Regnerus begins chapter 2 of his book Cheap Sex by describing sex as a social transaction. He understands that sex can be a lot of different things but in all cases there is an exchange “that typically constitutes the social setting in which sexual relationships begin, end, or continue” (Regnerus, 22). In these sexual exchanges each person involved is giving a part of themselves to their partner during this sexual act. This even includes short stints like one night stands. The act of sex in more recent times does not generally carry as much weight as it has in the past. The thought of waiting until marriage to have sex is not as relevant in todays society. This idea takes the reader into another topic brought up by the author about what male and females think about sexand what they usually want out of it.
Historically on average men tend to want sex more than women and pursue these sexual acts with a greater ambition and a single goal in mind. It has even been shown that men usually fantasize about sex more than women. It has also been shown that men generally have sex for different reasons then women. Men more commonly take place in a sexual act strictly for pleasure. Women also are interested in the pleasure aspect of this act but there are usually other reasons they want to have sex. A main example of this is women typically being more interested in having relationships after these acts.
Regnerus goes on to describe mating in today’s society as a market. He makes sure that the reader understands the difference between a market and a mating marketplace. A mating marketplace would be a place that is visible that a person interested in finding a partner would go to to try and do just that. This would be a place like a bar, a church, or a gym. A mating market would be a pool of people interested in gaining the same things out of sex. This would include marriage, relationships, one night stands, etc.