Venus in Furs (Penguin Classics) (Paperback)

by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch (Author), Joachim Neugroschel (Translator), Larry Wolff (Introduction) "I had a charming guest..." (more)
Key Phrases: fur jacket, Goddess of Love, Catherine the Great, Frau von Dunajew (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Venus in Furs (or essentially, "The Education of a Young Woman') is novelist and poet von Sacher-Masoch's most sublime text on the devotion of "masochism"-emotional, psychological, sexual-and it is a masterpiece of persuasion. Its protagonist is an educated and devout man given to whips and ideals. Severin von Kusiemski's is an unusual (and mystical) pedagogy and his Ideal is the cruel woman in furs who will allow him to be her slave; for in his rapturous acquiescence, and in his conscious guidance of both his own and his mistress' will, Severin will have penetrated into the beating heart of a solitary man's deepest and most profound desires: to merge flesh with spirit, birth with death, Heaven with Hell. This classic late-nineteenth-century novel-surprisingly, rarely if ever made so accessible to English-speaking readers-is not, as popular rumor would have it, simply a lurid tale of obsessive obscenity. Nor is it merely a Victorian dream of antique decadence. It remains a deeply felt, intelligent and powerful morality play of our time, marvelously written, and it leaves one, finally, to question his/her presumptions and ambivalence toward torment, submission, and ecstasy. This edition includes an intriguing selection of letters between von Sacher-Masoch and a young correspondent that illuminates the real-life parallel of von Sacher-Masoch's ideals and that of his oeuvre. Venus in Furs and Selected Letters is, in all, a passionate portrayal of one man's indomitable struggle to enlighten and instruct himself and his world in the realm of desire. A timeless volume, highly recommended for bed-sitting aesthetes everywhere. -- From Independent Publisher --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Description
First published in 1870, Venus in Furs gained for its author both notoriety and a degree of immortality when the word "masochism"--derived from his name--entered the psychiatric lexicon. The novel describes the sexual obsessions of Severin von Kusiemski, a European nobleman with the desire "to be the slave of a woman." Severin finds his ideal of voluptuous cruelty in the merciless Wanda von Dunajew.

Not simply a lurid tale of sexual perversion, nor a Victorian fantasy of antique decadence, Venus in Furs is a passionate and powerful portrayal of one man's struggle to enlighten and instruct himself and his world in the realm of desire. Influential on Freud, Thomas Mann, and Arthur Schnitzler, Venus in Furs remains a classic literary statement on sexual submission and control.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Penguin Classics (June 5, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0140447814
• ISBN-13: 978-0140447811
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #260,415 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Artfully and tastefully done., December 18, 2001

By	BDH (Massachusetts USA) - See all my reviews

A well thought out erotic tale.

Leopold Von Sacher-Masoch's 'Venus In Furs', is interesting though eccentric, and perverse though compelling. Besieged in wonder and suspense, the love affair between characters: Severin von Kusiemski and Wanda von Dunajew, becomes a roller coaster ride of desire and emotion.

The obsessive fantasy to be enslaved and brutalized by the woman he loves becomes a cruel reality for poor old Severin. As beautiful Wanda slowly becomes thrilled and captivated by the notion of fulfilling her role in his fantasy, a role that previously made her shrug and laugh, she eventually transforms herself into the controlling dominatrix of Severin's dreams--by becoming more ideal at the sadomasochistic lifestyle than he had ever dreamed was possible. As Severin becomes the ever so content and happy slave, this tug-of-war between self-esteem and power begins to twist and turn with the innocent and deadly psychological games played out between the two.

Written more than a hundred years ago, this psychodrama of love, bound by the perverted desires of one and the demon lying dormant within the other, was tastefully and artfully done.

29 of 32 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Deeply Spiritual Book, June 23, 2001

By	J. French "93 93/93" (Oakland, California United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Venus in Furs is one of the most spritual works of erotica I've ever read. Much has been made of its "perversity", to the extent that the name of its author is also the name of a psycho-sexual disfunction. However, I feel that this is a grossly unfair way to treat a book that deals so beautifully with the descent and return of a man through his psyche.

Sevrin's tale is one of submission, slavery, and redemption. It is through the experience of being a woman's slave that he realizes his own worth. To treat this as an epic of laciviousness is puritanism of the lowest kind.

Venus in Furs also reminds us that the difference between hammer and anvil may not be so clear cut. It is Severin who brings out the whip in his lover. He then reaps the whirlwind, and can only ride it out.

This book is recommended for people who can see though the drivel that has been dripped upon it since its creation.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars derivation of the term "masochism", July 25, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Venus in Furs and Selected Stories (Paperback)

_Venus in Furs, a Novel: Letters of Leopold von Sacher-Masoch and Emilie Mataja_ by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch contains the both the story "Venus in Furs" and a selection of letters between Sacher-Masoch and budding writer, Emilie Mataja.

"Venus in Furs" is about a man who is obsessed with having his new mistress treat him like a slave. In particular, he wants her to become his ideal "venus in furs" and begs her to don furs and wield a whip against him. His desire to be treated as such is tested when she convinces him to sign an agreement to be her slave. The story is well-written, and one becomes drawn into the misery experienced by the man as his mistress becomes progressively more cruel.

The letters between Sacher- Masoch and Mataja show Sacher-Masoch's inability at times to separate his fiction from his real life. Sacher-Masoch speaks of his married life and encourages Mataja in her writing, but his professional encouragement is shot through with requests to meet Mataja so that he can be whipped by her while she is wearing fur.

Although there are certainly more graphically erotic examples present in current fiction, this book is a must read for those wanting to know why Sacher-Masoch's writings inspired Krafft-Ebing to create the term "masochism."