When Passion Reigned: Sex and the Victorians [Hardcover]

Patricia Anderson (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 1996

Drawing upon sources from the Victorian era, this work debunks the myth that the Victorians did not like sex. Avoiding the "great literature" of the day, and instead relying on the songs, advertisements and pulp fiction serialized in magazines for adults, it provides an eye-opening look at what the masses thought, and how they acted when it came to sex and love. It shows that eroticism was rife - it was at the heart of fashion and underclothing, the driving force in courtship rituals and even the central attraction of the ever-present parlour piano.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Booklist

Anderson shatters the myth of Victorian prudery and sexual inhibition with her witty, well-documented social history. Her case is furthered by the black-and-white sketches, featuring de{‚}colletage and frisky postures, culled from Victorian novels, magazines, and other publications. Although Anderson focuses on the lives of the single and married middle class, she steps into upper-class realms and also presents evidence of pornography. Anderson explains that the Victorian's sexual mores, antics, and basic conceptions were cloaked in a shield (often translucent) of playfulness and privacy and simply not chatted about endlessly on talk shows, analyzed into boredom, or commercialized ad nauseum. An elucidating frolic by an incisive historian. Denise Perry Donavin --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

A witty and colorful book debunking the myth of Victorian prudery. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books (August 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0465089925
• ISBN-13: 978-0465089925
• Product Dimensions: 8 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,454,379 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly entertaining and informative, September 27, 2004

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Elizabeth G. Melillo "gloriana" - See all my reviews
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This review is from: When Passion Reigned: Sex and the Victorians (Hardcover)

This book is a 'must read' for anyone who is a romantic. Though it indeed shows extensive historical references, and is amply illustrated with authentic items from the era, the text is thoroughly and delightfully slanted in favour of romance, innuendo, and other treasures that are all too lacking today - when, as the author aptly shows, sex can be reduced to the medical and social sciences realms.

Some of the examples are priceless - the hot-blooded Reverend Kingsley, John Henry Newman's famous opponent, pouring out his passion whilst looking for scriptural justification for the details being one of the more extensive.

Patricia Anderson's wit and cleverness are a treat. Her thesis, that the 'purity societies' and 'muscular Christian' emphasis on sports were means of conserving sperm to produce a strong generation to build the empire, is refreshing and very well tied to the 'production' ideas of the era. She also gives fascinating side glimpses into the wisdom behind the early feminism, such as opposed the Contagious Disease Act and pornography.

In all, this work has both historical merit and high entertainment value.