Ever wondered what decisions were behind Victorian home decorating? No? Well now you are! “Handbook of Housekeeping on a Small Income” from 1897 guides the reader through comfortably arranging your own house while keeping things (relatively) budget friendly. 

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We all know about Victorian obsession with ankles. But they didn’t just leave things to take their own course – as documented in this 1858 manual by Lola Montez on keeping your ankles (and other body parts) fresh and sexy. 

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In the modern dating climate, we sometimes wish relationships came with a manual. In the 1920s, ladies could use one, written by the author of the previous episode’s “A Woman You Should Not Marry”. How does it compare? Is Reinhold Gerling, to quote Mr Darcy, equally “severe upon his own sex”? 

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At the end of the 18th century, it was not easy to restore one’s reputation as a seduced woman and a single mother. But the author of the “Advice To Unmarried Women” from 1791, the text we’re focusing on in this episode, believed it’s possible. 

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The infamous Hays code changed cinema history forever – but what were the actual rules? This episode dissects the 1929 document that made movie kisses short and innuendos nearly extinct.  

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Getting separated with your husband after 7 months is not a typical problem for a 17-year-old... Unless you lived in the 50s! In this episode we’re looking at relationship troubles that teenagers dealt with and the advice that was given to them in the “Boy Loves Girl” comic magazine. 

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Choosing a marriage partner is no easy feat, even less so when it’s the 1920s and divorces are still uncommon. Unsure gentlemen could have used guidebooks like the one we’re reading in this episode - “A Woman You Should Not Marry” by Reinhold Gerling. Warning: plenty of sexism in this one. 

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If you thought the types of crimes women throughout history commited were minor thefts and disobeying their husbands, think again! Coin forgers, highwaywomen, murderers and all sorts of fascinating felons are subject of today’s episode, as we’re reading 18th century court records from Old Bailey. 

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What fate awaited an unmarried, disgraced 15-year-old in the Regency era? Well, a life of success and climbing the social ladder if you were smart about it! Our text for this episode is the Memoirs of Harriette Wilson, a Georgian courtesan who published them out of spite, calling out her past lovers. Slay! 

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How do fairies benefit the planet? How do they procreate? Do fairy horses exist? These are genuine questions none other than sir Arthur Conan Doyle asked himself in 1922. In this episode we’re reading his book “The Coming of the Fairies”, a serious essay on the possible existence of fairies. 

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Hi guys! Welcome back to Textory season 2! I have lots of deliciously scandalous and irresistibly fascinating texts for you this season. If you want to support what I’m doing, check out my Patreon! 

https://www.patreon.com/textory