The Sexual Question Part 7

=The s.e.xual Appet.i.te in Man.=--Man represents the active element in s.e.xual union, and in him the s.e.xual appet.i.te, or desire for coitus, is at first the stronger. This desire develops spontaneously, and the role of fecundator represents the princ.i.p.al male activity. This appet.i.te powerfully affects the male mind, although s.e.xual life plays a less important part in him than in the female.

In boys, the s.e.xual appet.i.te is often prematurely awakened, excited in unnatural ways by bad example. Moreover, it varies enormously in different individuals, a point to which we shall return when dealing with pathology. Leaving aside unnatural appet.i.tes and abnormal forms of s.e.xual instinct we shall describe here its most spontaneous and normal form.

=p.u.b.erty. Awakening of the s.e.xual Instinct in Boys.=--Sooner or later in different individuals, the boy pays attention to his erections, which are at first produced in a reflex and involuntary manner.

Mental development and reflection, so precocious in man, are causes which draw attention to the differences of the s.e.xes before the s.e.xual appet.i.te is developed. It is, however, the first signs of this appet.i.te which concentrate the attention on these differences, for in their absence, the boy is more indifferent to them than to the straight or crooked form of a nose. Man has the habit of pa.s.sing by without notice anything which does not interest him, and this is why we find, in individuals whose s.e.xual appet.i.te is developed late or feebly, an indifference and ignorance in these matters which appear almost incredible to those whose s.e.xual appet.i.te is precocious and violent; while, on the contrary, the lively interest which the latter show in everything concerning the s.e.xes appears foolish and absurd to the s.e.xually indifferent.

The pairing of animals, even of insects, awakens a curious interest in those whose s.e.xual dispositions are strong and precocious; they comprehend very quickly the reason and are led to draw a.n.a.logies with their own sensations in the same domain. The aspect of the female s.e.x has, however, a much stronger action still on the normal man. But here is produced a peculiar phenomenon. What especially excites the boy in the aspect of the female s.e.x is anything unusual; the sight of certain parts of the skin which are normally covered, the clothes or ornaments, particular odors, women whom the boy is not accustomed to see, etc. It is for this reason that brothers and sisters do not excite, or excite very little, their reciprocal s.e.xual appet.i.te, at least if there are no anomalies or exceptional exhibitions. The s.e.xual appet.i.tes of boys among savage peoples who live naked is hardly at all excited by naked girls; on the other hand, it is strongly excited by those who are clothed or ornamented in a peculiar manner. The s.e.xual appet.i.te of a Mahometan is strongly excited by the nudity of the feminine face, that of the European by that of a woman's legs, because women are accustomed to veil their faces in the first case and their legs in the second. These are naturally only relative differences.

When the s.e.xual appet.i.te of man is violent and unsatisfied woman excites it in a general way, if she is not too old or repulsive.

A second important character of the normal s.e.xual appet.i.te is the special attraction that appearances of health and strength in woman produce in man. Healthy forms, normal odors, a normal voice, a skin healthy in appearance and to the touch, const.i.tute attractions which charm and excite man, while all that is unhealthy or faded, every pathological odor, produce a repulsive effect and hinders or diminishes s.e.xual desire.

Everything connected with the s.e.xual organs, their appearance, touch and odor, tend to excite the s.e.xual appet.i.te, all the more when they are usually covered; it is the same with the b.r.e.a.s.t.s.

The first s.e.xual sensations are of a quite indeterminate nature; something unconscious and obscure inclines the boy toward the female s.e.x and makes it appear desirable. A boy may thus become enamored of the portrait of a woman with a swelling bosom and alluring eyes and be seized with desire, either at their sight or only on remembrance. This desire is not concentrated especially on the s.e.xual act, as with an adult who is already experienced in these matters; it is more generalized and vague, although sensual.

For a long time, these repeated aspirations, impulses and desires, remain unsatisfied. In different individuals the imagination a.s.sociates the most diverse images with such manifestations of the s.e.xual appet.i.te. The objects of the latter appear in dreams and provoke nocturnal erections. The boy soon remarks a sensory localization of his appet.i.tes in his s.e.xual organs, especially in the glans p.e.n.i.s, but also in the surrounding parts, and the known or only vaguely defined image of the female s.e.xual organs, which is hardly present at the first appearance of his desires, begin to excite him more and more.

