People’s opinions and memories about Soviet life in Latvia differ. Some describe this period of time as harsh childhood memories, while others suggest that this devil is not as black as their clay. Whatever the associations of the population with the Soviet period, one thing is clear – there was no sex in the Soviet Union! Was it anyway? This time we will look at the monotonous field of sex in the USSR and try to understand where and how this phrase about the absence of sex originated.
THERE IS NO SEX IN THE USSR – HOW DID THIS SAYING COME ABOUT?
”No sex in the USSR, and we are categorically against sex!” Immediately following the words of a Russian girl Lyudmila Ivanova behalf described the demographic situation in the vast Soviet Union. What the girl said not only surprised the audience of the TV bridge that took place on July 17, 1986, but also caused something like an insurmountable storm of laughter.
SEX – THE BIGGEST SOVIET TABOO
The TV bridge took place in the form of a discussion in which a number of young women from the United States and the Soviet Union had agreed to take part. Compared to America, where the media of that time was crowded with sexual themes, sex on this side of the ocean, or the territory ruled by communist rule, was like an inviolable taboo – only a few dared to talk about it.
NOTHING CAN BE CHANGED IN SEX
In addition to the view that the discussion about and around intimacy is, to put it mildly, superfluous, during the Soviet years there was an opinion that sex should not and should not change anything. Proof of this fact is the statement of domestic sex expert Rita Lasmane in one of the few interviews about and around Soviet sex. The woman, referring to her own personal memories of intimate life in the Soviet years, said:
“I remember a time when I once went to the hospital, where the bride of the militia next to me was whining about her beloved being perverted, that is, suddenly offering the lady to be upstairs during sex.”
Thanks to this case alone, we can understand how uniform and monotonous the sex of the communist regime has been. While most people were convinced that the subject of sex should be left in the deep fog, that is, in the dark, quiet, and under the covers, there were also some daredevils who were willing to dare and try more. However, the Soviet society used to call these teenagers “sick”.
FEMALE ORGASM – WHAT IS IT?
There was also no place for talks about the pleasure of the fair sex in the harsh Soviet world. Often, when describing the love life of that time, women refer to the saying “a woman’s destiny is to love and suffer.” This phrase perfectly describes not only the everyday worries and anxieties of the fair sex but also their destiny in bed. Although there was no talk of sex, it was clear to everyone that a man “ceases” but a woman? There was little understanding of female orgasm at that time – Soviet sex was more like a child’s factory because knowledge of intimacy during the Soviet era was also rather shallow.
SOVIET SEXUAL UPBRINGING – ROUND AND BOLD ZERO
Continuing a little about the norms of sex education in the Soviet Union, in two words, there was no such place in the communist world. Books and any other kind of educational materials about sex were hidden on the highest bookshelves and in the farthest corners of sections.
Of course, this insane lack of information very often led to unplanned pregnancies for the first time during sexual intercourse.
Only a few people were able to find literature related to sexual relations, until in 1981 a publication entitled “In the Name of Love” by the local author Jānis Zālītis appeared on library shelves. This book could be called a real jewel in the context of the Soviet Union – it was one of the first editions to offer the audience under communist power a more comprehensive knowledge of sex education, as well as problems related to the course of sexual intercourse.