Chiara Blardoni

zvt191
16.12.2016

How do Denmark and Italy differ with regards to sexual education? How
can we understand those differences by looking at the different
religious traditions and culture in the two countries?

1
 Index

I. Introduction …………………………………………………………………………………………………………..3
II. The naturalness of children’s sexuality……………………………………………………………………4
III. Issues with family-based sex education…………………………………………………………………..5
IV. History of sexual education in Italy and in Denmark ……………………………………………….6
V. Knowledge of sexual education among Italian and Danish youth ………………………….10
VI. Religion and sexual education: a controversial matter…………………………………………..13
VII. Conclusion …………………………………………………………………………………………………………….17
VIII. Bibliography………………………………………………………………………………………………………..…19

2
 “Let's talk about sex, baby
Let's talk about you and me
Let's talk about all the good things
And the bad things that may be
Let's talk about sex”1
The Salt-n-Pepa pop trio in their hit song Let’s Talk About Sex, now released twenty-five years ago,
tried to stress the importance of giving a voice to sex, pushing for a much more open discourse on
the subject. They mocked the false believe that if the topic is not discussed then it means that it is
not happening. Furthermore, the song has the objective of spreading awareness and calls for the
public attention since sex is now everywhere: “Now we talk about sex on the radio and video shows/
Many will know anything goes”2. The subject of sex should be taken into consideration by society in
a way pertinent to its time and proportion, and since the theme of sex and sexuality has become
more and more significant in the past decades it should be addressed as such. The message
transmitted with this song is still relevant today because the reality of considering sex as a taboo is
still present in numerous countries one of them being Italy. However, in other European countries,
the topics of sex and sexuality are considered as matters of free and daily conversations in both a
public and scholarly context, as well as family one. Moreover, in these countries, sexual education
is offered as a compulsory subject in the school curricula starting from early years. Hence, children
are slowly introduced to the topics of affectivity, sexuality, and sexual health and can, therefore,
build a thorough knowledge on the subject over time. Consequently, the continued developmental
and interactive process of learning about sex results in the naturalization of the subject, which can
then be discussed and approached with complete freedom by the collective. The current disparities
on the subject of sex and its approaches, present in such close countries in terms of geography and
liberal politics, fascinates me. I would like therefore to investigate the motives behind these
differences, and the reason why sexual education is a very discussed and controversial topic in
today’s society, especially for some countries. In this essay, I would like to further dive into the
matter of sex education comparing how this subject is addressed and integrated into society in two
different European countries, namely Denmark and Italy. Firstly, I will be talking about the natural
connotation of children’s sexuality and the importance of the subject’s knowledge, self-

1
Salt-n-Pepa, ‘Let’s Talk About Sex’, Blacks' Magic, by Hurby Azor, Rec. 1990 by Next Plateau, (6 August, 1991), MP3.
2
Salt-n-Pepa, ‘Let’s Talk About Sex’.
3
development, and understanding of sex. Secondly, I will give an overview of the history of sexual
education in Italy and in Denmark underlying their differences. Next, I will analyse a survey carried
out by the ISTISAN (high institute of health) in the year 2000 in some Italian High schools on
Reproductive health among adolescents: knowledge, attitude and behaviour in order to compare
the knowledge on sexual health and sex related matters among Italian and Danish youth. Lastly, I
will talk about the Catholic views on sexual education and its influence on the Italian population as
well as law system and its consequent delaying the way of progress in the field of equality, personal
freedom and sexuality rights.

The naturalness of children’s sexuality

When it comes to children’s sexuality Jean-Jacques Rousseau is the individual who, in Robin
Howells’ words, “inaugurates modernity”3. This statement relies on the fact that the Swiss author
was the first one to have examined closely his own sexuality and consequently perceive it as a
fundamental element of the self4. In his autobiographical work The Confessions, he narrates his
childhood sexual ‘perversions’ and the fact that he was practically born with sensuality in his ‘hot’
blood. The perception of his own childhood as permeated with libido and sexual fantasies challenges
the popular idea of the innocent asexual child. In later years, the concept of the child as a sexual
being was further embraced and scientifically sustained by Freud’s findings on infantile sexuality
and the Oedipus complex. Of course, this latter twentieth-century theory contributed greatly to
today’s psychoanalysis and pedagogy. Freud in his essay On the Sexual Theories of Children asserts,
“It is my conviction that no child- none, at least, who is mentally normal and still less one who is
intellectually gifted- can avoid being occupied with problems of sex in the years before puberty”5.
Consequently, he addresses the matter of children’s sex education and acknowledges its importance
in an open letter to Dr. Fürst, namely The Sexual Enlightenment of Children. In this letter, Freud
considers three questions: "Can we, in general, supply explanations to children about sexual
activity? At what age and how?"6. Freud argues that the refusal of providing an explanation to
children concerning sex will push them to retrieve information from other means and will drive them
to consider sexuality as a taboo. Furthermore, he claims that there is no specific age in order to

3 Robin Howells, ‘Reading Rousseau’s Sexuality’ in Women, Gender and Enlightenment, Ed. by Barbara Taylor & Sarah
Knott, (New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2005), p.174.
4
Howells, p.174.
5
Sigmund Freud, ‘On the Sexual Theories of Children’, (Read Books Ltd, 2014) p.ng.
6
Sophie de Mijolla-Mellor on Freud’s The sexual enlightenment of children, retrieved at
http://www.encyclopedia.com/psychology/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/sexual-
enlightenment-children on December 12th 2016.
4
provide sexual education to the child; it depends on her or his aptitude and knowledge of animal
biology7.

