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Story of O: A Novel by Pauline Réage
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Story of O: A Novel (original 1954; edition 2013)

by Pauline Réage (Author), Sylvia Day (Introduction)

Series: The Story of O (1)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
3,621813,465 (3.33)129
O is the slave of Rene who then passes her on to Sir Steven, his friend. O is taught how to be obedient to these men but these men are irresponsible. I know people in the lifestyle and as the reader described the two endings for the story abandonment would not occur to the Masters. A responsible Master cares for his slave.

I did like the beginning as it told the history of The Story of O as well as what critics have said. I liked O, Ann Marie, and Natalie. Hated Jacquelinn from the beginning--she was a user. I came hate Rene and Sir Steven for their lack of caring for O (physical as well as emotional.) It is a story of its time but this is not the way a responsible pairing occurs. ( )
  Sheila1957 | Feb 23, 2020 |
English (73)  Spanish (2)  French (2)  Catalan (1)  Italian (1)  Hebrew (1)  Portuguese (Portugal) (1)  All languages (81)
Showing 1-25 of 73 (next | show all)
Story: 5.5 / 10
Characters: 7
Setting: 8.5
Prose: 7.5 ( )
  MXMLLN | Jan 12, 2024 |
This book is not about sex, although there is plenty of it, and mostly of a completely unerotic nature. Rather, it about the complete and voluntary handing over of a beautiful woman's will to others. That she also hands over her body is important, but also incidental. The book's spare prose and haunting atmosphere, so French, are beautiful. ( )
  ponsonby | Nov 3, 2023 |
The buzz around the 50 Shades phenomena still hasn't subsided. There's now a magazine dedicated to the series and a new book due out in December. I didn't really want to read another book from this series but I thought I'd delve into the genre again and decided to read The Story of O. This book shows how S&M is definitely not something new. The book is over 50 years old and in my opinion is far superior to 50 Shades of Grey, which at times read like a silly soap opera. I'll never fully understand why women will willingly submit themselves to such debasement but The Story of O does gets much more into the psyche of the character than 50 Shades, so I do have a somewhat better idea of how and why this alternate lifestyle continues to persist. ( )
  kevinkevbo | Jul 14, 2023 |
Awfully sad and bleak story about a woman whose only desire is to be enslaved. Not your typical BDSM story, I think. All O wants is to have a man love her, even if that love means whipping, branding and sharing her with his 20 closest friends. In the beginning I felt bad for her, but wondered how she could be so vacuous and accepting of what her lover did to her. I also was amazed at her sexual stamina, as she was interested in both men and women, even after being taken repeatedly, she was still able to get aroused for the next man.
I can see why women wanted this banned and called it the objectification of their fair sex. I felt repulsed at O's lack of action, as she just PUT UP WITH everything that the men wanted her to do. All she wanted was to be loved, and once she knew that, everything was fine for her.

