Hippocrates' woman

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Roy Porter and Mikuláš Teich

Sexual Knowledge, Sexual Science explores attempts to develop bodies of knowledge about sex from antiquity to the present day. Taking into account cognate sciences like zoology, anatomy, embryology and psychiatry, the volume analyses the shaping over the centuries of disciplines which came by 1900 to be called 'sexology'. Various contributions explore the interfaces between 'high' and 'low' sexual teachings, and the connections and tensions between popular and empirical sexual knowledge on the one hand and overtly scientific formulations. A major concern of the book is to investigate the ideological functions - in terms of group, class and gender - of sexual science, especially when incorporated into systems of legal, medical and political power. Among sexual liberals and radicals it has long been an article of faith that sexual science, sexual liberation and sexual fulfillment will all advance hand-in-hand. With the modern backlash against permissiveness, and against the background of AIDS, such views are being challenged. Sexual Knowledge, Sexual Science offers historical perspectives upon such questions.

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Jo Garcia, Robert Kilpatrick, Martin Richards

Maternity care was the subject of intense campaigning early in this century. This collection of essays brings together historical and social perspectives to put these debates in context and chart how the present situation arose.

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Mary Nethery

In Venice, Italy, in the 1890s, a stray cat draws attention to a coffee shop after inspiring composer Guiseppi Verdi there, and as the feline's fame grows, the shop's owner entertains royalty, the Pope, and many others. Includes historical notes about the real Nini and his visitors.

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Jacalyn Duffin

"In Lovers and Livers, Jacalyn Duffin introduces philosophical theories of disease and delves into the history of two distinct afflictions - one old, one new - that serve as examples to show how applying theory can uncover surprising aspects of the medical past and present. Written with humour and compassion, and using examples from Duffin's own clinical experience, Lovers and Livers is based on a series of public lectures incorporating audience participation along with a wide variety of sources including art, literature, medical journals, and newspapers."--Jacket.