Book Review - The Origins of Sex : a history of the first sexual revolution by Faramerz Dabhoiwala

Don't get too excited by the title, this is a scholarly work looking at how attitudes to sex have changed from medieval times to the present focusing particularly on English legal and social history. Did you know that at one time poor couples were prevented from marrying as it was feared their children would be a drain on the parish. How did a woman's popular image change from sexual predator to vulnerable victim? Why was there a mania for reforming prostitutes in Victorian times? I particularly liked the chapter on how the rise of cheap printing revolutionized public opinion forming and was saddened by the reminders of how class and money have affected how people behave through the centuries.

Wendy