From the fact that man by nature plays the aggressive _rôle_ in sexual life, he is in danger of overstepping the limits which morality and law have set. The unfaithfulness of a wife, in comparison with that of a husband, is morally much more weighty, and should be more severely punished legally. The unfaithful wife dishonors not only herself, but also her husband and her family, not to speak of the possibility of _pater incertus_. Natural instinct and social position favor unfaithfulness on the part of a husband, while the wife is afforded much protection. In the case of an unmarried woman, sexual intercourse is something quite different from what it is in an unmarried man. Of a single man society demands decency; of a woman, also chastity. In the cultivated social life of to-day, woman, occupying a sexual position and concerning herself in the interests of society, can only be thought of as a wife. The aim and ideal of woman, even when she is sunken in the mire of vice, is, and remains, marriage. Woman, as Mantegazza justly remarks, desires not only satisfaction of her sexual feeling, but also protection and support for herself and her children. A man of right feeling, no matter how sensual he may be, demands a wife that has been, and is, chaste. The emblem and ornament of a woman seeking this, her only worthy purpose in life, is modesty. Mantegazza finely characterizes modesty as “one of the forms of psychical self-respect” in woman. This is not the place for anthropological and historical consideration of this, the most beautiful attribute of woman. Probably, feminine modesty is an hereditarily evolved product of the development of civilization.[16] In remarkable contrast with it, there is occasional exposition of physical charms, conventionally sanctioned by the law of fashion, in which even the most discreet maiden allows herself to indulge in the ball-room. The reasons which lead to this display are evident. Fortunately the modest girl is as little conscious of them as of the reason for the occasionally recurring mode of making certain portions of the body more prominent (panniers); to say nothing of corsets, etc. In all times, and among all races, women show a desire to adorn themselves and be charming.[17] In the animal kingdom nature has distinguished the male with the greater beauty. Men designate women as the beautiful sex. This gallantry clearly arises from the sensual desire of men. As long as this personal adornment has a purpose only in itself, or the true psychological reason of the desire to please remains unknown to the woman, nothing can be said against it. When it is done with knowledge, the effort is called flirting. Under all circumstances a dandified man is ridiculous. We are accustomed to this slight weakness in a woman, and find no fault with it, so long as it is but a subordinate manifestation. When it has become the all-absorbing aim, the French apply to it the word coquetry.