In order to further public awareness and knowledge regarding this
controversy, we are posting a verbatim copy of the 1950 article. It
is exactly as it appeared in the International Journal of Sexology
except that this author has bolded and italicized
portions that are relevant to the debate.
A
rather high percentage of women do not reach the climax in sexual
intercourse. The frigidity figures of different authors vary from
10-80 per cent and come closer to the statistics of older sexologists.
Adler (Berlin) came to the conclusion that 80 per cent of women did
not reach the sexual climax. Elkan guessed that 50 per cent suffered
from frigidity, while Kinsey found it to be 75 per cent. Hardenberg's
figures have a very wide range from 10 to 75 per cent.
Many of these statistics cannot be compared,
since the various authors use different criteria. Edmund Bergler
sees the condition of eupareunia only in vaginal orgasm and so his
frigidity figures are naturally much higher than those based on
any kind of sexual satisfaction. The restriction to the vaginal
orgasm, however, does not give the true picture of female sexuality.
Lack
of orgasm and frigidity are not identical. Frigid women can enjoy
orgasm. The lesbian is frigid in her relations to a heterosexual
partner, but is completely satisfied by homosexual loveplays. A
deficient orgasm need not always be associated with frigidity. Numerous
women have satisfactory enjoyment in normal heterosexual intercourse,
even if they do not reach the orgasm. Genuine frigidity should be
spoken of only if there is no response to any partner and in all
situations. A woman with only clitoris orgasm is not frigid and
sometimes is even more active sexually, because she is hunting for
a male partner who would help her to achieve the fulfillment of
her erotic dreams and desires.
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Although
female erotism has been discussed for many centuries or even thousands
of years, the problems of female satisfaction are not yet solved.
Even though female doctors (Helena Wright) participate in these
discussions nowadays, "the eternal woman" is still under discussion.
The solution of the problem would be better furthered, if the sexologists
know exactly what they are talking about.
The criteria for sexual satisfaction have first
to be fixed before we make comparisons. Numerous "frigid" women
enjoy thoroughly all the different phases of "necking." Should we
count out all variations of sex practices which result in complete
orgasm though not vaginal orgasm?
Innumerable erotogenic spots are distributed
all over the body, from where sexual satisfaction can be elicited;
these are so many that we can almost say that there is no part of
the female body which does not give sexual response, the partner
has only to find the erotogenic zones.
It
is not frigidity, if the wife does not reach orgasm in intercourse
with her husband, but finds it in sexual relations with another
partner. One of my patients, who married early a very much older,
rich man and had two children, pestered me persistently with questions
as to why she could not experience an orgasm. I explained that physically
there was nothing wrong with her. Bored by the repeated discussions
with her, I finally asked her, if she had tried sex relations with
another male partner. No, was the answer and reflectively she left
my office. The next day in the middle of the night, I was awakened
by a telephone call and a familiar voice who did not give her name
asked: "Doctor are you there? You are right," and hung up the receiver
with a bang! I never had to answer any further sexual questions
from her.
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In
spite of abundant literature dealing with female orgasm, our knowledge
of the mechanism and the localisation of the final climax is insufficient.
Different organs and their stimulation work as a trigger and cause
an increase of the sexual "potential" up to the level where the
orgasm goes off. One could suppose that the clitoris alone
is involved in causing excitation, since this organ is an erotic
center even before puberty, though it is aided by other erotogenic
zones.
Inflammations
of the clitoris, especially below the prepuce, can make it so hypersensitive
that it loses its ability to produce orgasm. Such changes occur
by masturbation in elderly women after the menopause when the external
genitals shrink and become affected by hypoesterogenism. The erotogenic
power of the clitoris passes then mostly to the neighborhood of
the genital organs, to the inside of the small labia or to the pubic
region of the abdomen. The entrance to the rectum can also become
an erotogenic center, not for anal intercourse, but for stimulation
with the finger. In one of my patients vaginal orgasm was lost completely,
but orgasm could be achieved with a finger in the anus and the penis
in the vagina.
Sometimes the breasts help the clitoris in producing
erotization. Kissing the nipples, touching them with the penis,
or inserting the penis between the two breasts lead to an orgasm.
Cunnilingus or even insertion of the penis in the external orifice
of the ear are other illustrations of the variability of the erotogenic
zones in females.
