We
can thank the Industrial Revolution for the means of producing mechanical
vibrators: in 1869 and 1872, George Taylor patented the first steam powered
"massage and vibratory apparatus." These were promptly introduced as a
medical apparatus for the treatment of "hysteria": was the lady of the house
feeling blue, or depressed, or a little light on equal cultural privileges?
What could make her feel better than a bit of "uterine manipulation" by a
medical doctor, until her stress dissipated in a series of muscle spasms?
The obvious popularity of this treatment drove the vibrator to become a
household appliance by 1905, advertised in women's magazines and catalogs in
extremely vague terms that referred to women's health and increased
vitality. Unfortunately, vibrators' brief moment in the sun of legitimacy
clouded over when they started showing up in the early stag films of the
1920's. They lingered in the twilight world of novelty devices, or disguised
as massagers, until the 1970's when the first vibrator was actually marketed
as a sexual accessory. This boomed into a huge, albeit aesthetically
questionable business of unattractive sex toys, that was partly remedied by
the entry into the fray of women-owned sex stores, and more informed and
demanding customers. You wanted your toys to be better made and more
attractive, and you got it!Now it's easy to buy a vibrator and take it for a spin. Even if you're not feeling blue, those resultant "muscle spasms" will, at the very least, relieve tension and put a smile on your face!