As I finished the story, all I could think of was "What a relief", as I can get back to characters with self respect, and gumption.
( )
  kwskultety | Jul 4, 2023 |
The thing that I learned from this book is how to get into the mind of people who love so much that it destroys them, that do anything their lover asks without questioning if their love is returned and to what extent one might go to prove their loyalty. It all ends badly and it is an example to be avoided. Also I got a glimpse of how eroticas were written last century and how french literature affects the text. Can't say I liked this book but I also don't regret reading it. That's why I'll give it three stars out of five. ( )
  Ihaveapassion | Oct 25, 2022 |
Misogynist pornography! Why do seemingly intelligent people continue to justify works such as this as somehow revolutionary, anti-establishment and "liberating". This is an account of a women giving up all her integrity - bodily, psychological and spiritual integrity - to a succession of men (and one woman) and it attempts to persuade us that this is somehow liberating for her. Please will people begin to recognise such works as what they are; i.e. attempts to persuade women that subjection to men is their natural desire. ( )
  Estragon1958 | May 23, 2022 |
The quintessential S&M story, although perhaps a little more theatrical than reality. There is an entire group or society involved in this, a bit like in Ninth Gate or Eyes Wide Shut.
I have to say that it was a lot less uncomfortable a read than i expected. I mean even Fanny Hill was a difficult read for me but this was much less so.
I think the main difference is the consensualness of the proceedings. O isn't tricked, intimidated or emotionally manipulated into agreeing with what is done to her. She seems intelligent, stable, financially independent, and is even shown to be something of a predator herself on occasion.
The sex in this book is blunt but not graphic, or perhaps graphic but not detailed.
Its not about sex its about control and need. Sometimes O's suppression of self for something outside herself takes on an almost religious nature. Its a really interesting character piece.
Also now that i think about it, it's also not about pain. Much of S&M revolves around getting pleasure from experiencing pain but that never happens to O.
She likes the pain inflicted on her only in so much as it makes her feel like she is under another persons control. Its a subtle but important difference between this and other S&M stories.
O's journey of self discovery, for want of a better term, is complete by about the 3/4 stage of the book. After that it felt like there wasn't really anywhere else for O to go.
The story ends abruptly and unfinished with only a note to reveal O's possible fate.
However i think it was a good idea to end it then as the plot looked like veering into some questionable areas which would have undermined the clearly consensual nature of the rest of the story. ( )
  wreade1872 | Nov 28, 2021 |
I didn't especially care for this book- not because of the explicit, erotic content; I came to this book fully cognizant of what I was going to be reading. Rather, I disliked the writing style (although, granted, perhaps something was lost in translation from French to English.) I kept thinking of "Fanny Hill" as I read this book, mainly because of the sometimes stilted tone, but also because of the disconnect I felt with O. There are some impressive psychological undertones to the story, and I can certainly see why this book is considered a classic, particularly when it comes to erotica. Unfortunately, as with many classics (I'm looking at you, "Madame Bovary"), I found myself disinterested and pleased only when I reached the end of the novel. (I will say this: what an ending! It will definitely stay with me - I still can't shake the memory of the final paragraphs of "The Grapes of Wrath.") ( )
  bookwyrmqueen | Oct 25, 2021 |
It is difficult to rate a book that I read more than 20 years ago. My memory of it is of being chocked more by O’s submission than the sex and the slashing. I probably should read it again before rating it but, although so much of it has stayed with me over all these years, I don’t feel compelled to do it. Not because of the subject matter per se, but because I believe it is a book that probably didn’t age well. Women sexuality and identity were very different in the 1950’s Europe when and where this book was written than it is now. We have come a long way, babe – I want to believe anyway.

It is though a classic of the genre, and I would recommend it to anyone interested in erotic literature.
( )
  RosanaDR | Apr 15, 2021 |
Perhaps the best known erotic novel.
  LeeSnyder | Mar 25, 2021 |
I think all I need to say about this is that 'I can see why it was banned'. Unfortunately, there's no real story to it exactly, just a kind of view of our protagonists daily life which consists of nothing other than a constant round of sado-masochism. Still, at least I can say I've read a banned book now :0) ( )
  SFGale | Mar 23, 2021 |
O is the slave of Rene who then passes her on to Sir Steven, his friend. O is taught how to be obedient to these men but these men are irresponsible. I know people in the lifestyle and as the reader described the two endings for the story abandonment would not occur to the Masters. A responsible Master cares for his slave.

I did like the beginning as it told the history of The Story of O as well as what critics have said. I liked O, Ann Marie, and Natalie. Hated Jacquelinn from the beginning--she was a user. I came hate Rene and Sir Steven for their lack of caring for O (physical as well as emotional.) It is a story of its time but this is not the way a responsible pairing occurs. ( )
  Sheila1957 | Feb 23, 2020 |
The characters are pornographically vapid without the candor or pulse of real porn. Unreadable. ( )
  camillawb | Nov 6, 2018 |
Story of O is certainly a seminal novel of its type, supposedly the first book to be written by a woman in emulation of de Sade's novels. Despite the subjugated female protagonist (typical of de Sade), the focus has more in common with Leopold von Sacher-Masoch's Venus in Furs, where there is no sadistic sermonizing from the dominating characters, just unembroidered imperatives. The sense of contract and continually rising stakes are vivid. De Sade never lets the reader lose sight of his ideological preoccupations, but I found any such message here to be ambivalent at best. Reage does little to manage the reactions of the reader, who may be titillated, engrossed, or horrified by the sequence of events.

Other readers seem to have made more of the character Rene than I was able to find here. He is important in that O's affection for him serves as a principal motivation in the first parts of the book. But she does indeed transcend that affection through her experience of her "condition." And it's hard for me to imagine any reader being seriously sympathetic to O's initial devotion to Rene. He is drawn sparsely and unflatteringly.

There is little in the way of graphic detail regarding the many sexual acts in the story, so that the reader's imagination is enlisted in the erotic effects. What particulars of sex acts there are mostly fall in the early parts of the book. Reviewers often accordingly judge the middle and end to have become "slow." And yet I found that they tended to accelerate in terms of the shifting of personal relationships and the psychological transformation of O. Few readers seem to remark the somewhat predatory lesbianism of O, which is so pivotal to the central sections of the book, although hardly any fail to react to the body modifications of corseting, piercing, and branding.