Issues with family-based sex education

However, issues regarding sex education rise when it comes to parents dispensing it to their
children. In a 1995 research on Sexuality Education of Young Children: Parental Concerns, readers
learn about parents’ concerns and problems regarding the effect and the method of teaching
sexuality to the young. The main fear of parents is “that knowledge of sexuality will cause premature
participation in sexual behaviour, along with a lack of comfort in communicating about sexuality
issues”8. While the problems that emerge between parents and children when it comes to
addressing the subject of sexual education are several. Firstly, some parents experience shame
when talking about sex, others are uncomfortable with their sexuality and cannot, therefore,
provide an effective sexual education themselves. Some people are influenced by the non-existent
sexual education received by their own parents and therefore say nothing and avoid any sex-related
situations. Others, struggle with the imbalance, or failure to change or adapt, to new available
information about sexuality9. However, the study finds out that overall “most parents are aware
that contemporary culture considers it healthy for a family to communicate openly about sexuality
and they want to do the right thing”10. In addition, they recognize the importance of sexuality for
the development of the child and its character and social behaviour. In other words, the importance
of sexuality extends itself to the determination of personal identity, it influences the formation of
cultures and civilizations, as well as, it establishes the relevance of the role of sexuality in relation
to the levels of adaptation and integration of the subject within a community. For these reasons, it
would be better if a third party, namely a subject-matter expert, completely unrelated to the family
environment, was the provider of sex education to children. Otherwise, the over reported factors
might affect how a child perceives information or the amount and accuracy of it; he or she could
perceive if there is a sort of embarrassment linked with the subject and therefore indirectly
associate with it the idea of an uncomfortable or immoral topic to address. Since the best expression

7
Freud, Sigmund. (1907c), Zur sexuellen Aufklärung der Kinder, (Offener Brief an Dr M. Fürst). Soz. Med. Hyg., 2, 360-
367; GW, 7, 19-27; The sexual enlightenment of children. SE, 9, pp. 131-139.
8
Huston in Margie J. Geasler, Linda L. Dannison and Connie J. Edlund, ‘Sexuality Education of Young Children: Parental
Concerns’, Family Relations, Vol. 44, No. 2 (April, 1995), (184-188), p.185.
9
Margie J. Geasler, Linda L. Dannison and Connie J. Edlund, ‘Sexuality Education of Young Children: Parental Concerns’,
Family Relations, Vol. 44, No. 2 (April, 1995), (184-188), p.187.
10
Margie J. Geasler, Linda L. Dannison and Connie J. Edlund, p.187.
5
of the self is derived from education, which place, if not the school, is the best environment where
to learn something as natural and normal as sex and sexuality. Furthermore, the school would take
into consideration various elements such as youth culture of sexuality, namely the opinions,
attitudes, values, behaviours and peer interaction in order to provide the most suitable sexual
education in the most effective way11.

The History of Sexual Education in Italy and in Denmark

Provided that sexual education is a complex and controversial theme due to its strong social,
ideological, cultural, religious and political conditioning12 it is therefore inevitably subject to
conflicting interpretations. Accordingly, the Italian history of sexual education is constituted by
failed attempts and open debates on the matter. Bortolotto describes the Italian history of sexual
education as the narration of an ‘infinite story’, which is articulated between the needs of repression
and liberation, control and promotion and is very much animated by an ideological conflict,
necessitous of mediatory solutions between the Catholics and the Laics13. Nonetheless, the problem
of sexual education is interrelated to the history of the Italian school education system. Since this
latter has slowly, during the years, expanded its social purpose, the focus has shifted from providing
information to educating and therefore has become the rightful place where to teach sexuality
education. The very first debate on the matter was opened in the 1910 ‘Vociano Congress’, which
appealed to the importance of preventing sexually transmitted diseases. Eleven years later in 1921,
the same point was newly stressed14. The nineteen-sixties and the seventies were, of course, the
decades in which the most changes occurred; citizens demanded sexual, political and social
liberation. They are also the years of women’s emancipation and the introduction of the divorce in
the law system, the legalization of the abortion and the institution of family counselling. The year
1975, was the time when Giorgio Bini, a member of the communist party, brought forward the first
law proposal on the introduction of sexual education in the school system. The law was not

