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Birth Control in Victorian England, or Foucault was Right

Birth Control in Victorian England, or Foucault was Right. Emma Graner. Artifact: Advertisement . Text: THE GENUINE FRENCH LETTER. The Publisher respectfully declines selling the FRENCH LETTER over the counter. It will be sent to any address on the receipt of 13 Postage Stamps.

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Birth Control in Victorian England, or Foucault was Right

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  1. Birth Control in Victorian England,or Foucault was Right Emma Graner

  2. Artifact:Advertisement Text: THE GENUINE FRENCH LETTER. The Publisher respectfully declines selling the FRENCH LETTER over the counter. It will be sent to any address on the receipt of 13 Postage Stamps. STRICTLY PRIVATE. Printed and Published by H. Cook, Bookseller, 5, Sims’ Alley, Broadmead, Bristol.

  3. Pre-19th Century • Evidence of long historical use of withdrawal as a method of birth control • Pepys’ Diary mentions use of the “sheath” or condom (but primarily as a safeguard against STDs, not against pregnancy) • Church’s consistent condemnations of birth control evidences its practice

  4. Early 19th Century • Industrialization and wars bring depression, unemployment, poverty, and social crisis • Large increase in population after 1760 • Rev. Thomas Malthus publishes Essay on the Principle of Population (1798) • Suggests “moral restraint” to relieve overpopulation

  5. Early 19th Century (cont.) • Francis Place advocates contraception as a means to reduce poverty in Illustrations and Proofs of Population (1822) • 1823: Handbills with instructions for contraceptive techniques widely distributed

  6. Early 19th Century (cont.) • Richard Carlile, journalist of The Republican, encourages use of birth control to increase sexual freedom • Carlile publishes pamphlet Every Woman’s Book, or What is Love? (1826) • Sex and contraception manual • Immensely popular: sells 5,000 copies in first 6 months, and sales increase after that

  7. Early 19th Century (cont.) • Charles Knowlton, American MD, publishes The Fruits of Philosophy, or the Private Companion of Young Married People (1832), the first scientific treatise on contraception since ancient times • Reprinted and pirated in England 1833-34; sells well

  8. Beginning of Victorian Era • By the beginning of the Victorian era, had been wide publication of Place’s instructional handbills and Carlile and Knowlton’s pamphlets • Ideas widely circulated and discussed in workingmen’s press and radical publications

  9. Victorian Era • 1854: George R. Dysdale, Malthusian physician, publishes The Elements of Social Science, or Physical, Sexual and Natural Religion • 600 pages • Review of Malthusian doctrine, physiology of sex, STDs, methods of contraception • Sold 77,000 copies by 1892 • Numerous other guides published, directed towards women and married couples

  10. Victorian Era (cont.) • Paradoxically, “Malthusianism” becomes a synonym for birth control • Evidence of wide practice of birth control among middle and upper classes • By 1878, British birthrate begins to decline • Little evidence of use among working class • Marie Stopes, writing in 1920s, indicates major newspapers like the Daily Telegraph included near-daily articles on birth control in 1867-68

  11. Victorian Era (cont.) • Methods of birth control widely practiced: • Withdrawal • Vaginal syringe (douche) • With or without chemical additive (quinine) • Vaginal sponge • Condom (“French letter,” “envelope,” “baudruche”) • Originally made of animal skin or intestine; later of vulcanized rubber • By the early 20th century, available in latex; short (“the tip”) or long size; “plain” or “teat” end; a variety of colors (“drab,” “ivory,” “flesh (pink)”, and “transparent”); some reusable • Advised for use with surgical lubricant, which was also available for sale

  12. Victorian Era (cont.) • Condoms marketed towards men for prevention of STDs in encounters with prostitutes, as well as “family men” concerned about household economy • Text of one ad for condom carrying cases: • "...As many of our encounters with the opposite sex are unexpected, it becomes any man, in consideration for his own health and happiness, never to be without these matchless Protections, for how often has years of misery, nay the bitterness of a whole life, ensued from the promiscuous intercourse with a Courtesan. • “It then becomes a matter of the greatest importance to be always prepared, to have them in our possession; but hither to this has been found attended with considerable inconvenience, being liable to be pulled from the pocket with gloves, paper, etc; in fact, a thousand circumstances may occur to bring the articles in question unexpectedly to light. • “In order to prevent these painful and unpleasant occurrences, W. Edwards has been induced to publish a small appropriate case, called ‘The Man of Pleasure's Pocket Book,’ containing a secret receptacle for ‘French Letters’ with instruction for their use, etc, and every valuable information that the votary of Venus may require.”

  13. Victorian Era (cont.) • Bradlaugh-Besant trial (1877) • CharlesBradlaugh(MP) and Annie Besant, both outspoken advocates of birth control, publish Knowlton’s Fruits of Philosophy • Tried for intent “to incite and encourage [the public] to indecent, obscene, unnatural, and immoral practices” • Convicted, but later released

  14. Victorian Era (cont.) • It seems that the only reasonBradlaughand Besant were prosecuted was because of pornographic illustrations added by rogue bookseller • Consequences ofBradlaugh-Besant trial • No decrease in publication or sale of information on birth control • Incites demand for more information • Gives Knowlton’s book publicity • 1876-1881: 200,000 copies sold in England • Annie Besant publishes The Law of Population: Its Consequences and its Bearing upon Human Conduct and Morals (1877) • Describes birth control methods • 175,000 copies sold by 1891 • Malthusian League founded in 1877; starts publishing The Malthusian in 1879

  15. Victorian Era (cont.)

  16. Back to French Envelopes • The Victorian era saw a revolution in birth control information, practices, discourse, and availability • Public discourse about birth control would continue to increase rapidly into the 20th century

  17. Bibliography • Holmes, James Robins. “A Short List of the more important articles which are used in the practice of Neo-Malthusianism commonly called Birth Control.” 1936. Web. 15 Sept. 2013. Available at: 19th Century Collections Online; Women: Transnational Networks. • Langer, William L. “The Origins of the Birth Control Movement in England in the Early Nineteenth Century.” The Journal of Interdisciplinary History 5.4 (1975): 669-86. JSTOR. Web. 15 Sept. 2013. • Off the Pedestal: Images of Women in Victorian Broadsides, Ephemera & “Fast” Literature. Lilly Library Digital Collection (Indiana University). Web. 15 Sept. 2013. Available at: http://www.indiana.edu/~liblilly/offthepedestal/otpintro.html • Includes items from London Low Life: An Uncatalogued Collection, Indiana University Lilly Library • “The Genuine French Letter” Advertisement (Box 3, No. 67) • “WhenBradlaughTriumphs” (OS 1 No. 6) • Stopes, Marie. Early Days of Birth Control. 2nd ed. London: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1922. Web. 15 Sept. 2013. Available at: 19th Century Collections Online; Women: Transnational Networks.

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