In natural or savage man, as well as in animals, the boy then makes attempts at coitus and soon attains his object, for, in the state of nature, man marries as soon as p.u.b.erty is attained.

=Nocturnal Emissions.=--In civilized man such difficulties are opposed to marriage, that he replaces it by prost.i.tution, or by more or less unnatural means, as soon as his s.e.xual appet.i.te becomes strong. In those who abstain, the images produced by s.e.xual excitation, combined with erections, act more strongly during sleep than waking and produce e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.ns of s.e.m.e.n called nocturnal emissions or pollutions. These generally occur during erotic dreams, and as the dreams produce the illusion of real perception, in quality as well as in intensity, it is not surprising that they are followed by an o.r.g.a.s.m and e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n of s.e.m.e.n.

=Masturbation.=--In the waking state the unsatisfied s.e.xual appet.i.te may produce such excitation that the boy applies friction to the glans p.e.n.i.s, which cause voluptuous sensations. As soon as he has made this discovery he repeats the act and provokes e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n of s.e.m.e.n artificially. Thus arises the bad habit of masturbation or onanism, a habit which is both depressing and exhausting, which takes an increasing hold on those who practice it. Although from the purely mechanical point of view masturbation causes a more normal e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n than nocturnal emissions, which are often interrupted by awakening and the vanishing of the dream which produced them, it has a much more harmful effect, by its frequency and especially by its depressing action on sentiment and will. We shall return to this subject in Chapter VIII.

The acc.u.mulation of s.e.m.e.n in the seminal vesicles strongly excites the s.e.xual appet.i.te of man, and he is momentarily satisfied by their evacuation. But we shall soon see that this purely organic or mechanical excitation, which seems at first to be only adapted for natural wants, does not in man play the princ.i.p.al role. We can easily understand that it cannot be the princ.i.p.al moving power of the s.e.xual act. In fact, for any of the animals in which copulation occurs, the possibility of accomplishing this is not connected solely with the acc.u.mulation of s.e.m.e.n, for it depends on obtaining a female. It is necessary, therefore, for the acc.u.mulated s.e.m.e.n to wait, and for the perception of the female by the aid of the senses to excite the male to coitus.

=External Signs of the s.e.xual Appet.i.te.=--Like every other desire the s.e.xual appet.i.te betrays itself by the physionomy. This consists in the play of cerebral activity, that is the thoughts, sentiments and resolutions, on the muscles by means of motor nerves and nerve centers. It is not limited to the face but extends to the whole body.

The abdomen, the hands and even the feet have their physionomy; that of the muscles of the face and eyes is, however, the most active and most expressive. s.e.xual desire betrays itself in looks, by the expression of the face and by certain movements in the presence of the female s.e.x. Men differ greatly in the way in which they betray or hide their sentiments and thoughts by the play of their muscles, so that the inner self is not always reflected without. Moreover, the expression of s.e.xual desire by the play of the physionomy may be confounded with that of other sentiments, so that one who appears libidinous is not always so in reality, and inversely.

=Continence in Man.=--Abstinence or s.e.xual continence is by no means impracticable for a normal young man of average const.i.tution, a.s.siduous in intellectual and physical work, abstaining from all artificial excitations, especially from all narcotics and alcohol in particular, for these substances paralyze the judgment and will. When s.e.xual maturity is complete, that is after about twenty years, continence is usually facilitated by nocturnal emissions accompanied by corresponding dreams. The health does not suffer from these in any way. However, in the long run this state cannot be considered as normal, especially when there is no hope of it coming to an end in a reasonable time. What is much more abnormal are the numerous artificial s.e.xual excitations that civilization brings with it.