11
R. Mion, ‘Dimensioni sociologiche delle problematiche sessuali dei giovani’ in G.F. Zuanazzi, L’educazione sessuale
nella scuola, (Varese: Editrice Salcom, 1988), p. 31.
12
A. Tonelli, Politica e amore. Storia dell’educazione ai sentimenti nell’Italia contemporanea, (Bologna: il Mulino, 2003).
13
Melania Bortolotto, ‘L’Educazione Sessuale a Scuola Modelli Pedagogici Espliciti ed Impliciti’, Nuova Secondaria, No.1,
(September, 2014), p.14. Retrieved online at http://www.edu.lascuola.it/riviste/NS/NsRicerca/14-15/1409-
01/bortolotto.pdf on December 13th 2016.
14
Claudia Mantovani, Rigenerare la società: l'eugenetica in Italia dalle origini ottocentesche agli anni Trenta,
(Rubbettino Editore, 2004), pp.238-239.
6
approved, and in the subsequent forty years several proposals, more precisely 1415, have been
officially presented and discussed by the government, however without ever arriving at the final
approval and deliberation.

At the moment, the only form of sexual education which is provided in the Italian school context
reaches only a selective percentage of the Italian youth, due to the non-compulsory nature of the
project. It is up to the school to choose whether to organize an external project normally conducted
by a psychologist, not always with an expertise in the subject, who personally decides what kind of
twist to put on the few hours of intervention. In some cases, practical information concerning sexual
health is given, however, only with the purpose of responding to the rising AIDS emergency. In this
way, sexuality is sadly linked to fear and the risk of contracting dangerous diseases, instead of being
associated with pleasure, trust, and happiness. Manly, the sporadically provided sexuality education
is transformed into another kind of education, namely education to affectivity. Using a definition by
Dario Ianes, Professor of special pedagogy and special didactic at the University of Bolzano,
education to affectivity consists in the development of the ability to handle, control and understand
impulses, improve skills in making emotional decisions and understanding the importance of
differentiating the concepts of feelings and actions16. The problem related to the newly introduced
education to affectivity is not the subject per se; it is the age to whom it is offered. Education to
affectivity would, of course, be suitable as primary school subject as the first steps before the
introduction of sexuality education in the later stages of education. Problematics occur since this
kind of education to feelings and abstract thoughts of love and emotions is offered to teenagers
between the age of 13 and 16, and therefore it cannot but be ladled as inappropriate due to the age
and the needs of the individual taken into consideration. Despite the fact that sexual education is in
some cases provided it is not very effective for the reasons above indicated, and it is, therefore,
necessary a law that will officially regulate the teaching of sexuality education and sexual health on
a national scale within the school context.

These government’s failed attempts in addition to the social embarrassment linked to the topic
sexual education present in the Italian society, it has pushed many Italian comedians to ridicule this

15
Diana Orefice e Daniela Sala, ‘Educazione Sessuale: Decine di Proposte, Nessuna Diventa Legge’, (1 April, 2016),
retrieved at http://www.fainotizia.it/contributo/01-04-2016/testo/educazione-sessuale-decine-di-proposte-nessuna-
diventa-legge on December 13th 2016.
16
D. Ianes in collaboration with H. Demo, Educare all’affettività, (Trento: Erickson, 2007), pp. 9-15.
7
generally shameful attitude and lack of reformation on the introduction of sexual education in the
school system. For instance, as early as 1975, Gigi Proietti, Italian actor, director and comedian,
made a sketch on the Italian sexual education, later followed in 1999 by Anna Marchesini, as well
an Italian actress and comedian, who performed a sketch, entitled La Sessuologa, namely the
Sexologist. This latter sketch underlines the problem present in the Italian language, which consists
in the lack of vocabulary to describe sexual organs, which is either very scientific or very vulgar. For
this reason, the process of normalizing the sexual act and simplifying its explanation is not an easy
task, since its discourse results in either a formal biological procedure or a very vulgar explanation,
which does not seem appropriate for the importance and the sentimental value of such act.

Romano Forleo, at the 1975 International Congress of Sexology, gives an overview of the Italian
problem concerning the developing field of Sexology. He locates the main issue at the very heart of
the Italian political and ideological situation. The Italian system is based on divisions, oppositions
and a master-slave dialectic. He believes in “a sexuality that would aid in a language of fraternity
among men, a sexuality beyond individualism in favour of a greater solidarity; a sexuality which
would re-evaluate genitality and pleasure and favorize the total growth of the individual band the
community, a sexuality which unites rather than divides, man and woman, man to man, generation
to generation, which goes beyond the agony and solitude in which today’s society tries to imprison
us”17. In other words, Forleo claims that sexology would be the instrument of liberation for the
Italian men and generally humanity. Despite the many years of attempts to fill in the void in the
Italian legislation system concerning sexual education, today there is still no law to ensure the
teaching of sex education on a national scale.

