Eighteenth-Century British Erotica [Hardcover]

Alexander Pettit (Editor), Patrick Spedding (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 2002

Although scholars of the British 18th century have become increasingly attuned to questions of sexuality, corporeality, and legalism, they have not heretofore had easy access to one of the period's richest funds of data: the erotica and pornography that permeated the culture. This set reprints many of the period's most notorious works, including eight from "The Fifteen Plagues of a Maiden-Head" (1707) to Harris's "List of Covent-Garden Ladies" (1786(?)-93) that resulted in highly publicized court battles and in some instances helped shape laws on censorship that survived into modernity. As they did in the 18th-century bookshop, "homosexual" and "heterosexual" works intermingle, alongside of works that claim legal, medical, or political legitimacy, and works that pretend to nothing but prurience. Virtually all the works have been out of print since the 18th century. Each volume includes an introduction, individual headnotes, facsimiles of the texts, and annotations, and the first volume includes a general introduction.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'This is an important work, not only for literary scholars but also for historians of sexuality. Despite its price, this set should find a place in every research library supporting graduate students and faculty.' CHOICE

About the Author

Alex Pettit is at the University of North Texas Patrick Spedding is at Monash University, Melbourne

Product Details

• Hardcover: 2136 pages
• Publisher: Pickering & Chatto Ltd (July 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1851967427
• ISBN-13: 978-1851967421
• Product Dimensions: 11.5 x 9.2 x 8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,656,865 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)