ABSTRACT The South African Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU) was a significant source of sex education for white youth in particular, and encouraged adults to equip their children with the information that would prepare them for marriage and parenthood. This article argues that while much of the WCTU’s interest in sex education was informed by eugenic anxieties about the health of the new Union of South Africa, the organization’s archive can also be read for evidence of mothers’ reasons for seeking sex education. It suggests there was a heightened demand for sex education in the 1910s–1930s that was driven, in part, by women’s desire to prepare their daughters for adulthood in a rapidly changing society. Analysis of the WCTU’s promotional periodical The White Ribbon (including the rhetoric used by its leadership) is complemented here by an examination of local branch committee minutes and by a quantitative and qualitative study of the educational materials that the organization distributed across South Africa.

中文翻译：

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“亲爱的布朗夫人”：二十世纪初南非的社会纯洁、性教育和基督教妇女节制联盟

摘要 南非基督教妇女节制联盟 (WCTU) 尤其是对白人青年进行性教育的重要来源，它鼓励成年人为他们的孩子提供信息，让他们为结婚和为人父母做好准备。这篇文章认为，虽然 WCTU 对性教育的大部分兴趣来自于对新南非联盟健康的优生焦虑，但也可以阅读该组织的档案，以证明母亲寻求性教育的原因。这表明 1910 年代至 1930 年代对性教育的需求增加，部分原因是女性希望在快速变化的社会中让女儿为成年做好准备。