Sex Radicalism; As Seen by an Emancipated Woman of the New Time (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: marrying at 20, and that uo injustice is done to a woman when mating, or maternity, or both, are denied to her?the results are so hideous that we usually forbear to speak of them. But the powers of progress forbid that we should ever cease to take our part in thinking of them, till thought produces radical reform. Let us exhibit a utilitarianism which is far grander and nobler than that of the puritans; theirs is but poor and petty. The power of Niagara can turn a saw mill, no doubt, but it can do far better than that. We must have this force of sex love present and at work always and everywhere, an enthusiasm which will blend with and strengthen our enthusiasm of humanity, an inspiration in every life that has grown beyond the narrowness of childhood. IV. WHAT IS PERMANENT IN THE PURITAN IDEAL? Our subject cannot be truly shown as a living whole when cut into dry sections. But puritanism must perforce be considered in two parts; first, the puritan ideal, and, secondly, the puritan practice; for no two things were ever more distinct and diverse than these two are. Of these two, the first, the puritan ideal, is by far the more important, both in itself and as marking an historical epoch; for only the things which are unseen are eternal; and the soul of puritanism will remain as an influence when the body it inhabits, the puritan system, misshapen by the ignorance and cruelty which are the worst puritan evils, will only be remembered as a distempered dream. Narrow as this ideal is, and fractional, for it is over-praise to call it one-sided, it yet is real and forcible. And not only are we all the children of puritans (which is not important), but our new ideal is the child of the old ideal. The puritan ideal in its subtler elements defies analysis, nor is it easy t...