10 Pick-Up Lines From History That Wouldn't Work Today

9. "I'm Old And Will Probably Die Soon, So Practice Your Housewife Skills On Me In Preparation For Your Next Husband"

This is essentially what the anonymous author of The Housewife of Paris was saying in 1393 when he wrote an extensive guidebook on how to be a good wife. He had just married a young woman who was less than half his age and who, coming from a noble family, had very little experience of how to run a household. In addition to advising her on how to get fleas out of the bedroom and how to cook his favourite recipes, the caring husband instructed her who to talk to, how to dress and generally how to behave in public and in private. He also had a charming tendency to compare women to animals. Apparently his ideal wife, like his ideal horse, would have 'a handsome mane, a beautiful chest, fine-looking loins, and large buttocks'. Just what every woman wants to hear.