I got rhythm: Gershwin and birth control in the 1930s |
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| Authors: | Viterbo Paula |
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| Institution: | History Department, Bryn Mawr College, 101 North Merion Ave, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010, USA. pviterbo@brynmawr.edu |
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| Abstract: | Gershwin's song 'I Got Rhythm' serves here as a backdrop representing the social context of the inter-war years. On center stage is a particular aspect of the history of birth control--the application of a new theory of ovulation to contraception. Starting in 1928, a series of experiments revealed a biochemical rhythm in the female reproductive cycle, which contradicted the widespread idea that ovulation and pregnancy could occur at any time. This discovery was applied to a new contraceptive method, the rhythm method, which enjoyed significant popularity during the 1930s, especially among Catholics. For a short period, women could join Ethel Merman in the refrain 'I got rhythm, I got my man, who could ask for anything more?' But the rhythm method has not lived to its promise, and the play goes on em leader |
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