The Fires of Lust: Sex in the Middle Ages

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It covers its chosen topic in an engaging fashion, presenting facts with little embellishment or external opinion, and does not seek to sensationalise the darker side of the subject of sex. Was it Bertrand Russell who opined that, of all the sexual possibilities, the most perverse was abstinence? On the other hand, the sex worker’s wages were earned through bodily labor so she was allowed to keep them.

However, at times its detail is overwhelming, with a barrage of a names and dates that seemingly have little importance to the overall narrative. Arts Remembrance: Jazz Notables We Lost in 2023 For many years now, the Francis Davis Jazz Poll has col. They also struggled with many of the same social issues, such as whether prostitution should be legalized.I can’t think of more brilliant Christmas book to give to one’s significant other if they have even a passing interest in medieval Europe or the rich and extraordinary sex life of its inhabitants.

dry of the lusts of the flesh’, and John the Evangelist abandoned his wedding feast at Cana to follow Jesus and live a life of perpetual virginity. Not sure if it was just my narrator, but in the mention of the Me Too movement in the conclusion, the UK audiobook says "Harry Weinstein" instead of "Harvey"? The style of the writing is engaging – it takes the subject matter and makes it fun, whilst still treating some of the very serious subject matter with the sensitivity it deserves. The medieval humoral system of medicine suggested that it was possible to die from having too much - or too little - sex, while the Roman Catholic Church taught that virginity was the ideal state. It's definitely written with classroom use in mind, but I'd also recommend it for anyone who wants to know more about the subject.Content Warnings: References throughout to violence, executions, torture, public punishments, public humiliation, intimate partner violence, murder, murder of a spouse, homophobia, misogyny, racism, antisemitism, islamophobia, war crimes, war, sexual violence, sexual assault, rape, gang rape, wartime rape, pedophilia, child sexual abuse, child prostitution, child marriage, forced prostitution, incest, bestiality. Harvey is careful to balance her story: Christian Europeans ‘othered’ non-Christians, believing preposterous stories about their bodies and sexuality, but Jews and Muslims did the same to Christians. As Harvey mentions in the beginning of her book, programs such as Game of Thrones make out individuals of the past to be inhumane with sexual violence running rampant when the reality of the situation is much more complicated. Here, in all its messy complexity, is medieval life - life laid bare, but always with respect and care. Stain that surviving record with occasionally virulent misogyny and to what extent the complicated and contradictory picture that emerges reflects the real experiences of people has to be in doubt.