=s.e.xual Power.=--The individual variations in the s.e.xual instinct are enormous, and may be said to vary from zero to an intense and perpetual excitation called _Satyriasis_. By s.e.xual power is understood the faculty of accomplishing coitus. This power in the first place requires strong and complete erections, as well as the faculty of following them by frequent seminal e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.ns, without being precipitate. Impotence or incapacity for coitus belongs to pathology and consists usually in the absence or defectiveness of erections. s.e.xual power and appet.i.te generally go together, but not always, for it is possible to be powerful with feeble s.e.xual appet.i.te, and intense appet.i.te sometimes goes with impotence; the latter condition, it is true, is pathological. s.e.xual power also varies so much in individuals that it is hardly possible to fix a limit between the normal and the pathological.

The s.e.xual power and appet.i.te in man are strongest on the average between 20 and 40 years, especially between 25 and 35. But, while young men of 18 to 20 years or more may be still tranquil, without having had seminal e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.ns, one often finds, among races who mature earlier, boys of 12 or 16 who are fully developed both in s.e.xual power and appet.i.te. In our Aryan races, however, when this occurs before the age of 14, it is a case of pathological precocity.

The late appearance of s.e.xual power and appet.i.te is rather a sign of strength and health.

After the age of 40, the s.e.xual power slowly diminishes, and after the seventieth year, or even before this, becomes extinct. Exceptionally one finds old men of 80 who are still capable. Normally the s.e.xual appet.i.te diminishes with age; often, however, especially when it is artificially excited, it lasts longer than s.e.xual power.

As regards s.e.xual power we must distinguish between that of copulation and that of fecundation. The power may exist without the latter, when the t.e.s.t.i.c.l.es have ceased to functionate, while the other glands, in particular the prostate, second the venereal o.r.g.a.s.m by their secretion, when the power of erection is still preserved. Inversely, the t.e.s.t.i.c.l.es may contain healthy spermatozoa in the impotent. In this case artificial fecundation by the syringe is practicable.

=Individual Variations in s.e.xual Power.=--The fact that there are men who for several years can copulate several times a day proves to what extent s.e.xual power varies in man. s.e.xual excitation and desire may sometimes attain such a degree that they are repeated a few minutes after e.j.a.c.u.l.a.t.i.o.n. It is not rare for a man to perform coitus ten or fifteen times in a single night, in brothels and elsewhere, although such excess borders on the domain of pathology. I know a case in which coitus was performed thirty times. I was once consulted by an old woman of 65 who complained of the insatiable s.e.xual appet.i.te of her husband, aged 73! He awakened her every morning at three o'clock to have connection, before going to work. Not content with this, he repeated the performance every evening and often also after the mid-day meal. Inversely, I have seen healthy looking husbands, at the age of greatest s.e.xual power, accuse themselves of excess for having cohabited with their wives once a month or less. The reformer, _Luther_, who was a practical man, laid down the average rule of two or three connections a week in marriage, at the time of highest s.e.xual power. I may say that my numerous observations as a physician have generally confirmed this rule, which seems to me to conform very well to the normal state to which man has become gradually adapted during thousands of years.

Husbands who would consider this average as an imprescriptible right would, however, make wrong pretensions, for it is quite possible for a normal man to contain himself much longer, and it is his duty to do so, not only when his wife is ill, but also during menstruation and pregnancy.

The question of s.e.xual relations during pregnancy is more difficult, on account of its long duration. In this case caution is necessary, but total abstinence from s.e.xual connection is, in my opinion, superfluous.

=The Desire of Change in Man.=--A peculiarity of the s.e.xual appet.i.te in man, which is fatal for society, is his desire for change. This desire is not only one of the princ.i.p.al causes of polygamy, but also of prost.i.tution and other a.n.a.logous organizations. It arises from the want of s.e.xual attraction in what one is accustomed to and from the stronger excitation produced by all that is new; a phenomenon of which we have spoken above. On the average, woman has a hereditary disposition which is much more monogamous than man. The s.e.xual appet.i.te thus loses its intensity from the prolonged habit of connection with the same woman, but, becomes much more intense with other women, if not in all men at any rate in most. Such desires may generally be overcome by the aid of a true and n.o.ble love, and by sentiments of duty and fidelity toward the family and toward a respected wife. We cannot, however, deny that they exist, nor that they are the cause of the worst excesses, and the most violent scenes, often with a tragic result. We shall return to this subject later.

=Excitation and Cooling of the s.e.xual Appet.i.te.=--Without touching the domain of pathology, I must again dwell on the great individual diversity of the objects of the male s.e.xual appet.i.te. It is usually young but mature female forms of healthy appearance, and especially the sight of the nudity of certain parts of the body which are usually covered, particularly the b.r.e.a.s.t.s and s.e.xual organs, which most strongly excite the s.e.xual appet.i.te in man. It is the same with the corresponding odors. The voice, the physionomy, the clothing and many other details may also provoke his desires. There are, however, men who are more excited by thin and pale women.

Certain attributes excite one and not another; for instance, the hair, certain odors, certain forms of face, a certain fashion of clothing, the form of the b.r.e.a.s.t.s, etc. The peculiarities, which are absent in women with whom a man has been on familiar terms in his youth are generally those which attract the most. In s.e.xual matters contrasts tend to mutual attraction. Thin people often become enamored of fat, short ones of long ones, and inversely. One cannot, however, fix any rules. One often sees young men excited at the sight of women of older age, and old men enamored of very young women, even of children. All these discrepancies const.i.tute the more important points of origin of s.e.xual pathology. In spite of all, there still exist a great number of tranquil men with monogamous instincts and not fond of change. Lastly, we must not forget that super-abundant feeding and idleness exalt the s.e.xual appet.i.te and tend to polygamy, while hard work, especially physical, and frugal diet diminish it.

It is needless to say that the mental qualities react powerfully on the s.e.xual appet.i.te. A quarrelsome temper, coldness and repulsion on the part of a woman cool the desires of the man, while an ardent s.e.xual desire on the part of the woman, her love and tenderness, tend to increase and maintain them. We are dealing here with purely animal s.e.xual instinct, and we may state that the s.e.xual appet.i.te of woman generally excites strongly that of man, and considerably increases his pleasure during coitus. There are, however, exceptions in the inverse sense, in which coldness and disgust on the part of the woman excite the pa.s.sion of certain men, who have, however, no taste for libidinous women. All degrees are found in this domain.

Active in the s.e.xual act the man desires corresponding sentiments in the woman. But, on the other hand, all want of natural reserve, and delicate sentiment, and all cynical s.e.xual provocation on the part of a woman, produce in the normal man a repulsive effect. The normal woman possesses an admirable instinct in these matters and knows how to betray her feelings in a sufficiently fine and delicate manner, so as not to hurt those of the man.

A phenomenon, which we shall meet with in Chapter VIII, under the name of _psychic impotence_, shows the powerful and disturbing interference of thoughts on the automatic action of instinctive s.e.xual activity. A momentary psychic impotence is not necessarily pathological. While voluptuous sensations alternate during coitus with desire and corresponding erotic representations, a sudden idea of the ridiculousness of the situation, signs of pain or of bad temper in the woman, the idea of impotence or of the real object of coitus; finally, anything which acts as a contrast to the sensations and impulses of coitus, may interrupt it, so that the voluptuous sensations and s.e.xual appet.i.te disappear and erection subsides. Voluntary efforts are often incapable of putting things right again. The charm is broken, and only new images and new sentiments a.s.sociated instinctively with the s.e.xual appet.i.te can be reestablished, by making the subconscious state preponderate over the reasoning consciousness.

=Influence of Modern Civilization. p.o.r.nography.=--Human s.e.xuality has been unfortunately perverted and in part grossly altered by civilization, which has even developed it artificially in a pathological sense. The point has been reached of considering as normal, relations which are in reality absolutely abnormal. For example, it is maintained that prost.i.tution produces normal coitus in man. How can this term be seriously employed in speaking of connection with a prost.i.tute who is absolutely indifferent to it, and who seeks only to excite her clients artificially and to get their money, without mentioning venereal diseases which she so often presents them with! Forgetful of the natural aim of the s.e.xual appet.i.te, civilization has transformed it into artificial enjoyment, and has invented all possible means to increase and diversify it.

As far back as the history of civilization goes we see this state of affairs, and in this sense we are neither better nor worse than our ancestors. But we possess more diverse and more refined measures than barbarian peoples, and than our direct ancestors, to satisfy our unwholesome desires. Modern art in particular often serves to excite eroticism, and we must frankly admit that it often descends to the level of p.o.r.nography. Hypocritical indignation against those who dare to say this often serves only to cover in the name of art the most indecent excitants of eroticism.

