The Origins of Sex : A History of the First Sexual Revolution

For most of western history, all sex outside marriage was illegal, punished by the church and state. Then, between 1600 and 1800, this traditional world-view was shattered by a revolutionary new idea - that consenting adults should have the freedom to do what they like with their own bodies.

This acclaimed, groundbreaking book shows that the creation of our modern sexual culture - in which sex is ever more private, yet ever more publicised - was a central part of the Enlightenment. The first sexual revolution helped create a new model of western civilization, whose principles of equality, privacy, and individual freedom last to this day 'Path-breaking . . . touching . . . a marvellously rich and thought-provoking book, written with clarity and humanity.' Noel Malcolm,