Sade: A Biographical Essay [Hardcover]

Laurence L. Bongie (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0226064204 | ISBN-13: 978-0226064208 | Publication Date: December 6, 1998 | Edition: 1

The writings of the Marquis de Sade have recently attained notoriety in the canon of world literature. Now Sade himself is often celebrated as a heroic apostle of individual rights and a giant of philosophical thought. In this detailed investigative work, Laurence Bongie tests these claims and finds them unfounded and undeserved.

"A valuable correction to the perception of Sade as a profound thinker, a great writer, and a martyr to liberty. Drawing on original archival work, Bongie tries to illuminate Sade's childhood and his relationship with his parents. . . . Fluent and well-informed."—Library Journal

"Mr. Bongie . . . has written an investigation focusing on one aspect of Sade's character and development, his heretofore neglected relationship with his aristocratic mother. . . . A profitable selection."—Richard Bernstein, New York Times

"A welcome corrective. Bongie's book . . . aims to deflate the exalted claims made about the marquis by demonstrating that he was a monstrous character."—Scott Stossel, Boston Phoenix Literary Supplement

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In the title, Bongie, a professor emeritus of French at the University of British Columbia and author of David Hume: Prophet of the Counter Revolution, specifically calls this a "biographical essay," not a biography. And in fact, it is geared toward those in search of a very focused dissertation rather than a comprehensive, compelling account of Sade's life, like Francine du Plessix Gray's recent At Home with the Marquis de Sade (Forecasts, Oct. 5). In the past few years, the Marquis's writings have been touted for their literary qualities while their author has been championed as the ultimate individualist at odds with a hypocritical society. Bongie strips Sade of those honorable labels. Using letters, Sade's own writings and newly found police records, he goes about his work like a detective or an investigative reporter to expose what he believes was the true Sade. Paying close attention to Sade's relationship with his mother, Bongie challenges claims made by previous biographers, such as that Sade's mother was indifferent to her son from the very beginning. He diligently traces the complex family dynamic that fed directly into Sade's behavior and writings. Bongie admits, in conclusion, that his study was conducted by "tracing a line neither straight nor even continuous." And this is where he narrows his audience. Portions of Sade's life are examined in detail when Bongie needs them to support his main theory that Sade's credibility should always be questioned. But vital periods are ignored, leaving a reader looking for a true biography feeling unsatisfied.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

This seems to be the year for biographies of the Infamous Marquis (see also Francine du Plessix Gray's At Home with the Marquis de Sade, LJ 9/15/98). Bongie (French, emeritus, Univ. of British Columbia) offers a valuable correction to the perception of Sade as a profound thinker, a great writer, and a martyr to liberty. Drawing on original archival work, Bongie tries to illuminate Sade's childhood and his relationship with his parents and challenges the myth that Sade's incarceration in the Bastille was either arduous or undeserved. He also argues that Sade's philosophical views are not particularly original and that his true greatness is in his letters rather than his novels. Appendixes include two recently discovered letters by Sade's mother and a valuable essay on Sadean criticism. Fluent and well informed, this work is recommended for academic and large public libraries.?Thomas L. Cooksey, Armstrong State Coll., Savannah, GA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 343 pages
• Publisher: University Of Chicago Press; 1 edition (December 6, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0226064204
• ISBN-13: 978-0226064208
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,249,579 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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