Education Quote by Christopher Ryan
““As a medical doctor, Kellogg claimed the moral authority to instruct parents on the proper sexual education of their children. If you’re unfamiliar with the writings of Kellogg and others like him, their gloating disdain for basic human eroticism is chilling and unmistakable. In his best-selling Plain Facts for Old and Young (written on his sexless honeymoon in 1888), Kellogg offered parents guidance for dealing with their sons’ natural erotic self-exploration in a section entitled “Treatment for Self-Abuse and its Effects.” “A remedy which is almost always successful in small boys,” he wrote, “is circumcision.” He stipulated that, “The operation should be performed by a surgeon without administering an anaesthetic, as the brief pain attending the operation will have a salutary effect upon the mind, especially if it be connected with the idea of punishment…. [emphasis””
About This Quote
Source Book: Sex at Dawn by Christopher Ryan and Cacilda Jethá, 2001
Historical medical advice reflects cultural anxieties about sexuality and control over bodies
In simple terms: Old medical views used pain as moral correction
Key Takeaway
Question harmful historical health practices
Themes
history
ethics
sexuality
Mood
critical
thoughtful
Type
historical
analytical
When to use this quote
- parental guidance
- medical ethics discussions
- historical analysis of health practices
Key Concepts
medical authority
punishment
bodily autonomy
Questions to Reflect On
- What does this reveal about past power dynamics?
- How have attitudes toward child sexuality evolved?
A Different Perspective
Modern ethics reject such punitive methods
![“[Man] has imagined a heaven, and has left entirely out of it the supremest of all his delights, the one ecstasy that stands first and foremost in the heart of every individual of his race…sexual intercourse! It is as if a lost and perishing person in a roasting desert should be told by a rescuer…” quote by Christopher Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/939/christopher-ryan-4309_joy_man-has-imagined-a-heaven-and-has-left-e_187069.jpg)
