Aww (blushes). Thanks Elisabeth!
I have always been fascinated by how publicly repressed Victorian society was in the public eye, yet they wrote such bawdy tales, performed such sexually arousing things and yet still somehow managed to keep both halves separated from one another!
There is an interesting link to a discourse on sexuality in general (and the linke refers to the Victorian section) here:
http://www.isis.aust.com/stephan/wri...ality/vict.htm
Here's the obligatory link to Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Victorian_morality
Here's an interesting article by a real MD:
http://www.innominatesociety.com/Art...rian%20Era.htm
The funny thing about most articles on the Victorian age is that they all acknowledge the apparent hypocrisy of the time. I suppose ever generation has it, but for whatever reason the Victorian Age stands out so much. Right before the Victorian age we see some very interesting changes, such as Justine by the Marquis de Sade, and later during the Victorian period Sader Macher writes the classic Venus in Furs. Most of us in BDSM can trace our kinky roots back to this period.
Though, to be honest, I'm sure kinky sex had been going on prior to that (chastity belted ladies during the crusades, etc). It's just that during this period we see the whole concept raised up as more of an organized art form. Don't you love history when it involves boobages?