The end of the book is abrupt and unconventional. A metafictional epilogue glosses two versions of a "suppressed" (unwritten, I surmise) concluding chapter which would have completed the plot. But "The Owl" which serves as the actual last section is unconcerned to resolve any of the tensions developed in the book. Instead, it sets them on a pedestal for a final appreciation.
5 vote paradoxosalpha | May 17, 2018 |
My expectations were way off the mark because I didn't really understand the genre prior to reading this. I found it interesting in the same way I found documentaries about serial killers interesting -- you can watch it (read it) once, but after that I've no inclination to see it again. ( )
  SMBrick | Feb 25, 2018 |
Per poterlo capire, questo è un romanzo che va affrontato con la mente aperta. Perché parla di scelte, non sempre comprensibili e non sempre neppure concepibili, ma senza dubbio scelte, libere e consapevoli. È stato già detto tutto sulla trama (la violenza, l'annullamento totale della persona, in questo caso la donna, la mancanza di dignità eccetera eccetera), meno spesso si precisa che, prima di ogni nuovo gradino di violenza e di mortificazione, ad O viene chiesto, esplicitamente, se vuole. E lei vuole. È per questo che trovo un po' strumentale il collegamento al tema "violenza sulla donna", perché per come la vedo io qui si parla di una cosa un po' diversa.
Ho preso il romanzo come un'opera di narrativa: prendo per buono quello che mi viene raccontato. Senza sovrastrutture. E allora mi accorgo, come già suggerito dalla prefazione, che la storia è pervasa di pudore. Mi accorgo che non ci sono solo scene di sesso particolare e di violenza (raccontate muovendosi sempre in maniera impeccabile nel campo minato delle numerose possibilità di scadere nel volgare e nel pecoreccio), ma c'è anche una parte introspettiva in cui è la protagonista a parlare di sé, a cercare di spiegare quello che a molti di noi sembra inaccettabile: raggiungere l'apice del piacere all'apice del dolore; il sollievo procurato dal rendersi un oggetto. Il mondo è bello perché è vario: e in questa varietà alcune persone provano piacere a sottoporsi ad umiliazioni; altre a infliggerle. Non è una cosa semplice, e trovo che l'autrice abbia fatto un bel lavoro. Persone così esistono da sempre, là fuori. Penso che Histoire d'O racconti bene, in maniera anzi molto femminile, che cosa provano queste persone e cosa sta dietro a una scelta ai più incomprensibile. E tanto mi basta -scusate se è poco- per farmi apprezzare un'opera di narrativa. ( )
1 vote lonelypepper | Feb 22, 2018 |
Příběh O. byl napsán v padesátých letech 20. století. Je to tedy dílo současné a tak se nabízí otázka, PROČ se stalo „kultovním“ (ať se nám ten pojem líbí, či ne)? Vždyť padesátá léta - to je vlastně dneska a v současné době vzniká přece spousta pornografické a erotické literatury různé kvality! A dokonce díky surrealistckému zájmu o bizarní představy a temné hlubiny lidské duše vzniká i spousta filosoficko-uměleckých děl, která se věnují sexuálně-perverzní tématice! Tak proč se „slečna O.“ stala tak vyjímečnou? Možná je to tím, že to není žádné vysoké umělecko-filosofické dílo, které by čtenářům bránilo v poklidném čtení; a ani nesklouzává k laciné, prvoplánové pornografii.
Kdo je tedy slečna O. a co tak zajímavého prožívá? O. je moderní, dalo by se i říci „emancipovaná“, žena. Pracuje jako módní fotografka, je spolčenská, jinými slovy: není to žádná domácí puťka. Z náznaků i vytušíme, že je v mnoha ohledech femme fatale. Avšak této vampýřici lámající srdce nejednomu muži, přesto jeden chlápek přistřihne křidélka. Tomu se ona plně oddá a chce být pro něj „ta nejlepší“. Zkouška její oddanosti nastává, když ji on vezme do zámečku v Roissy, kdese octne v prapodivné společnosti. Při popisu tohoto společenství by bylo nejvýstižnější říct, že „to byla taková zednářské lóže“ - ač sotva se tomu podobá. Každopádně Roissy je místo plné tajemství, tajných symbolů, záhadné hierarchizace a prapodivné pospolitosti. Muži i ženy zde nosí předepsaný úbor a na veřejnosti se prokazují zvláštním symbolem (možná právě díky Příběhu O. vzniklo to „ghetto vyjímečnosti“, které se jeví tak typické pro naši BDSM komunitu;-)) ). Na tomto místě je O. vržena do náruče chtíčů zvrácených deviantních můžů, kteří ji týrají - ať už tělesným mučením, či sexuálním zneužíváním. Avšak zjištění, že do tohoto poníženého stavu ji uvrhl její milý, ji nutí překonat samu sebe a zalíbit se mu víc, než kdykoliv předtím, nezklamat ho. Těší ji, že je jeho nástrojem, že ho může potěšit svou pokorou a ochotou. Že je hodna toho, aby jí věnoval všem těm chtivým mužům.

