Sex ways of Massachusetts and Virginia

Comparing and Contrasting the Sex Beliefs of the Two Societies

Oct 30, 2008 Victoria Manning

Although both of the societies had a lax view on sexual behavior within marriage, anything that seemed deviant or out of the ordinary was punished, often times severely.

In Puritan New England sex was not taboo, and chastity was not regarded in the same light as in other religious factions; however, acceptable sexual practices were limited to marriage. In both societies, extramarital sex involved a married woman, but not necessarily a married man. In Massachusetts, punishment for this sort of act was given justly and fairly to both participants, while in Virginia the female was punished more severely than the man, who was often let go without punishment. In Virginia, this was not a show of sexism, as is seen in the modern day, but more because of a fear that an adulteress could sully the bloodline. In Massachusetts, adultery was viewed as one of the highest sins, and was punished severely. Whippings and brandings were the punishments for a woman in Virginia, but the man often was let free or branded with a cool iron, as to not destroy his honor or reputation.

Premarital Sex in Massachusetts and Virginia

Premarital sex, however, was not necessarily met by physical punishment in Massachusetts. If a man had sex with an unwed woman, he was sent to jail, possibly beaten, or made to marry the woman. This explained the Puritans having the lowest rate of premarital pregnancies. Engagement in Massachusetts did not give the right to the couple to have sex, but if they did, all that was done was a severe cleansing before any steps towards their lives could be made.

It was quite different in Virginia. More than one-third of brides were pregnant before marriage, and roughly one-fifth were pregnant on their wedding day. In this society, women’s virtue was of high concern, while men were almost required to be sexual predators. A woman’s sexual role in society was nothing more than a breeder, and this view was fostered deeply into the minds of young girls. Unlike the biblical reasoning of the Puritans to “go forth and multiply” (Bible, Genesis), the Virginia Cavaliers were only concerned with furthering their bloodline, and perfecting their breeding stocks.

Bastardy in Virginia

The Virginians idea of ‘fornication’ was divided – though the men were made out to be sexually deviant, bastardy was on the head of the woman. This was a serious offense, because often times the case involved a slave or servant. This led to lost time and money on the mans part, which he took out on the woman – years could be added to her time spent in servitude due to the amount of time she was pregnant and nursing the child. Bastardy was met with public whippings of the woman, often times until blood pooled on the ground.

Albion’s Seed, Four British Folkways in America by David Hackett Fischer, 1989, Oxford University Press

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