On the opposite side of Europe, Denmark has a completely different history in comparison to
Italy when it comes to sexual education. As it is reported in the 2013 European Union Directorate
General for International Policies, “Nordic and Benelux countries are known for having the highest
quality of sexuality education, while Eastern and Southern European States have deficient or
inexistent sexuality education programs.”18 In retrospect, sexual education became a compulsory
part of the Danish school system in the year 1970; however, sexual topics had been discussed in a

17
Romano Forleo, ‘Socio-Political Problems of sexology as a Developing Field in Italy’, in Progress in Sexology, Ed. by
Gemme Wheeler & Connie Christine Wheeler (New York and London: Plenum Press, 1976), (583-586), p. 584.
18
Karolina Beaumont, ‘Policies for Sexuality Education in the European Union’, European Parliament Document, Ed. by
Marcia Maguire, (January 2013), p.8. Retrieved online at
http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/note/join/2013/462515/IPOL-FEMM_NT(2013)462515_EN.pdf on
December 13th 2016.
8
school environment since the early years of the Nineteenth century. At the time, the main purpose
was to promote a certain kind of behaviour and raise awareness to reduce sexually transmitted
diseases and unwanted pregnancies. Today’s approach is different, sex education in Danish schools
has no longer the need to change or readdress behaviour; it has become much more democratic,
even though it still discusses the same topics.19 In 1991, the Ministry of Education published a new
curriculum, in which sexuality education was included in lessons of Human Health. The new
curriculum was made mandatory for primary schools and the first year of high school and today
“parents are not allowed to withdraw their children from sexuality education classes”20. In addition,
“external experts such as prostitutes, homosexuals or HIV-positive persons are invited to speak in
schools about their experience.”21 If the communication and the teachings taking place in the school
environment, concerning sex-related matters, are not enough, a sexuality education association
offering free and anonymous telephone service has set up a Youth Sex Helpline and “The telephone
counselling service received more than 2200 calls”22. The Danish Family Planning Association states that
Danish citizens support and have a positive attitude towards compulsory sex education in the school
system. However, the questions that arise spontaneously is why are Danish individuals so content
and open-minded about sexuality education being provided to their children? In addition, how is it
possible that Denmark’s attitude is so different in respect to the Southern European country of Italy?
Most probably, the answer to these questions lies in the difference in countries’ culture and the
influence religion plays in society. Despite Denmark is considered a Christian country, religion plays
a minor or indirect role in the public life,23 and especially since over the past decades the country
religious landscape has become more varied. When asked about religious leaders by the TNS
Opinion & Social requested by European Commission, “Denmark (76%) think that these religious
leaders are not doing a good job24. This non-religious approach when it comes to education and the
thought of being a gender equal, multicultural and free community is what makes Denmark one of

19
Line Anne Roien, ‘The Danish Experience: Introduction to Health and Sex Education in Denmark, Teaching
Methodologies’, Sex & Samfund. Retrieved at http://www.norden.ee/images/heaolu/info/heaolu/line_anne_roien.pdf
on December 13th 2016.
20
Karolina Beaumont, ‘Policies for Sexuality Education in the European Union’, p.16
21
H. Risor, "Sex education in schools in Denmark. Does Foreningen for Familieplanlaegning (the Danish PPA) have a role
to play?", Plan Parent Eur., Vol. 20, Is. 1 (May 1991). Retrieved online at
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/12343172 on December 13th 2016
22
"Sexuality Information, Education and Communication - Good practise in sexual and reproductive health and rights
for young people", op. cit.
23
Hans Raun Iversen, Religion in Denmark. Retrieved online at http://denmark.dk/en/society/religion/ on December
14th 2016
24
TNS Opinion & Social, ‘Eurobarometer 73.1 Biotechnology’, European Commission, (October 2010), p. 166. Retrieved
online at http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_341_en.pdf on December 14th 2016.
9
the most progressive countries of the European Union. Italy, on the other hand, still struggles to
break free from the Catholic influence, which drives people’s opinion as well as government choices.

Knowledge of sexual education among Italian and Danish youth

In accordance with the inadequate and practically non-existent didactical offer on sexual
education, I have analysed a survey carried out by Istituto Superiore di Sanità on the knowledge,
attitude and behaviour on reproductive health among adolescents attending the first two years of
high school (14-15-year-old) in eleven Italian regions. The most Interesting findings concern the
request for sexual education on behalf of the students and the purpose and value the youth
attributes to sexuality. While the information regarding the deficiency of knowledge and the lack of
the use of contraceptive is everything but surprising. Today it is possible to discuss the theme of
sexuality in a more explicit way both in interpersonal relations as well as in the media, accordingly,
as it is possible to see from the underreported table, the Italian youth demands a sexual education
in the school environment mirroring their needs and expectations with a percentage close to 93%.