Some
investigators of female sex behavior believe that most women cannot
experience vaginal orgasm, because there are no nerves in the vaginal
wall. In contrast to this statement by Kinsey, Hardenberg mentions
that nerves have been demonstrated only inside the vagina in the
anterior wall, proximate to the base of the clitoris. This I can
confirm by my own experience of numerous women. An erotic
zone always could be demonstrated on the anterior wall of the vagina
along the course of the urethra. Even when there was a good
response in the entire vagina, this particular area was more easily
stimulated by the finger than the other areas of the vagina. Women
tested this way always knew when the finger slipped from the urethra
by the impairment of their sexual stimulation. During orgasm this
area is pressed downwards against the finger like a small cystocele
protruding into the vaginal canal. It looked as if the erotogenic
part of the anterior vaginal wall tried to bring itself in closest
contact with the finger. It could be found in all women, far more
frequently than the spastic contractions of the levator muscles
of the pelvic floor which are described as objective symptoms of
the female orgasm by Levine. After the orgasm was achieved a complete
relaxation of the anterior vaginal wall sets in.
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Erotogenic zones in the female urethra are sometimes
the cause of urethral onanism. I have seen two girls who had stimulated
themselves with hair pins in their urethra. The blunt part of the
old fashioned hair pin was introduced into the urethra and moved
forwards and backwards. During the ecstasy of the orgasm the girls
lost control of the pin which went into the bladder. Both girls
felt ashamed and tried to hide the incident from their mothers until
a huge bladder stone had developed around the pin as centre. One
stone was removed by supra-pubic, and the other by vaginal, cystotomy.
A third hair pin entered the bladder and before the bladder was
inflamed, it was angled out via the urethra. Since the old hairpins
are no more in use, pencils are used for urethral onanism. They
are longer than the hairpins and do not glide into the bladder so
easily, though they cause a painful urethritis. Urethral onanism
may happen in men as well. I saw a patient with a rifle bullet which
glided into his bladder. He had played with it while he was lonesome
on duty on New Years Eve.
Analogous
to the male urethra, the female urethra also seems to be surrounded
by erectile tissues like the corpora cavernosa. In the course of
sexual stimulation, the female urethra begins to enlarge and can
be felt easily. It swells out greatly at the end of orgasm. The
most stimulating part is located at the posterior urethra, where
it arises from the neck of the bladder.
Sometimes patients of Birth Control clinics
complain that their sexual feelings were impaired by the diaphragm
pessary. In such cases the orgastic capacity was restored by the
use of the plastic cervical cap, which does not cover the erotogenic
zone of the anterior vaginal wall. Such complaints occurred more
frequently in Europe than here in the U. S. A., and was one of the
reasons for giving preference to the cervical cap over the diaphragm
pessary.
Frigidity
after hysterectomy may happen, if the erotogenic zone of the anterior
vaginal wall was removed at the time of the operation. The vaginal
wall is preserved best by the abdominal subtotal hysterectomy, less
by the total hysterectomy and least by vaginal hysterectomy when
always large parts of the vagina are removed. That is the cause
of vaginal frigidity after vaginal hysterectomy observed by LeMon
Clark.
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The uterus or the cervix uteri takes no part
in producing orgasm, even though Havelock Ellis speaks of the sucking
in of sperm by the cervix into the uterus.
The non-existence of the uterine suction power
was proved by a simple experiment, in which a plastic cervical cap
was filled with a contrast oil (radiopac) and fitted over the cervix.
The cap was left in for the whole interval between two menstrual
periods. These women had frequent sexual relations with satisfying
orgasm. Repeated X-ray pictures taken during the time when the cap
was covering the cervix, never showed any of the contrast medium
inside the cervix or in the body of the uterus. The whole contrast
medium was always in the cap.
