Showing papers in "Journal of Social History in 1979"

Family Life and Illicit Love in Earlier Generations. By Peter Laslett (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1977. 270 pp.)

Abstract: RUDIGER ROBERT BEER, Unicorn. Myth and reality, translated by Charles M. Stem, New York and London, Ash & Grant, 1977, 8vo, pp. 215, illus., £7.95. The original versions of this book were published in German. It now appears in an elegant volume with a multitude of illustrations taken from a wide variety of sources, including tapestries, mosaics, and carvings, as well as manuscripts and printed books. In addition to the fascinating text, there is also a 'Commentary on the illustrations', a bibliography, and a meagre index. For thousands of years the mythical unicorn has been of great interest and it continues to be so. This lengthy story is traced by the author, from Ancient India to twentieth-century poetry. Its varying image, its symbolism and supposed physical form, the legends associated with it, and the therapeutic value of its horn, are all dealt with in a scholarly manner. The books in English on the unicorn are few, so that this one is a valuable addition to the literature on fabled beasts.

Contraception and its discontents: Sigmund Freud and birth control.

Abstract: PIP: Concern for contraception played a significant role in precipitating the appearance of psychoanalysis. In Vienna at the turn of the century middle class couples attempted to control family size, often by coitus interruptus. Freud was concerned by the anxiety which this practice caused. Rubber condoms were also available. Freud found the condom the more desirable method but also productive of anxiety. Freud describes the woman's use of a sponge as a contraceptive method, and when all else failed, abortion. The far reaching effects of birth control and family planning were envisioned by Freud, but he deliberately chose to deal with the individual anxieties caused by "Malthusian" practices. Coitus interruptus became increasingly alarming as a cause of neurosis; he asserted that fear of an unwanted pregnancy played little part. He also stated that masturbation caused nervous debility. To Freud contraception undermined the argument that civilization is based on self control and discipline. If couples could have sexual intercourse with no fear of repercussions, what force would be strong enough to drive men and women back to their highest callings?