Table 11- Do you think sexuality education is necessary?25

The individuals’ request for sex education is more than legitimate, since nowadays, it is offered to
the younger generations via informal talk with parents or mainly friends, books and the internet.
Another source used in Italy to retrieve information on sex-related matters are online forums, such
as alfemminile.com, it.answers.yahoo.com, and sanihelp.it. On these social platforms, many Italian
teens post questions and are answered by other peers, creating a vicious cycle of great
disinformation. The high demand for curricular sexual education, which clearly appears from the

25
Serena Donati, Silvia Andreozzi, Emanuela Medda e Michele E. Grandolfo, Salute Riproduttiva Tra Gli Adolescenti:
Conoscenze, Attitudini e Comportamenti, Rapporti ISTISAN 00/7, (2000), p.11. Retrieved online at
http://www.iss.it/binary/publ/publi/0007.1109841544.pdf on December 14th 2016.
10
survey, denounces the needs of more, more valid and accurate information regarding sex and
sexuality. Later on in the survey, it is possible to learn that the sexual topics in which the Italian
youth expresses the most interest about are the following: sexual intercourses (70%), sexually
transmitted diseases (67%), virginity (46%), relation with partner (44.4%) and masturbation (35%).26
While topics such as differences between male and female, biological knowledge on the genitalia
apparatus, relationship with parents stimulate very little interest in the interviewed. From these
answers, it has to be underlined again that teenagers today do not demand ‘education to affectivity’
but concrete information on sexual matters and the sexual act per se. Later on in the questioner,
another table points out that the Italian students are aware of the importance of sexuality education
since more than 90% consider it useful to increase consciousness and self-esteem27. All these data
regarding the drive of youth to learn about sexuality and the fact that it is considered a very
important matter in the process of personal development, puts hopes in the approval of an eventual
law on sexuality education in the upcoming years. The fact that 56% of the interviewed have never
received sexual education by a recognized institution puts to shame the Italian government. Moving
to another table, which focuses on the keenness in the use of birth control and precautions, 80% of
the selected teenagers express the intention of using it. However, as Berinato claims, having
excellent knowledge on sexual matters does not ensure the subject’s ability to prevent28. In fact, as
illustrated by the table underneath, out of the 20% of the students who had already experienced a
full sexual intercourse, 11% never used a condom and 31% used it occasionally.
Table 57. –if you have already had full sexual intercourses, how often do you use condoms?29

26
Serena Donati, Silvia Andreozzi, Emanuela Medda e Michele E. Grandolfo, p.19
27
Serena Donati, Silvia Andreozzi, Emanuela Medda e Michele E. Grandolfo, introduction.
28
BERTINATO, L., CAFFARELLI, E., GRECO, D., POLI, S. (a cura di). Atti del Seminario
Europeo sull’educazione alla salute e prevenzione dell’HIV/AIDS nella scuola. Roma, 3-5 Novembre
1994. Roma: Istituto Superiore di Sanità, 1995. (Rapporti ISTISAN 95/30) p.246.
29
Serena Donati, Silvia Andreozzi, Emanuela Medda e Michele E. Grandolfo, p.41
11
The fact that condoms are not used is also the result of the low level of awareness about sexually
transmitted diseases and the confusion concerning how these diseases are being transmitted. Even
though this survey dates back to the year 2000, sexuality education has not increased its radius of
action. Italian teens still visit online forums to have their questions answered regarding sex, or try
to inform themselves through chats with their inexpert peers. The Italian government could easily
put an end to this sad process of widespread disinformation and its inevitable consequences,
namely the increase in the number of individuals with sexually transmitted diseases and teenage
pregnancies. By approving a law that will institute sexuality education as a compulsory school
subject the much-voiced request from the majority of the Italian youth will be granted. Certainly,
this decision will inevitably meet the negative feedback of the catholic community, but it will
eventually be in the benefit for the whole the country.

As seen in the history section, Denmark is a very liberal country when it comes to sexuality; in
fact, sex education was made compulsory in 1970 and prior to that the 1960s bear witness to the
legalization of pornography. The effectiveness of Danish sexual education programs together with
the latest years setting of society, which sees women very much included in the labour market, has
created some issues associated with the dramatic drop in the birth rate. Karen Mette Hansen,
consultant of children and youth, in an interview, claims, “Sex education in Danish schools is very
good,”30 this statement finds further validation in the 2014 European statistic, which shows that
only 1.1 women out of 1000 between the ages of 15 to 17 had a child31. However, Hansen carries
on stressing the drawback that comes with it, namely the low natality rate, which is also influenced
by the shift of priorities of Danish women, who nowadays put career and education before having
a family. Therefore, she suggests the introduction of family planning as a topic to be discussed
within the sexuality education program, showing the positives and the negatives of having a family
at an early age. She also addresses the Danish government urging it to find a solution to this rising
demographic problem, perhaps by putting some regulations on women’s working hours or further
incentives for new families32. In conclusion, sexuality education in Denmark has one of the best

30
Karen Mette Hansen in an interview conducted by James Zhang and Alex Bond on DENMARK’S SEX EDUCATION
CHANGES FOCUS, (12 December 2014). Retrieved online at
http://jameszhangalexbondfp2014.mediajungle.dk/2014/12/12/denmarks-sex-education-changes-focus/ on
December 15th 2016.
31
Office for National Statistics, Live births women aged 'Under 18' and 'Under 20', (per 1,000 women aged 15 to 17
and 15 to 19) in EU28 countries, 2004, 2013 and 2014, Ref. no. 005466 (11 March 2016).
32
James Zhang and Alex Bond, ‘DENMARK’S SEX EDUCATION CHANGES FOCUS’, Danish School of Media and
Journalism, (12 December 2014).
12
reputation in Europe thanks to the variety of age-sensitive material on sexuality matters, which is
progressively provided to students depending on age groups, discussing themes such as emotions,
family, well-being, the body, and sex. Of course, it can always be ameliorated but if put into
comparison to the inefficient or inexistent sexual education provided in Southern European
countries, it cannot but stand out. Despite the fact that Denmark is now facing a new issue
concerning the need of a demographic growth. The Danish government still respects and puts
knowledge as a priority, as well as a right, consequently becoming a tool to children’s
empowerment, which will result in the development of skills to help young individuals make
conscious choices.

