“Adspicies oculos tremulos fulgore micantes
“Ut sol a liquida saepe refulget aqua
“Accedent questus, accedet amabile murmur
“Et dulces gemitus aptaque verba joco.”
Where these symptoms are wanting, the absence of the potency of experiencing libido may be assumed.
The orgasm.—Simultaneously with the objective phenomena of erection and ejaculation, runs the course of the subjective pleasurable feelings. The libido may be divided into three phases: the ant-orgastic, orgastic and post-orgastic phases. During the ant-orgastic stage, the lustful sensation grows by degrees in intensity up to the moment of commencing ejaculation. The libido remains then relatively constant for some time. The largest lust swells then suddenly to the maximum and reaches its acme, the orgasm, at the instant of emission. After the ejaculation the libido disappears rapidly. It falls to zero and is followed by a phase of indifference and in some individuals even of depression. In the female the pleasurable feelings occur later than in the male, come on more slowly, and generally outlast the act of ejaculation. The female post-orgastic libido does not rapidly disappear, as in the male, but dies away as the tune of the tuning-fork.[M]
CUT XXXIV.
Curve illustrating the course of the orgasm.
1, ant-orgastic; 2, orgastic; 3, post-orgastic phases.
After the orgasm the sexual excitement gives place in the male to a state of exhaustion and to an inclination to sleep, and to a comfortable feeling of lassitude in the normal woman. “Omne animal post coitum triste est praeter mulierem gallumque,” says Galen. After a few moments rest a comfortable lassitude takes possession of the whole body in both mates.