The industy's move away from plastic packaging with naked women and pony tail dudes on the front has encouraged a lot of trendy packaging (thanks Bottle Rocket) but I think it's time again for hand painted ink drawings.
The history around these early contraptions says a lot about society's attitudes towards women.
This particular device was perscribed for 'hysteria.' Hysteria comes from the Greek word for uterus and doctors believed it was caused by pent up sexual energy, so nuns and singletons were placed in the high risk group. By the Victorian era, physicians were gearing up for a pandemic.
Their cure? Clitoral orgasm. (the alternative was bland food and seclusion)
This was a remedy dating back to the first century AD. Typically woman would visit a doctor who induced 'paroxysm' with pelvic massage. Uhuh.....But doctors found it time consuming and repetitive so often passed the job onto midwives.
Along came electricity, the first patented electromechanical vibe and doctors jumped on board. Health spas started offering 'vibration treatments' and needlework catalogues were advertising models to buy for the home. Wikipedia shows some startling 'water treatments' too.
This makes the vibrator the fifth electrical appliance for the home. After the sewing machine, the fan, the tea kettle and the toaster.
It's medical legitimacy dropped when Freud came along in the 20s and proved paroxysm to be sexual. It took until 1952 for 'hysteria' to be dropped by the American Psychiatric Association and next time the vibrator came into vogue women wouldn't have to be classed as 'ill' to experience battery powered pleasure.
See wikipedia for the oddness http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Female_hysteria
John Harvey Kellog also liked to put carbolic acid on a young woman's clitoris. He felt it curbed 'abnormal excitement.' Other remedys to discourage children from touching themselves was sewing their foreskin shut.
John Harvey Kellogg also liked to put carbolic acid on a young woman's clitoris. He felt it curbed 'abnormal excitement.' Other remedies to discourage children from touching themselves was sewing their foreskin shut.
Kiss my giant, shiny, dildo: J.H.Kellogg.
That's why the advert with the lovely old Kellogg's man pisses me off.
Aaaaaa.... Isn't the old man lovely with his glasses, I bet it just wants a Weather's Original. He looks like grandads should... NO HE'S NOT LOVELY, HE WANTS YOUR SEX ORGANS IN A CAGE AND WAS A BLATANT RACIST!
Nice to finally see what the Summer's family looked like all those years ago.
Tigerlilies wrote:
It's medical legitimacy dropped when Freud came along in the 20s and proved paroxysm to be sexual. It took until 1952 for 'hysteria' to be dropped by the American Psychiatric Association and next time the vibrator came into vogue women wouldn't have to be classed as 'ill' to experience battery powered pleasure.
I did a history degree, specialising in c19th Europe. This should have been my dissertation topic!! It was actually mentioned once or twice in the feminist history module, but the teaching on that module made me too angry for me to carry on with it!
Well Mr Kellogg has been dead for rather a long time...
Same with Ford, racism and the Nazi connection, Coca Cola had a go with the Nazis too... That's why Fanta was invented! It was hard to get the ingredients to make coke during the war so a new one was invented, hence Fanta!
Lots of historic people were bastards and greedy! Who would of thought ey?
Walt Disney wasn't meant to be a very nice man either - I can't remember why and feel a bit too rubbish to check right now but someone may be interesting in having a look!
That post was an attempted apology for the poor spelling/grammar lately. I'm going through a really, really rubbish patch lately and my head is mashed!
Walt Disney wasn't meant to be a very nice man either - I can't remember why and feel a bit too rubbish to check right now but someone may be interesting in having a look!
Ax
I seem to remember being told he was incredibly anit-semitic, but I'm sure there was more to it than that.