Photography and all the perfected methods of reproduction of pictures, the increasing means of travel which facilitate clandestine s.e.xual relations, the industrial art which ornaments our apartments, the increasing luxury and comfort of dwellings, beds, etc., are, at the present day, so many factors in the science of erotic voluptuousness.

Prost.i.tution itself has become adapted to all the pathological excrescences of vice. In a word, the artificial culture of the human s.e.xual appet.i.te has given rise to a veritable high school of debauchery. The artistic and realistic representations of erotic s.e.xual scenes, so widespread at the present day, are much more capable of exciting the s.e.xual appet.i.te than the crude and unnatural pictures of former days, when, however, erotic objects of art generally belonged to a few rich persons or to museums.

=Influence of Repeated s.e.xual Excitations.=--The artificial and varied repet.i.tion of s.e.xual excitation, by means of objects which provoke it, increases the s.e.xual appet.i.te. This cannot be doubted, for the law of exercise is a general truth in the physiology of the nervous system.

This law, which is also called the law of training, shows that every kind of nervous activity is increased by exercise. A man becomes a glutton by accustoming himself to eat too much, a good walker by exercising his legs. The habit of wearing fine clothes or of washing in cold water causes these things to become a necessity. By continually occupying ourselves with a certain thing, we take a liking for it and often become virtuosos. By always thinking of a disease we are led to imagine that we suffer from it. A melody too often repeated often becomes automatic and we whistle or hum it unconsciously.

Inversely, inactivity weakens the effect of irritations which correspond to it. By neglecting certain activities or the provocation of certain sensations, these diminish in intensity, and we cease more and more to be affected by them. We become idle when we are inactive, for the cerebral resistance acc.u.mulates, and idleness renders the renewal of the corresponding activity more difficult. It is not surprising, therefore, to find this law in the phenomena of the s.e.xual appet.i.te, which diminishes with abstinence and increases with repeated excitation and satisfaction. However, another force, that of the acc.u.mulation of s.e.m.e.n in the seminal vesicles, a.s.sociated with an old natural inherited instinct, often counteracts the law of exercise of the nervous system, as the empty stomach excites the instinct of nutrition. But, however imperious the hunger, and however indispensable its satisfaction for the maintenance of life, this does not impair the truth of the old saying, "Appet.i.te comes by eating."

The exaggerated desire for sleep experienced by idle people is an a.n.a.logous phenomenon. Although sufficient sleep is a necessity for healthy and productive cerebral activity, an exaggerated desire for sleep may be artificially developed.

These phenomena are of fundamental importance in the question of the s.e.xual appet.i.te. Here, the well-known axiom of moderation which says, "Abuse does not exclude use" finds its application. An English commentator on _Cicero_ erroneously attributes to him the following: "True moderation consists in the absolute domination of the pa.s.sions and appet.i.tes, as well as all wrong desires, by reason. It exacts total abstinence from all things which are not good and which are not of an absolutely innocent character." This definition is excellent, although it is not _Cicero's_. It excludes, for example, the use of a toxic substance such as alcohol, which is not a natural food, but not the moderate satisfaction of the s.e.xual appet.i.te which is normally intended for the preservation of the species, for this satisfaction may be good or bad, normal or vicious, innocent or criminal, according to circ.u.mstances. In this connection, the application of the right measure, and choice of the appropriate object raise delicate and complicated questions. So-called moral sermons lead to nothing in this domain.

After numerous personal observations made on very diverse individuals who have consulted me with regard to s.e.xual questions, I think I can affirm that when a man wishes to be loyal to himself he is generally able to distinguish between natural desire and artificial excitation of the s.e.xual appet.i.te. To be pursued and tormented by s.e.xual images and desires, even when striving against them, and when the legitimate and normal occasion to satisfy them is absent, is not the same thing as to pa.s.s the time in inventing means of artificial excitement to pleasure and orgy while leading an idle and egoistic life. I speak here of the normal man and not of certain pathological states in which the s.e.xual appet.i.te takes the character of a perpetual obsession, even against the will of the patient. By serious and persevering work and by avoiding all means of excitation, the s.e.xual appet.i.te can usually be kept within the bounds of moderation.

