| Italic Title: | (see above) --> |
| Making Chastity Sexy: The Rhetoric of Evangelical Abstinence Campaigns | |
| Author: | Christine Gardner |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
| Subject: | Evangelical sexual abstinence teachings |
| Publisher: | University of California Press |
| Awards: | Stephen E. Lucas Debut Publication Award |
| Isbn: | 978-0-520-26727-5 |
Making Chastity Sexy: The Rhetoric of Evangelical Abstinence Campaigns is a 2011 book by Christine Gardner,[1] a professor at Wheaton College.[2] In it, Gardner states that sexual abstinence teachings by evangelicals are currently "using sex to sell abstinence" by promising more satisfying sexual activity within marriage for those who abstain from premarital sex; she argues that this rhetoric reinforces selfish desires for gratification, sets people up for divorce and dissatisfaction with marriage, and simply adapts "secular forms for religious ends".[3]
The book investigates three evangelical organizations that advocate sexual abstinence:[4] Silver Ring Thing, True Love Waits, and Pure Freedom.[5] In addition to these United States–based sexual abstinence organizations, the book studies one Africa-based sexual abstinence organization.[6] The image on the book cover depicts a female human abdomen exposed by a crop top and low-rise jeans; a navel piercing is encircled by a tattoo of the words "True Love Waits" in cursive.[7] In preparation for writing the book, Gardner spent five years doing research at chastity events in various locations in both the United States and sub-Saharan Africa.[8]
Frank Schaeffer called the book "important and perceptive in a profound way".[9] In 2012, Making Chastity Sexy won the Stephen E. Lucas Debut Publication Award for a scholarly monograph or book in the field of communication studies.[10]