Religion and sexual education: a controversial matter

From the very idea advanced by the Catholic Church concerning the idea of chastity until marriage
to the subsequent purpose of sexual intercourse, meaning the highest sharing of love coupled with
the objective of reproduction. This catholic value comes as a strong opposition to the insertion in
the Italian school curriculum of a program concerning sexual education; this resistance has however
become less stubborn after Pope Francis’ post-synodal apostolic exhortation, Amoris Laetitia,
published in April 2016. His predecessor, in 1975, in Persona Humana: Declaration on Certain
Questions Concerning Sexual Ethics presented a violent opposition to sexual education and
information regarding sex in schools due to the idea that sexual topics would further corrupt the
minds of the young, already living in a society subject to “confusion of minds and relaxation of
morals”33. In this text, the Catholic Church pushes the parents to play the role of the teacher in this
field, giving the rightful moral, emotional and psychological education befitting their age. Which,
however, as previously seen, is not always an easy task due to personal parental issues.
Furthermore, from the reading of this text, it transpires a strict imposition of the Catholic mentality
concerning sex and sexuality on the youth and not pushing for a self-development and self-discovery
of one’s own moral values. Now in 2016, the church seems to have become slightly more open-
minded towards the subject of sexual education. In the recent publication Amoris Laetitia, the Pope
puts an accent on the value of sexuality, however, he does not focus on sexuality as the natural

33
SACRED CONGREGATION FOR THE DOCTRINE OF THE FAITH, PERSONA HUMANA: DECLARATION ON CERTAIN
QUESTIONS CONCERNING SEXUAL ETHICS, (29 December 1975) retrieved at
http://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/cfaith/documents/rc_con_cfaith_doc_19751229_persona-
humana_en.html on December 10th 2016, p, II.
13
essence of the human being and his or her consequent need and right to explore it and build a
knowledge about it.

In fact, he claims, “a rift has opened up between the family and society, between family and the
school; the educational pact today has been broken and thus the educational alliance between
society and the family is in crisis”34. In opposition to this statement, perhaps I would suggest that a
rift has been opened indeed, but between school and the catholic religion instead. Since society has
become more and more multicultural, it is, therefore, necessary a separation between public school
education and catholic teachings. The public school has to be, or in the case of Italy, has to become
a neutral environment where something as natural as sex can be discussed and taught; with the aim
of providing students with sexual health information as well as sexual awareness and tools to
develop their own sexuality with serenity. The Church criticizes the schools’ approach to sexual
education and its focus on ‘safe sex’, protection and prevention from unwanted pregnancies as if
procreation was something to be avoided at all costs.35 The Catholic Church also affirms that the
provided sexual education devalues the human being, reducing it to an object of pleasure and it
should focuses instead stressing the value of the selfless and total donation of love. The title of the
chapter concerning sexual education has a misleading title, Yes To Sexual Education, in this section
the Pope does not actually embrace the idea of providing teenagers with a biological, non-religious,
unbiased kind of sexual education in the school environment. The kind of ‘sexual education’
approved by the church should be reformulated in something which could be defined as ‘education
to affectivity’, which again is based on the comprehension of the meaning of love, the building
process of meaningful relationships, the idea of giving, mutual respect and gender differentiation36.
However, despite the positivity and progress of this new religious tolerance concerning intimate
relationships, the proposed education to affectivity does not provide the young subjects with the
tool to learn about sex in itself, sexual health and the importance of the use of precautions. The
Church seem to be blind to the changes occurring in the Western world in the composition of
society, evolution of morals and development of values. It does not see the need for the young to
learn about themselves and about what is outside the enclosed and sheltering environment of the
catholic religion. Therefore, the still narrow-minded Catholic view on the teachings of sexology has

