Studies in the Psychology of Sex, Volume 6 | Page 3

of This Idea--The
Anti-Ascetic Element in the Bible and Early Christianity--Clement of
Alexandria--St. Augustine's Attitude--The Recognition of the
Sacredness of the Body by Tertullian, Rufinus and Athanasius--The
Reformation--The Sexual Instinct Regarded as Beastly--The Human
Sexual Instinct Not Animal-like--Lust and Love--The Definition of
Love--Love and Names for Love Unknown in Some Parts of the
World--Romantic Love of Late Development in the White Race--The
Mystery of Sexual Desire--Whether Love is a Delusion--The Spiritual
as Well as the Physical Structure of the World in Part Built up on
Sexual Love The Testimony of Men of Intellect to the Supremacy of
Love.




CHAPTER V.
THE FUNCTION OF CHASTITY.
Chastity Essential to the Dignity of Love--The Eighteenth Century
Revolt Against the Ideal of Chastity--Unnatural Forms of Chastity--The
Psychological Basis of Asceticism--Asceticism and Chastity as Savage
Virtues--The Significance of Tahiti--Chastity Among Barbarous
Peoples--Chastity Among the Early Christians--Struggles of the Saints
with the Flesh--The Romance of Christian Chastity--Its Decay in
Mediæval Times--Aucassin et Nicolette and the New Romance of
Chaste Love--The Unchastity of the Northern Barbarians--The
Penitentials--Influence of the Renaissance and the Reformation--The
Revolt Against Virginity as a Virtue--The Modern Conception of
Chastity as a Virtue--The Influences That Favor the Virtue of

Chastity--Chastity as a Discipline--The Value of Chastity for the
Artist--Potency and Impotence in Popular Estimation--The Correct
Definitions of Asceticism and Chastity.




CHAPTER VI.
THE PROBLEM OF SEXUAL ABSTINENCE.
The Influence of Tradition--The Theological Conception of
Lust--Tendency of These Influences to Degrade Sexual Morality--Their
Result in Creating the Problem of Sexual Abstinence--The Protests
Against Sexual Abstinence--Sexual Abstinence and Genius--Sexual
Abstinence in Women--The Advocates of Sexual
Abstinence--Intermediate Attitude--Unsatisfactory Nature of the Whole
Discussion--Criticism of the Conception of Sexual Abstinence--Sexual
Abstinence as Compared to Abstinence from Food--No Complete
Analogy--The Morality of Sexual Abstinence Entirely Negative--Is It
the Physician's Duty to Advise Extra-Conjugal Sexual
Intercourse?--Opinions of Those Who Affirm or Deny This Duty--The
Conclusion Against Such Advice--The Physician Bound by the Social
and Moral Ideas of His Age--The Physician as Reformer--Sexual
Abstinence and Sexual Hygiene--Alcohol--The Influence of Physical
and Mental Exercise--The Inadequacy of Sexual Hygiene in This
Field--The Unreal Nature of the Conception of Sexual Abstinence--The
Necessity of Replacing It by a More Positive Ideal.

CHAPTER VII.
PROSTITUTION.
I. _The Orgy:_--The Religious Origin of the Orgy--The Feast of
Fools--Recognition of the Orgy by the Greeks and Romans--The Orgy
Among Savages--The Drama--The Object Subserved by the Orgy.
II. _The Origin and Development of Prostitution:_--The Definition of
Prostitution--Prostitution Among Savages--The Conditions Under
Which Professional Prostitution Arises--Sacred Prostitution--The Rite
of Mylitta--The Practice of Prostitution to Obtain a Marriage
Portion--The Rise of Secular Prostitution in Greece--Prostitution in the
East--India, China, Japan, etc.--Prostitution in Rome--The Influence of
Christianity on Prostitution--The Effort to Combat Prostitution--The
Mediæval Brothel--The Appearance of the Courtesan--Tullia
D'Aragona--Veronica Franco--Ninon de Lenclos--Later Attempts to
Eradicate Prostitution--The Regulation of Prostitution--Its Futility
Becoming Recognized.
III. _The Causes of Prostitution:_--Prostitution as a Part of the
Marriage System--The Complex Causation of Prostitution--The
Motives Assigned by Prostitutes--(1) Economic Factor of
Prostitution--Poverty Seldom the Chief Motive for Prostitution--But
Economic Pressure Exerts a Real Influence--The Large Proportion of
Prostitutes Recruited from Domestic Service--Significance of This
Fact--(2) The Biological Factor of Prostitution--The So-called
Born-Prostitute--Alleged Identity with the Born-Criminal--The Sexual
Instinct in Prostitutes--The Physical and Psychic Characters of
Prostitutes--(3) Moral Necessity as a Factor in the Existence of
Prostitution--The Moral Advocates of Prostitution--The Moral Attitude
of Christianity Towards Prostitution--The Attitude of
Protestantism--Recent Advocates of the Moral Necessity of
Prostitution--(4) Civilizational Value as a Factor of Prostitution--The

Influence of Urban Life--The Craving for Excitement--Why
Servant-girls so Often Turn to Prostitution--The Small Part Played by
Seduction--Prostitutes Come Largely from the Country--The Appeal of
Civilization Attracts Women to Prostitution--The Corresponding
Attraction Felt by Men--The Prostitute as Artist and Leader of
Fashion--The Charm of Vulgarity.
IV. _The Present Social Attitude Towards Prostitution:_--The Decay of
the Brothel--The Tendency to the Humanization of Prostitution--The
Monetary Aspects of Prostitution--The Geisha--The Hetaira--The
Moral Revolt Against Prostitution--Squalid Vice Based on Luxurious
Virtue--The Ordinary Attitude Towards Prostitutes--Its Cruelty
Absurd--The Need of Reforming Prostitution--The Need of Reforming
Marriage--These Two Needs Closely Correlated--The Dynamic
Relationships Involved.




CHAPTER VIII.
THE CONQUEST OF THE VENEREAL DISEASES.
The Significance of the Venereal Diseases--The History of
Syphilis--The Problem of Its Origin--The Social Gravity of
Syphilis--The Social Dangers of Gonorrhoea--The Modern Change in
the Methods of Combating Venereal Diseases--Causes of the Decay of
the System of Police Regulation--Necessity of Facing the Facts--The
Innocent Victims of Venereal Diseases--Diseases Not Crimes--The
Principle of Notification--The Scandinavian System--Gratuitous
Treatment--Punishment For Transmitting Venereal Diseases--Sexual
Education in Relation to Venereal Diseases--Lectures, Etc.--Discussion
in Novels and on the Stage--The "Disgusting" Not the "Immoral".

CHAPTER IX.
SEXUAL MORALITY.
Prostitution in Relation to Our Marriage System--Marriage and
Morality--The Definition of the Term "Morality"--Theoretical
Morality--Its Division Into Traditional Morality and Ideal
Morality--Practical Morality--Practical Morality Based on
Custom--The Only Subject of Scientific Ethics--The Reaction Between
Theoretical and Practical Morality--Sexual Morality in