cross British social anthropologists Theorists on Western civilization