The aim of this work is to present how men and women have been unequal in sexual freedom, unequal in sexual self-identity and unequal in moral value in the Middle Ages and the Victorian Age times in Western Europe. I will talk about how the non-sexuality of the "good woman," (i.e. her chastity) was regarded as a moral virtue and how an unmarried woman with sexual experience was considered a "bad woman" because women could not afford the luxury of generic sexual celebration. To find out about female sexuality was not an easy task. The history of female sexuality remains for the most part "terra incognito." Only in the last century or so have women themselves openly discussed their sexuality in ways that are accessible to historians. Another problem has been that for most of human history, the written word has been largely a male preserve, so we, women, are almost always perceived through the distorting lens of men. In my opinion, women undoubtedly have always talked about sex and passed on information and misinformation to their daughters and friends. But this oral tradition, as regards past periods, is hidden from us. Anyway, literature can clue a reader into the values, morals, traditions, and beliefs of the time. It is through literature that we can discover how our ancestors lived and thought. That is why I have considered some literary sources to provide some evidence of what historians say about female sexuality in the Middle Ages and Victorian Age.
             In general, the attitude in the 14th century to sexuality was simple: sex was bad. Virginity and chastity were held as the number one ideals and to achieve total purity you would have to stay a virgin for life. Marriage was approved as obviously people needed to reproduce and because it was better than having sex with everyone and anyone. The Catholic Church spread two very different ideas about women: that they should be pure and holy like the Virgin Mary and, like that Eve, t...