Soloway examines the origins of the modern birth control movement in England in the wider context of the dramatic decline in fertility that first became apparent in the 1880s. He concludes that the response of individuals and organizations drawn into the debate over birth control and the consequences of diminished fertility mirrored their attitudes toward the profound social, economic, moral, political, and cultural changes altering Great Britain and its influential position in the world. Originally published 1982. A UNC Press Enduring Edition -- UNC Press Enduring Editions use the latest in digital technology to make available again books from our distinguished backlist that were previously out of print. These editions are published unaltered from the original, and are presented in affordable paperback formats, bringing readers both historical and cultural value.

This book provides a clear interpretation of the causes of demographic change in Britain in the nineteenth century. It combines an examination of migration, marriage patterns, fertility and mortality with a guide to the sources of population data available to historians and demographers. Illustrated with tables and figures, it is the only available summary of this field for students, and includes a detailed bibliography for those wishing to pursue the subject further.

This book brings together in one volume the four studies on British population history already published in the series New Studies in Economic and Social History, and adds to them a new essay on British population in the twentieth century. Between them, the authors survey the trends and debates in British population history from 1348 to 1991. Research over the past twenty-five years has transformed our understanding of how population has grown and declined, of why the numbers of births, deaths, marriages and migrants have risen and fallen, and thrown much new light on the economic and social impact of these changes. The studies in this book supply introductions to these problems for readers who are not themselves demographers but who, as students, teachers, or non-specialist historians and social scientists, want to know more about what happened and what are the main topics of current debate. Full bibliographies for further study are included.

First published in 1988, Birth Control in Germany deals in detail with the dissemination and acceptance of ideas of birth control from 1871 -1933 and shows the variety of methods that were in use-condoms, pessaries, diaphragms, caps and most notably abortion. In common with many western societies, Germany experienced a notable decline in the birth rate as it entered into the 20th century. Demographers differ in their explanation for such changes in the birth rate. Some argue that fluctuating birth rates reflect society’s efforts to match population and economy, while others argue that modern low levels can only be the result of radical innovations in popular behavior. The author argues that the latter can be shown to be the case in the German instance. He further says that attitudes quite similar to those found in liberal circles today were widespread among ordinary men and women in Germany, in contrast to, for example, the pro natalist ideologies dominant in France in the same period. This despite the regional, class and religious differentials which influence the German picture. The book amounts to an important study of the sexual politics of pre–Nazi Germany, and study in modernization of a traditional society. This is an important historical work for scholars and researchers of German history, women's studies, health & reproductive history, European history, and gender studies.

As news of war and terror dominates the headlines, scientist Malcolm Potts and veteran journalist Thomas Hayden take a step back to explain it all. In the spirit of Guns, Germs and Steel, Sex and War asks the basic questions: Why is war so fundamental to our species? And what can we do about it? Malcolm Potts explores these questions from the frontlines, as a witness to war-torn countries around the world. As a scientist and obstetrician, Potts has worked with governments and aid organizations globally, and in the trenches with women who have been raped and brutalized in the course of war. Combining their own experience with scientific findings in primatology, genetics, and anthropology, Potts and Hayden explain war's pivotal position in the human experience and how men in particular evolved under conditions that favored gang behavior, rape, and organized aggression. Drawing on these new insights, they propose a rational plan for making warfare less frequent and less brutal in the future. Anyone interested in understanding human nature, warfare, and terrorism at their most fundamental levels will find Sex and War to be an illuminating work, and one that might change the way they see the world.

The book examines the history of abortion and contraception in Modern Greece from the time of its creation in the 1830s to 1967, soon after the Pill became available. It situates the history of abortion and contraception within the historiography of the fertility decline and the question of whether the decline was due to adjustment to changing social conditions or innovation of contraceptive methods. The study reveals that all methods had been in use for other purposes before they were employed as contraceptives. For example, Greek women were employing emmenagogues well before fertility was controlled; they did so in order to ‘put themselves right’ and to enhance their fertility. When they needed to control their fertility, they employed abortifacients, some of which were also emmenagogues, while others had been used as expellants in earlier times. Curettage was also employed since the late nineteenth century as a cure for sterility; once couples desired to control their fertility curettage was employed to procure abortion. Thus couples did not need to innovate but rather had to repurpose old methods and materials to new birth control methods. Furthermore, the role of physicians was found to have been central in advising and encouraging the use of birth control for ‘health’ reasons, thus facilitating and speeding fertility decline in Greece. All this occurred against the backdrop of a state and a church that were at times neutral and at other times disapproving of fertility control.

How could Victorian capitalist values be harmonized with Christian beliefs and concepts of public morality and social duty? This book explores ideas about citizenship and public virtue and how public morality was reconciled with the market.