I have to study the history of the literature at my university and recently we've been dealing with some works from the middle ages. Most of the stories are full of displays of affection such as men kissing. Funny for a modern reader, especially if these are military men (knights) we're talking about, isn't it?

Later on, I came across information about once popular communal sleeping such as servants sharing beds with their masters of the same sex, that seemed to be the case for a long time.

All of this made me wonder, whether back then people were more accustomed to displaying affection or simply touching each other. When and why did it stop being the case? Personally, if I were to share a bed with a stranger, I'd bite their hands off. Would be great-...-great-grandma do the same?