Q: I'm 55, and have been having some routine health checks. After a recent blood test, my doctor asked me to come in for a digital rectal examination. For some reason I thought of digital displays – a machine thing. When he pulled on latex gloves, I realised which digit was involved. The examination proceeded without an issue, but, on my way home, I realised that the experience had shaken me. Intellectually, I know this is ridiculous, but I did feel a little traumatised.

A: Your reaction is not uncommon. For many men, the idea of being penetrated is deeply confronting. This irrational response can be intense, and visceral, as generations of gender stereotyping kicks in.

A hundred years ago, in the wake of World War I, society underwent radical cultural changes. Women had gained the vote, and access to contraception. Old certainties about race, and class, were being questioned, and sexual mores, including the taboo against homosexuality, were shifting. These cultural upheavals caused widespread uncertainty, anger, fear, and soul-searching, but the coming of the modern era could not be stopped.

A century later, we are facing another turn of the cultural wheel. Once again long-held beliefs about gender, race, religion and society are shifting. The clearest example of this struggle was seen during the debate over marriage equality. The fact that changes to the law were supported by a majority of the population demonstrates how things are changing. Those who opposed same-sex marriage expressed profound anger and outrage, but they were left behind by the tide of history.