History of Science 2220 Lecture Notes - Lecture 14: Hypersexuality, Headache, Corset
11 Mar 2014
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Earliest reported evidence: 7th c bc in mesopotamia. Scholars have also found spells from this time to counter any sort of witch craft that could have been put on a man. 19th c england believed main cause was excessive masturbation. Now it"s believed to be blood circulation. Socially or culturally structured: less to do with actually being sick, it"s more about the labels with it and how society views it. The way it has been perceived overtime is influenced by society. Paying attention to vocabulary: the words used over time to define impotence and create a perception of how society viewed it. Manhood = proved by penetration: did not matter if it were a women, man or child. Notions of sex and gender: to be considered a man, a vigorous character was essential, romans fixated on idea of self-controlled and aggressive man, had to appear strong and active. Small, thin and pointed foreskin: for greeks:
