Love: A Treatise on the Science of Sex-attraction: for the use of Physicians and Students of Medical JurisprudenceTalmey, Bernard Simon
Science
Love: A Treatise on the Science of Sex-attraction: for the use of Physicians and Students of Medical Jurisprudence
Talmey, Bernard Simon
Sex
[AA] Among animals, says Walker, there are species that never marry and
those that do. Those male animals whose young are easily fed, such as
the horse, the bull or the dog, never approach the female except when
under the influence of rut, never cohabit with one exclusively, rarely,
if ever, repeat the reproductive act with the same individual, and
commit the care of the offspring entirely to their temporary mates.
[AB] In some animals the rôles are changed. The part of the female in
fishes, for instance, is ended when she has let fall the roe on the
spawning-bed, while the male swims constantly over this bed and watches
over the fertilized eggs against the attack of enemies until the eggs
have developed into new fishes.
[AC] The error committed by the radicals is that they read human
history and neglect to read natural history. In the beginning of
history permanent mating was already abolished. Permanent mating was a
necessity only as long as the couples lived separated. When, however,
already before the dawn of civilization, mutual aid was added to self
aid, when for the sake of protection men began to live in herds, and
all the males had the responsibility to procure the food for the entire
herd, the individual father was released from such responsibility, and
there was no necessity any longer for permanent mating. The result was
promiscuity, as found by Caesar (Bell. Gal. v. 14), among the Britons:
“uxores habent deni duodenique inter se communes et maxime fratres cum
fratribus, parentesque cum liberis,” and by Strabo among the Celts of
Ireland: “καὶ φανερῶς μίσγεσθαι ταῖς τε ἄλλαις γυναιξὶ καὶ μητράσι καὶ
ἀδελφαῖς.” From promiscuity the sexual relations run through a certain
cycle of consanguineous marriage, punaluan family, pairing family,
polygamy back again to monogamy, as now practised in most of the
civilized countries. All these changes were made in the interest of the
progeny, although often unconsciously, just as the growing affection
of two lovers is, in reality, already the will for life of the new
individual which they could or might beget.
[AD] When a man, for instance, is attached to a woman because of her
outward harmonious appearance, i. e., beauty, it means that she pleases
his sense of sight. If he is fascinated by her beautiful voice, then
his sense of hearing has been appealed to. When he falls in love by
the touch of her soft little hand, then his tactile sense has been
excited. The meaning of all such attachments is the desire to satisfy
the senses. Hence the love is sensual. For any of the five senses may
be the starting point of sexual desire.
The generative centre is in communication with the centres of all the
other senses and may be excited by them.
Certain odors occasion pleasurable sexual feelings. The love of sensual
women for perfumes indicates a relation between the olfactory and the
sexual centres.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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