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Sex and chemistry
For women (but also for many couples), the great revolution of the 20th century has been the dissociation between sexuality and procreation. Up until then, women could hardly make love without the risk of "falling" pregnant. But chemistry brought about a liberation that has yet to be fully measured. Via plastic firstly (although condoms were hardly used, diaphragms and their spermicidal gel had some success). And most importantly the pill, legalised in France by the Neuwirth law of 1967, which allowed sexual relations that were no longer disrupted by "fear in one’s heart".
A pill that became increasingly sophisticated and lighter over the years, implants… The chemical range has grown. Condoms, made essential by the emergence of AIDS, have also been improved, and even scented. But it should be noted (qualitative surveys prove it) that nowadays, oral contraception is being neglected by some women who put forward the environment to elude the regular intake… of chemistry precisely ("I eat organic food so I will not ingest hormones," as they say). Hence the complex relationships between sexuality and chemistry.
Centre de recherches politiques de sciences Po, CNRS-IEP Paris
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