Sex toys have held a place in society since the ancient Greeks. They have had times of prosperity and times of shun. Here I will talk about sex toys in the 18th and 19th centuries.
During the Victorian Era sexuality in literature and sex toys in general were typically considered very taboo. But it was also during this time period that we saw a great movement forward in ’sex toys technology’. Not only did we see the introduction of rubber dildos, butt plugs and the very first vibrators, but the sex toys that did already exist saw a drastic improvement in realism, comfort and sanitation.
Not only were there sex toys to be used at home in place but there were spas that offered there ’services’ through water jet massages and steam-powered vibrating devices. Men and women alike would go to these spas under the guise of ‘medicinal treatments’.
During this time period there was a very common illness in women called ‘Hysteria’. As it turned out Hysteria was the most common diagnosis ever made in the history of human kind. It also turned out to be an illness that didn’t even exist. The history of Hysteria can be easily researched on the web. But what should be said about it here is that it was cured through paroxysm, or orgasm. Doctors of the time would provide the woman with a pelvic massage until orgasm was reached. However this took a long time so when vibrators were invented doctors would use them instead as they took much less time to reach the desired result.
Electricity eventually became common in middle class homes and thus vibrators were able to be purchased and used privately, to treat Hysteria of course. In the early 1900’s you could find vibrators in Sears’ catalogs and by the 1930’s advertisements for sex toys were very common place. This saw the beginning of the end of sex toys only being used medicinally.
During the era of ‘free love’, specialized retail stores and magazines started popping up, providing a wide variety of sex toys to the public. These days you can get sex toys in almost every town in America or through one of the many online retail stores.
Sex toys continue to gain popularity as people become more and more open to variety in their sex lives. Men especially have seen a great jump in acceptable use of sex toys. For many years it was generally thought that only single, lonely men or homosexuals would use a sex toy, especially one that is meant for anal use. However, every day that passes more and more men realize that anal play can be very fulfilling and pleasurable.
There are sex toys other than the standard dildo, butt plug and vibrator that are also becoming more common in the standard household. These are role playing items such as costumes, and BDSM gear, such as simple nipple clamps. A very common form of BDSM is light bondage, using restraining devices and masks to provide variety in couples’ sex lives.