En besvärlig människa. Om Elisabeth Sjövall, sexualiteten och kvinnligheten

Abstract

Elisabet Sjövall (1915-1981) was a Swedish gynecologist, with a range of additional responsibilities. She was the director of the Gothenburg City Council Center for women applying for abortion, a social democratic politician and member of parliament from 1957-1968, the president of RFSU which is The Swedish Association for Sex Education, from 1961-1964, and the author of two works of fiction: the novel Barlast (1946) and the play Fyra människor (1951). In this article, Sjövall’s view on the sexual experience and consequences’ of sexual life are discussed. As a member of parliament, Sjövall argued for a revised and more equal law on sterilization. She also argued against the criminalization of rape within marriage in the 1960s because she considered sex and violence to be intertwined and was of the view that the sexual act should be regarded as a mutual agreement. In the abortion debate in the early 1960s, Sjövall argued against the introduction of abortion on demand. In private letters, Sjövall wrote about herself as a heterosexual person who had had several homosexual contacts, and with experiences of a sexual life she described as ”unique” in ”beauty and holiness”. This article argues that Sjövall’s emphasis on sexuality as mutual as well as a complex force can explain some of her political standpoints on sexual issues.