Kiss and Tell: An Intimate History of Kissing

Christine Schmidt is a social worker at the Sudbury Children’s Aid
Society.

What does a kiss mean to you? Does this meaning change from a
sociological perspective? A psychological perspective? How long has
kissing been around? How have kissing and its meaning as both a
behaviour and a social practice changed over the years? Is this meaning
consistent across cultures? Where does “kissing” come from?

Julie Enfield sets out to deconstruct the kiss from a multidisciplinary
anthropological perspective. She discusses kissing not as a biological
drive but as a practice that manifests from various needs. Kissing
one’s parent as a toddler, one’s child goodnight, one’s friend
goodbye, and one’s spouse romantically are all very different
practices with different meanings.

Enfield provides a lengthy section on the kiss and the arts (pointing
out famous kisses that changed popular culture), as well as an analysis
of the kiss and its relation to the body in terms of senses and
sexuality. By the end of her consistently interesting book, kissing
still retains its mystery and seduction. Kiss and Tell is sure to
attract a wide range of readers from various disciplines.