The sheer blind, isolating selfishness of the average husband and the
misery it causes him are the reason for my writing this book. If a man
used one-tenth the intellect in his marital relations that he does in his
corporation finance and in his inventions and scientific research, the
latter would not be half as necessary as they seem to be, and he would
himself be infinitely happier.
§ 3
Unless we are progressing toward a woman-made social order it is
imperative that men carry on to a logical conclusion what they have begun.
“Charity begins at home” is one of the many maxims that were originated
with a far different connotation from that which they have since
acquired. Charity (Latin _Caritas_) originally meant “dearness” or
“fondness” and once had an erotic flavour that it has since lost. The
only place for sexual love is in marriage and its having escaped from
this, like a captured thing, reflects not so much on itself as on the
unnaturalness of its captivity. True erotism has practically fled from
most marriages, leaving only an empty shell. Men should reflect that
nothing is more necessary for the upbuilding of a real civilization
than the personal lives of the individuals themselves. Penetratingly
thoughtful men realize that the present state of civilization is diseased
throughout, and that it “is not in our stars but in ourselves,” that we
are to rely for advance.
§ 4
In this book an attempt is made to show how men can so control their
marital situation as to make more and more unnecessary the tightness of
the bond that operates to make many marriages so like an imprisonment for
both husbands and wives. Also the suggestion is made that a certain type
of action on the husband’s part will work in the direction of making both
prostitution and divorce less and less necessary.
This type of behaviour, comparatively rare at the present time, is based
on a pattern that will at once appeal to the sense of justice innate in
every man. Although it implies a relaxation of much present constraint
and artificiality in the married relation, it is in no sense antagonistic
to true monogamous union but rather constitutes a much more advanced and
progressive attitude toward the most vital question of the day.
The marriage of the near future, it is hoped, will be inspired by our
latest scientific knowledge concerning the psychology of sex, including
the ever present unconscious factor, which is the most potent factor in
the marital situation and which has been necessarily ignored for the
simple reason that, previous to a few years ago, everyone was ignorant of
the unconscious mechanisms and their relation to each other, in making
for mistakes and unhappiness in marital behaviour.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account