Cultural differences are evident in many areas of a society: The way we live and experience sex is also sign of such differences. In the past, sex was considered a taboo subject. In Italy, just like in so many other European countries, this was perhaps due to the powerful influence of the Catholic Church on society.
Before that, of course, we had the Romans, who were pretty open about their sexuality and whose freedom of mores astonishes many still today. It was something confined to our bedrooms, something people did but refrained from discussing. Sexuality was a private matter then, but things changed, in Italy as everywhere else in the world, especially after the cultural and social movements of the s, when sexuality turned into a symbol of freedom and personal affirmation, especially for women.
One thing Italians always had on their side is a positive, natural attitude towards their bodies and body contact in general: Sex was natural, but better kept within the very private walls of the bedroom.
Especially if you were a woman. Especially if you had to keep up appearances in society. Things have, of course, changed a bit in Italy in the past 40 years. The 60s brought sexual freedom and contraception for women, while the 70s legalized abortion.
In the 80s, fear of venereal diseases, and especially of AIDS, put a heavy damper on those flower-power dreams of sex, peace and bell bottoms: Today, things have settled, or so it seems: Italians are more careful and mindful about the risks of unprotected sex, yet, they remain fond of it.