We have mentioned above p.o.r.nographic art as one of the means which artificially excite the s.e.xual appet.i.te. Along with the interested exploitation of the habit of taking alcoholic drinks, exploitation of the s.e.xual appet.i.te const.i.tutes one of the largest fields of what may be called _social brigandage_. Besides p.o.r.nographic pictures, the princ.i.p.al means employed to artificially excite the s.e.xual weaknesses of man are the following:

_p.o.r.nographic novels_ in which s.e.xual desire is excited by all the artifice of the novelist, and in which the ill.u.s.trations often rival those we have just spoken of to seduce the purchaser.

_Alcohol_ which, by paralyzing the judgment and will as well as moral inhibitory sentiments, excites the s.e.xual appet.i.te and renders it grossly impulsive. Its first fumes make man enterprising, and he falls an easy prey to proxenetism and prost.i.tution, although it soon weakens the s.e.xual power.

But it is the modern a.r.s.enal of _prost.i.tution_ which plays the princ.i.p.al role. The proxenets (pimps) exploit both the s.e.xual appet.i.tes of men and the weakness and venality of women. Their chief source of gain consisting in the artificial excitation of the male s.e.xual appet.i.te by all possible means, their art consists in dressing their merchandise, the prost.i.tutes, with attractive refinement, especially when dealing with rich clients who pay well. It is on this soil that are cultivated the most disgusting artifices, intended to excite even the most pathological appet.i.tes.

Other causes are added to lucre, or are the consequences of it. A boy led to masturbation by p.o.r.nographic pictures, or by the seduction of a corrupted individual, becomes in his turn the seducer of his comrades.

Certain libidinous and unscrupulous women have often persuaded adolescents and schoolboys to sleep with them, thus awakening precocious and unhealthy s.e.xual appet.i.tes.

Such habits which excite the s.e.xual appet.i.te and cause it to degenerate artificially, develop in their turn a mode of s.e.xual boasting in men, the effects of which are deplorable. To appear manly, the boy thinks he ought to have a cigar in his mouth, even if it makes him sick. In the same way the spirit of imitation leads youth to prost.i.tution. The fear of not doing as the others and especially the terror of ridicule const.i.tute a powerful lever which is abused and exploited. Fearing mockery, a youth is the more easily seduced by bad example the less he is put on guard by parents or true friends.

Instead of explaining to him in time, seriously and affectionately, the nature of s.e.xual connection, its effects and dangers, he is abandoned to the chance of the worst seductions.

In this way the s.e.xual appet.i.te is not only artificially increased and often directed into unnatural channels, but also leads to the poisoning and ruin of youth by venereal diseases, to say nothing of alcoholism.

We have referred especially to educated youth, but the youth of the lower cla.s.ses are perhaps in a still worse condition, owing to the promiscuity of their life in miserable dwellings. They often witness coitus between their parents, or are themselves trained in evil ways for purposes of exploitation.

It is astonishing that the results of such abominable deviation of the s.e.xual appet.i.te are not worse. No doubt excesses disturb the ties of marriage and of the family, and often provoke impotence and other disorders of the s.e.xual functions. It must, however, be admitted that their satellites, the venereal diseases, and their most common companion, alcoholism, are in reality the greatest destroyers of health, and make much more considerable ravages in society than the artificial increase and abnormal deviations of the s.e.xual appet.i.te itself. However, the latter by themselves very often poison the mind and social morality, as we shall have occasion to see.

Immoderate s.e.xual desire, provoked in men by the artificial excitations of prost.i.tution, etc., is a bad acquisition. It renders difficult the accustomance to marriage, fidelity and ideal and life-long love for the same woman. It is true, that many old _roues_ and _habitues_ of brothels later on become faithful husbands and fathers, especially when they have had the luck to escape venereal disease.

But whoever looks behind the scenes may soon convince himself that the happiness of most unions of this kind is very relative. The degradation of the s.e.xual sentiment of a man who has long been accustomed to live with prost.i.tutes is never entirely effaced, and generally leaves indelible traces in the human brain.