34
Catechesis, L’Osservatore Romano, (21 May 2015), p. 8.
35
The Holy Father Francis, POST-SYNODAL APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION AMORIS LÆTITIA,( Libreria Editrice Vaticana,
2016) retrieved at http://w2.vatican.va/content/dam/francesco/pdf/apost_exhortations/documents/papa-
francesco_esortazione-ap_20160319_amoris-laetitia_en.pdf on December 10th, p. 212
36
The Holy Father Francis, POST-SYNODAL APOSTOLIC EXHORTATION AMORIS LÆTITIA, pp. 212-213.
14
played a major role in the Italian law system. In fact, despite the many attempts to laws proposals
that have been forward to the Italian government since the beginning of the Twentieth century,
Italian politicians have not yet managed to approve a law on the introduction of sexual education
as a compulsory subject in the student curricula. For Instance, in 2014, some deputies underlying
the lack in the Italian legislation system on the matter of sexual education sent a law proposal
concerning the teachings of the socio-affective education in middle and secondary schools as well
as the introduction of university courses on the matter. In this proposal, they stressed the fact that
Italy is one of the very few European countries with no compulsory sexual education37. Moreover,
they bring as an example the Netherlands since in this country, the teachers are encouraged to talk
freely about sex and sexuality as well as the introduction of the topic to the Dutch individuals starts
at a very young age. Furthermore, to contrast the opinion of the Roman church, which promotes
late education to affectivity in order avoid the corruption of young minds and lower the incentive
to early sexual intercourses, the Dutch students have in average their first sexual encounter at the
age of 17, which is later compared to the one in Italy and the UK.38 Eventually, the Catholics have to
realize that the young’s thirst for knowledge does not stop to a set of imposed rules or words unsaid
in the case of sexual education. Consequently, and at the same time unfortunately, Italian teenagers
look for the answers to their questions about sex and sexuality in the media and on the internet
often not fully understanding the too many information given and creating, therefore, their own
opinion based on disinformation and confusion. The lack of information on the subject of sex and
sexual health does not prevent the intercourses from taking place; instead, it augments the chances
of Italian teenage pregnancy, as well as the spreading of sexually transmitted diseases and increases
the numbers of abortions, which in 2012 amounted to 103.191 from the annual ISTAT report39.

The fact that Italy is still very influenced by religion in its communal decision-making process, it
cannot but have the result of delaying the way of progress. On the matter is possible to see that the
souls of the Italians are quite divided. On one hand, sex is still considered as taboo and people and
media in the country do not openly talk about it, while on the other hand, the significant drop in the
natality birth rate that occurred in recent years pushed the Italian Ministry of Health to start the

37
Stull, Graham, Sexuality Education in the EU- "Sex education" in a broader social context, Library briefing from the
Library of the European Parliament, 03/02/2012.
38
VEZZALI, RABINO, GALGANO, LIBRANDI, PORTA, SOTTANELLI, MARAZZITI, FALCONE, FITZGERALD NISSOLI,
MATARRESE, VARGIU, MONCHIERO, OLIARO, Istituzione dell’insegnamento dell’educazione socio-affettiva nelle scuole
secondarie di primo e di secondo grado nonché nei corsi di studio universitari, N. 2783, Camera dei deputati, (18
December 2014), p.1.
39
ISTAT report, INTERRUZIONI VOLONTARIE DELLA GRAVIDANZA ANNO 2012, (12 December 2014), p.1.
15
‘Fertility Day’ campaign. This campaign, which pushed women to reflect on their fertility and
encouraged them to have more children at a younger age, encountered many critiques. The
critiques made the headlines of several newspaper articles; of course, these critiques were
addressed to the government, which seems to describe pregnancy not as a personal and aware
choice but as a duty towards the state and its better functioning40. However, my personal critique
is more specifically directed towards the Italian general approach to sexuality. The Fertility Day
campaign’s posters were indeed pathetic and had no result but rise outrage in Italian women who
felt that their own uterus belonged to the state. To make a real change in the Italian society, the
state has to embrace sex and sexuality publicly, and assume the responsibility to attend to the sexual
needs of his own citizens. As Jean-Mark Samson suggests in his article Sex Education and the
Structure of Moral Judgement:

Society too, and its institutions, has rights and duties relative to the sexual
relations of the couple: education should allow the partners the sexual
functioning leading to orgasm; the work schedule should allow for sufficient
leisure time for sexual encounters. But society has rights also: for instance the
work schedule should not be set up solely for sexual convenience of the couple.
And justice requires society to protect a couple’s intimacy, without however,
exposing their intimacy to those who do not wish to witness it41.

The Italian state and society have not fully taken into consideration the fact that citizens need time
and have to feel comfortable with their own sexuality and sexual life within the family as well as the
community in order to bring it to the next level and eventually have the drive to make a family.
Furthermore, sex education should be introduced as a mandatory subject in the curriculum of both
middle schools and high schools, and perhaps introducing the Church-approved education to
affectivity in kindergartens and primary schools, as it is already happening in other countries such
as the Netherlands42. Knowledge about sex should be a right of the individual and not an optional
didactic offer, consisting of psychologist talking for a few hours without having any qualification in
the field of Sexology. Therefore, more objective, unbiased, open-minded, free information on the

