Nordic sexual morality debate
The Nordic sexual morality debate (Danish: sædelighedsfejden, Swedish: sedlighetsdebatten, Norwegian: sedelighetsdebatten) was the name for a cultural movement and public debate in Scandinavia taking place in the 1880s, in which sexuality and sexual morals, particularly the contemporary sexual double standard, were discussed in newspapers, magazines, books and theatrical plays.
Background topic of the debate
The topic was criticism of the contemporary sexual
Views
The debate was divided into two sides:
Moderate view
The moderate side, of which Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson was the most known representative, wished to solve this double standard by demanding that men also be virgins on their wedding night, just as women were.[1] He believed that free love did not allow for the development of positive traits such as self-restraint and a focus on virtue.[2] This was the more accepted view.
Radical view
The more radical side, of which Edvard Brandes and Georg Brandes were the most known representatives, demanded that women be free to enjoy a sexual life prior to marriage, as men were.[1] This was a very controversial view in the 19th century.
Cultural works associated with the 1880s debate
Getting Married by August Strindberg and the legal court case that surrounded it was one of the perhaps most known incidents during the debate.
It also caused a debate within the literary world as to whether literature should address these questions at all. Other well-known works in the debate are
See also
- Modern Breakthrough
- Sexual liberation
References
- ^ a b Gebert, Franka (2008). "Den stora nordiska sedlighetsdebatten" (PDF). National Swedish Touring Theatre (in Swedish).[dead link]
- OCLC 20699747.
Sources
- Franka Gebert, Den stora nordiska sedlighetsdebatten, Riksteatern, 2008. PDF.
- Nationalencyklopedin: "Sedlighetsdebatten" (subscription required)