Sex in the Victorian era: eroticism and hygiene in the era of "double standards"

All kinds of myths and stories are known today from the second half of the 19th century. More precisely from the famous Victorian era, that dark and changing period that occurred during the long reign of Queen Victoria I, who remained on the throne for more than 60 years, being only surpassed by the current queen, Elizabeth II.

During so many years of industrial revolution and the height of the British Empire, England was consolidating itself more and more strongly as the greatest world power and, therefore, its culture and values ​​were spread throughout the rest of Europe and its colonies in the world. .

But, without a doubt, one of the greatest legacies of this era is what is now known as "the Victorian double standard": the way of life of a society that outside the doors boasted of despising sex as an act of pleasure and that He imparted discipline and moralism full of prejudices and severe conservative assessments but, behind closed doors, transgressed all "proper" behavior and moved within a hidden sexual world where prostitution, adultery, pedophilia and promiscuity were commonplace.

It was a turbulent period in the social sphere where men dominated both public life and privacy, which was constituted as the almost exclusive space of women who, submissive and dedicated to home and children, had neither voice nor vote. But all this false moralism was further aggravated by the widespread ignorance that existed about the human body and sexuality. This precisely was what gave rise to society being governed by myths taken as "laws" that at the time preached the correct way of living in a "civilized" society.

To better understand it, the writer and historian Therese Oneill presented her book Unmentionable: The Victorian Lady's Guide to Sex, Marriage and Manners (or Inmencionable: the Victorian guide to sex, marriage and manners, in Spanish) where she detailed the uncomfortable myths that haunted sex, pleasure, pregnancy, the hygiene of the time and even menstruation.

The most impressive:

sex always with love

In a society characterized by arranged marriages, but at the same time a believer in love stories and the happiness offered by an "ideal family", casual sex -with a partner with whom one does not have any kind of love bond- was practically a sin. However, in addition to the offense against morality, a myth spread at the time stated that if a person dared to have sex with someone they did not love, it was guaranteed that both would have an "extremely ugly" child.

Masturbation or no masturbation?

At that time, when sex and pleasure was not a socially accepted combination, it was thought that excessive female masturbation could drive the woman who practiced it crazy and infertile. It was even said that if this practice was explored from an early age, it could seriously affect the development of her organs.

However, during those years it was believed in the existence of a disease known as "female hysteria". This supposed condition was diagnosed by doctors to women who presented symptoms such as headaches, insomnia, irritability, loss of appetite or "tendency to cause problems". So, to "cure" this disorder, doctors had to stimulate their patients in the genitals until they reached an orgasm, thus releasing their "repressed sexual desire".

It was then that a British doctor named Joseph Mortimer Granville, tired of manually massaging his patients, patented the first phallic-shaped electro-mechanical vibrator in 1870. His invention, although unhygienic and obviously disproportionate in size, was a complete success as it managed to "relieve" his "sick" patients in less than ten minutes.

Curious contraceptive methods

A woman who carried a child in her belly, the product of a sinful relationship, was the protagonist of a true scandal. In this sense, there was a strong popular belief that if a couple wanted to avoid pregnancy, the woman should immediately after intercourse ride a horse on an irregular path or start dancing. Apparently the best way to prevent fertilization was to somehow shake the body.

In addition, it was believed that the baby would physically resemble whoever had the most intense orgasm during conception and that, if the couple had intercourse on a staircase, the child resulting from that encounter would have a crooked back.

"Hygiene", only for the rich

It is well known that if there is something that was really scarce in the Victorian era (besides education about the human body) it was hygiene. The reality is that not many people had access to a decent bathroom in the first place, with a bathtub or a sink for sanitizing. But even those who did, generally the wealthiest, bathed in clothes and not very often. In fact it was in these years that England suffered some of its worst epidemics and plagues.

Oh I'm sorry, your radishes were cut incorrectly? Please come behind the counter and show me how to do it properly. #makeyourownsalad

— Cafe Girl Problems ☕ Thu Jun 21 12:31:48 +0000 2012

In general, numerous references can be found in the literature of the time regarding the unpleasant smell that covered the streets, clothing and homes throughout the city. Also, due to the lack of sewers and sewers, most people defecated directly in their rooms, throwing the contents out the window.

In this context, infections and diseases spread very quickly among the poorest sectors, who did not have access to properly clean their bodies, their genitals or even their clothes.

pioneers of lingerie

In Victorian England, women's clothing weighed between 5 and 15 kilos, so the step before having sex was a complex procedure. Also, the "ideal body" was to be exhibited with a tiny waist. To achieve this, the infamous rigid corsets were used which, on some occasions, being so exaggerated and painful, caused fainting, prevented bending at the waist and even breathing normally, among other painful consequences.

As a faithful portrait of the "double standard" of women's underwear, those hard corsets and their long "panties" known as bloomers had, under the ostentatious dresses, all kinds of designs, lace and lace. It is that, as can be seen, when pleasure circumvented social norms, women enjoyed showing off all their eroticism.

menstrual rags

According to Victorian medicine, the woman was a weak being, practically sick, limited by her sexual organs. A kind of "necessary evil" to perpetuate the species. For this reason, very little was known in depth what to do about female menstruation. This natural process, related to ovulation, was considered a kind of "cleansing" that the body made of its impurities.

For a boy, the beginning of his sexual activity meant entering the world of knowledge and work, but for the woman, it was the beginning of a restrictive and prohibitive cover. Mothers were even recommended to monitor the mental health of adolescents because it was believed that menarche -the first menstruation- could trigger a serious irreversible psychological or emotional problem.

The wealthy women could rest in their bed until the bleeding ended, but the workers had to put up with it and hide it as best they could.

One of the big complications was the washing of her "menstrual rags", the pieces of cloth that were placed in the crotch and that were a source of embarrassment if they were seen publicly. Furthermore, it was a deeply unhygienic method.

Hair, the key to sensuality

In those times a woman's hair was considered a fundamental part of her appearance. The women curled it, tied it with bows or collected it in elaborate hairstyles, adorned with jewels, feathers and the most diverse ornaments. However, there was a generality of hair: it was not cut unless it was absolutely necessary.

In the case of married women, the hair had to be covered and tied up. Messy, untidy hair was a sign of a sinful woman. For this reason, to a Victorian man, photographs of women with long flowing hair were particularly exciting, displaying what was considered the primary expression of his femininity.

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