Beschreibung
Pregnant women in the past had sex, yet we know nearly nothing about their sexual desires, or what people thought about sex during pregnancy. While there is much research on the sexual maternal body, studies of pregnancy and sex are lacking. This Palgrave Pivot provides the first history of pregnant womens sexuality in England from 1550 to 1800, with discussion of Northern European perspectives on pregnancy sex. It explores a range of medical literature for descriptions of pregnancy and sexuality, including popular medical and midwifery books, as well as Latin scientific treatises. Alongside these texts, it considers popular culture materials including novels, ballads, pornography, marital guides, and diaries and correspondence. Drawing on methodologies from gender and queer history, the book attempts to locate pregnant womens articulations of desire in this period. Moreover, the book reveals the paradoxical nature of early modern attitudes to sex and pregnancy: womens gravid sexuality was portrayed as natural and desirable, but also excessive, potentially dangerous and disruptive to the foetus.
Autorenporträt
Paige Donaghy is McKenzie Postdoctoral Fellow in the School of Historical and Philosophical Studies at the University of Melbourne, Australia. She is a historian of reproduction, medicine, and gender and sexuality in Europe c.1550-1850.
Herstellerkennzeichnung:
Springer Verlag GmbH
Tiergartenstr. 17
69121 Heidelberg
DE
E-Mail: juergen.hartmann@springer.com