The
glands around the vaginal orifice, especially the large Bartholin
glands, have a lubricating effect. Therefore they are located at
the entrance of the vagina and produce their mucus at the beginning
of the sexual relations and not synchronously with the orgasm. Sometimes
the mucus is produced so abundantly and makes the vulva slippery,
that the female partner is inclined to compare it with the ejaculation
of the male. Occasionally the production of fluids is so profuse
that a large towel has to be spread under the woman to prevent the
bed sheets getting soiled. This convulsory expulsion of fluids occurs
always at the acme of the orgasm and simultaneously with it. If
there is the opportunity to observe the orgasm of such women, one
can see that large quantities of a clear transparent fluid are expelled
not from the vulva, but out of the urethra in gushes. At first I
thought that the bladder sphincter had become defective by the intensity
of the orgasm. Involuntary expulsion of urine is reported in sex
literature. In the cases observed by us, the fluid was examined
and it had no urinary character. I am inclined to believe that "urine"
reported to be expelled during female orgasm is not urine, but only
secretions of the intraurethral glands correlated with the erotogenic
zone along the urethra in the anterior vaginal wall. Moreover
the profuse secretions coming out with the orgasm have no lubricating
significance, otherwise they would be produced at the beginning
of intercourse and not at the peak of orgasm.
The intensity of the orgasm is dependent on
the area from which it is elicited. Mostly, cunnilingus leads to
a more complete orgasm and (consequent) relaxation. The deeper the
relaxation after intercourse the higher is the peak of the orgasm
followed by depression and hence the students' joke: Post coitum
omne animal triste est. The higher the climax the quicker is the
reloading of the sexual potential.
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Other somatic factors help to sexually stimulate
the female partner. As was mentioned there is no spot in the
female body, from which sexual desire could not be aroused.
Some women have greater sexual desire at the ovulation time while
others at the time of the menstrual period. It may be that during
menstruation the sexual tension is higher, because the danger of
unwanted pregnancy is lessened. The woman-on-top posture is more
stimulating as the erotogenic parts come in contact better. The
angle which is formed by the erected penis and the male abdomen
has a great influence on the female orgasm.
These
mere somatic causes are often overshadowed by psychic factors, even
the commonest automatic reflexes produce sexual reactions.
It is possible to cause an orgasm merely
by using some stimulating sentence. Such a reaction follows the
laws of the unconditioned reflexes.
The erotogenic zone on the anterior wall
of the vagina can be understood only from a comparison with the
phylogenetic ancestry. In the most commonly adopted position, where
"the lady does lay on her back," the penis does not reach the urethral
part of the vaginal wall, unless the angle of the erected male organ
is very steep or if the anterior vagina is directed towards the
penis as by putting the legs of the female over the shoulders of
her partner. The contact is very close, when the intercourse
is performed more hestiarum or a la vache i.e. a posteriori. LeMon
Clark is right when he mentions that we were designed as quadrupeds.
Therefore,
intercourse from the back of the woman is the most natural one.
This can be performed either in the side-to-side posture with the
male partner behind, or better still with the woman in Sims', knee-elbow
or shoulder position, the husband standing in front of the bed.
The female genitals have to be higher than the other parts of her
body. The stimulating effect of this kind of intercourse must
not be explained away as LeMon Clark does by the melodious movements
of the testicles like a knocker on the clitoris, but is merely caused
by the direct thrust of the penis towards the urethral erotic zone.
Certain it is that this area in the anterior vaginal wall is a primary
erotic zone, perhaps more important than the clitoris, which got
its erotic supremacy only in the age of necking.
The erotising effect of coitus a posteriori
is very great, as only in this position the most stimulating parts
of both partners are brought in closest contact i.e., clitoris and
anterior vaginal wall of the wife and the sensitive parts of the
glans penis.
This short paper will, I hope, show that the
anterior wall of the vagina along the urethra is the seat of a distinct
erotogenic zone and has to be taken into account more in
the treatment of female sexual deficiency.
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Reference
Adler, The Frigidity of the Female Sex,
Berlin, 1913
Elkan, The Evolution of Female Orgastic Ability
-- A Biological Survey, Int. J. Sexol, Vol. II, No. 2
LeMon, Clark, The Orgasm Problem in Women, Int.
J. Sexol, Vol. II, No. 4 and Vol. III, No. 1
Hardenberg, The Psychology of Feminine Sex Experience,
Int. J. Sexol, Vol. II, No. 4
Kinsey, Sexual Behavior in the Human Male
Bergler, Frigidity, Misconceptions and Facts,
Marriage Hygiene, Vol. I, No. 1
Helena Wright, A Contribution to the Orgasm
Problem in Women, Marriage Hygiene, Vol. I, No. 3
Lena Levine, A Criterion for Orgasm in the Female,
Marriage Hygiene, Vol. I, No. 3
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