Mid-18th-century English society was moving away from the relatively free sexual expression of late 17th- and early 18th-century Restoration art and literature into the Georgian and Victorian sensibilities of sexual repression and modesty. With this transition also came a shift in gendered perspectives: Whereas women were seen as inherently lusty and amorous through the Middle Ages, by the Georgian period in the mid-18th century, they were starting to be seen as the gatekeepers of sexuality through passive disinterest. Fanny Hill reflects these changes, along with a longstanding social trend in which men have the freedom to experiment with sexuality with minimal consequences while women are forced to give up their reputations and chances for social improvement if they want to explore their sexuality. Throughout the novel, men suffer few or no consequences, on the whole, for their sexual exploration, while women are generally urged to restrain their sexuality, usually for the benefit of men.

Many of the female characters in Fanny Hill—including Fanny—turn to sex work as a result of the social repercussions of their explorations of sexuality. Sex work in 18th-century England was a major industry, with brothels and sex workers operating in both major metropolitan centers like London and the countryside.