I po propuštění z „vězení“ v Roissy však O. není svobodná - prsten se symbol musí nosit „nafurt“, smí se oblékat jen do určitých typů oděvu a má předepsaným způsobem sedět, chodit atp... Tímto se podle mne Příběh O. vymyká běžné erotické produkci - v první části se i přes „zednářský“ charakter společenstva neděje nic „vyjímečného“: kapitola odehrávající se v Roissy je jen popisem mnohdy i originálního mučení, týrání a sexuálního ukájení. Oproti tomu však období „na svobodě“ již popisuje jinou stránku. Zatímco v Roissy neměla O. svým způsobem na výběr, venku je však její postavení evidentně její volba. Na první pohled je volná - pracuje, smí se chodit bavit, ale skrytě je uvězněná stejně jako v Roissy. Nikdo nevidí, že pod oblečením nemá spodní prádlo, že sedí s rozevřenými stehny a její tělo nese stopy po bičování; ani symbol na prstenu není nezainteresovaným znám. Avšak člověk s věcí obeznámený ví, v jaké pozici se O. nachází. Je to vlastně taková dvojí hra.

Příběh však graduje - René, milenec O., jí věnuje svému nevlastnímu bratru siru Stephenovi, se kterým O. dojde ještě dál: kvůli němu si tvaruje pas mučícím korzetem, nechá si vypálit cejch s jeho iniciály a na genitálie nasadit prstenec s jeho monogramem. Na konec - když ji Stephen chce opustit - spáchá sebevraždu.

Autorčin milenec v doslovu uvažuje o štěstí nalezeném v zotročení. A přesně to JE O. - mladá sebevědomá žena, která se našla v roli poslušné a oddané subinky. Ne, O. není masochistka - ano, nechává se mučit a je šťastná, když ji její milý týrá (či nechává týrat), avšak bolest je bolest a to je pro ni nepříjemné. Na bičování apod. se těší, ale už samo pomyšlení na to utrpení ji děsí. Mučení bere jako „dar“ - jako výraz úcty, který se jí dostává tím, že je hodna toho, aby se jí její Pán věnoval. Proto spíš než přijetí bolesti je pro ni důležité přijímání této pozornosti, kterou jí její Pán tímto uštědřuje.
Krom toho, že O. je ideálním prototypem oddané subinky, je také jakousi konsenzuální obětí. Vždyť to, co s ní muži např. v Roissy dělají - jak ji trýzní a przní - to není nepodobné děsivým zážitkům takové Sadeho Justýny. Avšak při čtení Justýny sice pociťujeme rozkoš z hrdinčina utrpení, avšak zároveň máme přitom pocit určité nepatřičnosti - „vždyť ta dívka je nevinnou obětí!“ , vnucuje se nám neodbytně sociální cítění. Na proti tomu sice O. trpí stejně drasticky, nicméně ona sama k tomu dáva souhlas: několikát se v Příběhu O. zdůrazňuje, že O. může kdykoliv ze vztahu odejít a své otrocké postavení tak zrušit.
Dále je „Óčko“ taktéž dost dobrým popisem vývoje D/s vztahu: subinka nalezne v podřízené roli své osobní štěstí a vyvine se z ní silná sebevědomá osobnost; navíc postupem času si nechává líbit víc a víc ujetostí. Také konce vztahů s Reném i sirem Stephenem jsou nabíledni: René je sice ten, kdo ji Stephenovi předá, přesto je to ONA, která ho opouští. René ji totiž nemůže dát to, co ji dává sir; on už ji nemůže více nabídnout, nemá tolik „síly“ , aby ji dále formoval. A kam to až může dospět? - v druhém případě, kterým je vztah O. a sira Stephena, ji Stephen vytvaruje přesně do podoby, jaká se mu líbí a vyhovuje mu.
Takto bychom měli celkem klasický příběh, ale Óčko jde dál - autorka nám nabízí dva alternativní konce: v jednom se vztah O. a Stephena dovrší přímo finálně fatálně a v druhém? V té dojde k totální dekonstrukci celé nastolené mystiky Roissy! Nebýt toho, tak i přes to, že knihu beru i jako zajímavou, vzrušující inspiraci, bych jí 5 hvězdiček nedala. ( )
  mountbatten | Oct 26, 2017 |
Interesting idea, but the poor writing ruined it for me. ( )
  Belles007 | Jan 17, 2016 |
Denk wel het mooiste boek dat ik in dit genre (tot op heden) heb gelezen. Het heeft diepe indruk gemaakt en zeker de moeite waard om ook de film te kijken. Je kunt je helemaal inleven, jammer dat het zon' dun boekje is, voor mij had het nog wel wat dikker mogen zijn. ( )
  misty13 | Oct 15, 2015 |
Zoals meestal is het boek mooier dan de film. Intenser. Je kunt je echt verplaatsen in de story. Heb het boek in 1x uitgelezen. Het blijft boeien, zelfs nadat je het verhaal eigenlijk al kent van de film. ( )
  misty13 | Oct 15, 2015 |
I have a lot of history with this book. I first read it when I was 15 or so and I was just starting to figure out what I was into sexually, and it really hit a chord with me, but I hadn't read it since. I have to say, a lot of it did live up to my memory and was *incredibly* hot, but there were also chunks in the middle that I honestly thought were, well, kinda boring. Still, it articulated a lot of the sorts of things I fantasize about very well, and I enjoyed revisiting it. ( )
1 vote selfcallednowhere | Aug 9, 2015 |
I have had this book to read forever. I originally got it because it was on a list of books you have to read kind of thing. It ended up being a well written and engaging story, that did have some slow points.

