|
|
[ Home Page | Message Boards | News | Archive | Ask Cecil | Books | Buy Stuff | FAQs, etc. ]
03-Aug-1979
Dear Cecil:
A three-month trip I'll be making this fall prompts the following
question: how do chastity belts work, and how do they interfere (or
not interfere) with going to the bathroom? This wasn't answered in Everything
You Always Wanted to Know . . . --Henry VIII, Chicago
Dear Henry:
Of course not. At the Straight Dope we don't trouble ourselves with what you
want. We deal with what you need.
There were--are--basically two types of chastity belts, or "girdles
of chastity," as they are sometimes called. The first covers only
the pudenda (the part in front) with a plate made of metal or bone.
The second covers both front and back--or "anterior and posterior
regions," to put it in clinical terms--the
two parts being connected by a hinge.
Typically, a narrow vertical slot was provided in front to enable
the wearer to urinate. Often it was fitted with metal teeth
(sometimes spring-loaded) to discourage exploration by so much as
a fingertip. In the duplex models, you had a somewhat larger
aperture in the back to permit defecation while preventing anal
intercourse. Supposedly a woman could wear a belt for extended
periods without ill effects, although an examination of the
apparatus involved makes it clear that going to the bathroom must
have been a pretty messy procedure.
Despite all the tales about European lords locking up their wives
before going off to fight the Crusades, it seems likely that the
Crusaders did not actually learn about chastity belts until they
had traveled around the East picking up
local customs. Some Asian and African cultures practiced female
infibrillation, in which a woman's labia were bound together with
rings or wires or the like. Compared to this barbaric system,
chastity belts must have seemed like the height of civilization.
Knowledge of the belts was widespread during the Renaissance,
although they seem to have been most popular in Italy, then as now
a highly macho culture.
Although chastity belts figure in many
ribald tales of the period, it's not known how many were actually
used. Several hundred specimens reside in various museums and
private collections, but many of these are suspected to have been
made just to satisfy the curiosity of some deve collector. There
are, however, several instances of women's remains being
disinterred with chastity belt still in place.
In any event, the use of chastity belts was not considered a crime. A woman's body was thought to belong to her husband and he
could equip it as he liked. Men who did outfit their wives
with such devices were targets of ridicule, though. In stories
about the belts, the husbands are generally jealous old men married
to lusty young wives who remain faithful until the old crock
decides to take extreme precautions, whereupon the insulted wife
goes out to find a friendly locksmith and some handsome swain to
fornicate with.
Chastity belts were advertised as late as the latter part of the
19th century. In 1848, a Scottish doctor advocated their use to
limit masturbation. Bondage-and-discipline enthusiasts still use
the belts today, although hardly with the idea of ensuring
fidelity. In fact, I'd guess more belts have been manufactured since 1950 than previously existed in the history of
the world, so if nothing else you'll get a nice selection. One tip: if it comes
with a valet key, you've been had.
--CECIL ADAMS
The Straight Dope / Questions or
comments for Cecil Adams to: cecil@chicagoreader.com
Comments regarding this website to: webmaster@straightdope.com
For advertising information, see the Chicago
Reader Online Rate Sheet
© 1996-2002 Chicago Reader, Inc. All rights reserved.
No material contained in this site may be republished or reposted without express written
permission.
The Straight Dope is a registered trademark of Chicago
Reader, Inc.