40
Margherita De Bac, «Fertility day», una clessidra fa infuriare il web: bufera sugli spot, (1 settembre 2016). Retrieved
online at http://roma.corriere.it/notizie/cronaca/16_settembre_01/clessidra-fa-infuriare-web-bufera-spot-fertility-
day-afcd27d4-7001-11e6-acff-0ba0a2f56bad.shtml on December 20th 2016.
41
Jean-Mark Samson, ‘Sex Education and The Structure of Moral judgement’, in Progress in Sexology, ed. by Robert
Gemme, (New York and London: Plenum Press, 1976), pp.528-529
42
Saskia De Melker, The case for starting sex education in kindergarten, (May 27, 2015), retrieved at
http://www.pbs.org/newshour/updates/spring-fever/ on December 10th 2016.
16
topic would result in a progress on many levels, from an enhancement of the individual’s personal
freedom, to a wider acceptance of intimate relationships in the eyes of society and family, which
might even result in people’s higher predisposition to having children at a younger age. Sexual
education would provide a further sense of gender equality due to undifferentiated information
given to both genders putting both men and women on the same level giving them the tools to
make together informed choices regarding sex and its implications.

Conclusions

“Erotic experience is extraordinary, lying somewhere between dream and daily life. Sexuality
rests between things, it borders psyche and society, culture and nature, conscious and unconscious,
self and other. Its variety makes it intrinsically ambiguous. Ambiguity confers on sexuality an
inherent novelty, creativity, discovery, and these give it its excitement, its pleasure, its fear43”. With
these words, Muriel Dimen describes the sexual intercourse. She stresses the innate nature of this
action, its beauty, experience of pleasure and the fullness of its involvement. Furthermore, Dimen
emphasises the experience’s multitudes of communication’s channels such as the interaction
between the individual’s state of mind and the society’s mind-set and the inevitable clash between
its natural connotation and the country’s culture. These intercommunications cannot but influence
how sex is handled, lived and discussed by an individual within its social and cultural environment.
Therefore, some cultures, like the Danish one, see erotic experience as a rather common matter,
while others, such as Italy, try to conceal and taboo the subject. However, the disparities between
countries on the matter of sexuality is great and this fact has influenced its teachings depending on
the selected nation. Even though sexual education has been a matter of debate in the past hundred
years in the Italian political scenario, a decision has never been reached. A national law does not yet
regulate sexuality education since it has encountered a multitude of obstacles not only in the
parliament but also in the Italian society. Parents feel embarrassed and uncertain on how sexuality
education will influence their children, teachers and psychologists are unprepared on the subject
and can hardly find the words to discuss and introduce the topic. People’s attitudes are located on
extreme opposites, there are people who want to repress sex and sexuality and others that want its
freedom, there are people that would like to use psychology and biology in the educational process
and who instead calls for a more philosophical and religious approach. Others who would like to

43Muriel Dimen, ‘Seven Notes for the Reconstruction of Sexuality’, Social Text, No. 6, (Duke University Press, Autumn,
1982), (22-30), p. 27.

17
have experts in the fields, namely sexologist, to teach sex education while others would like to
relegate the family institution to take care of this important yet embarrassing task. Despite all mixed
feelings, the older generations are subjected to, the younger generation has a clear view of its
needs, as it appears from the analysed ISTISAN survey, its demand, with a majority of 93%, sexuality
education to be integrated into the school system as a compulsory subject. The lack of a law in this
field is a violation of individuals’ personal right to be provided with an accurate knowledge of their
own body and tools to make aware choices. Italy is one of the few countries in the European Union
that as today, December 2016, it does not yet have a law on such an important and fundamental
matter. On the other side of the spectrum, Denmark offers compulsory sexuality education since
the year 1970; its approach is liberal, open-minded and has at its best interest the happiness, the
health and the process of conscious self-development of a child. The major gap in these two
different approaches lays in the different culture and mentality of these two countries. Italy’s
backwardness on the topics of sexuality and sex has its roots in the Catholic influence on the political
and social realms, which still labels sex as an immoral act if not for reproductive purposes within the
marriage bond. The fact that sex has been taboo for a very long time in the Italian history and social
environment, has created a lack of vocabulary to naturally describe sex if not in overly scientific or
overly vulgar manner. Recently, the Pope has expressed a certain amount of tolerance towards
sexuality education without though approving it, despite the misleading title in Amoris Laetitia.
Pope Francis’ ‘open-minded’ views have actually turned towards education to affectivity, which,
however, as previously seen, is not appropriate to a teenage audience since it does not meet either
youth’s needs or expectations. The negative attitude Catholics have towards everything which is not
Pope-approved is slowing down the national process of acceptance of sexuality rights as well as
equality rights, since the church clearly divides between gender roles and responsibilities. Italy
should make an effort to keep up with the times and if not, at least strive to level up with the other
European countries, such as Denmark, on the granting of individuals’ rights as basics and
fundamental as sexual education. There is nothing more natural, human, positive and pleasurable
than sex and accordingly, it should not be seen as sinful but as an essential human right with regards
to its knowledge and practice whether inside or outside marriage. Therefore, a final thought,
paraphrasing Salt-n-Pepa pop trio’s words, we should be able to tell the world freely, how sex is,
how it could be, how it was and certainly how it should be44.

44
Salt-n-Pepa, ‘Let’s Talk About Sex’.

18
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