http://www.pietisten.org/authors/HarveySusan.html http://www.pietisten.org/authors/HarveySusan.html en-us http://www.pietisten.org//xi/3/embrace.html http://www.pietisten.org//xi/3/embrace.html Our modern cult of the body with its emphasis on youthfulness and beauty, and our analgesic culture where even the slightest discomfort is regarded as an affront to our control of our own destinies, contrasts sharply with the 17th-century attitude toward the body.