This is a French erotic story about a woman named O who seeks to become the slave of a man named Rene. In her quest to be owned she undergoes a number of both sexual and psychological trials and training.

The translation I read was well done and easy to read. The story is engaging if a bit incomplete. At times there is so much sexual debasement in this book that those parts start to become a boring and repetitive. Apparently O's masters don't have a ton of imagination. That being said if scenes with whipping, restraint, or multiple sex partners are offensive to you...don’t read this book.

There is a lot I could say about this book. As for the sexual content there isn't much in here that I haven't seen in some adult epic fantasies where characters are enslaved or tortured...the main difference in this story is that O is willing and eager to be enslaved and debased. I think those who are bitching about how this book demeans women are kind of missing the point. This same story could have had a male as the main character just as easily; it’s just meant to be a representation of the BDSM scene and give readers a glimpse into the mind of someone who wants to be enslaved.

O is many times asked by her male masters to give her permission for her initial contracts, which she always does eagerly. O despite being owned and passed around by a number of men and being totally at their beck and call has a different sort of power. This is more apparent towards the end of the book than the beginning.

I have also read that too much time is spent discussing clothing. I actually thought that the discussion the occurs around clothing was pretty necessary to the story. Part of O’s obedience involves her being available to her master at his every whim. In the age of bulky bras and garter belts to hold up stockings; this involves O having to completely modify her wardrobe...which she does eagerly to prove her love and obedience to her master.

The ending was a bit disappointing since the book kind of ends in the middle of everything. There is a note that the last chapter has been suppressed from modern day publications, this is disappointing because I hate to see a story broken apart like that.

Overall I thought this was an interesting and engaging look into BDSM culture. There are parts where the sex/debasement gets a bit repetitive; I wish O’s masters had been a bit more creative. I was also disappointed in how abruptly the story ended. Again, people be smart, if BDSM completely offends you don’t read this book.

If you are interested in other media that looks into the psychology of BDSM (but from a purely entertainment lighter side) I would also recommend the movie The Secretary. This movie does a wonderful job of showing how a woman who likes punishment and a man who likes to dominate can have a balanced and loving relationship. If you are interested in a fantasy series that deals with this (again in a slightly different and fantastical way) I would recommend the Kushiel’s Dart series by Jacqueline Carey. ( )
2 vote krau0098 | Jun 5, 2015 |
A truly wonderful read. I finished it in almost one go and was very intrigued about the psychological journey the main character makes throughout the story. I would have liked to get some more details about the motives of the other characters however, but then again, it's the Story of O, not of anybody else.

Truly recommended to everyone who's interested to see how pornographic content can be laid out in such a classic and non-vulgar manner! ( )
1 vote bbbart | May 30, 2015 |
For an erotic novel, I found it to be neither all that erotic or all that novel. The story is weak. I got the idea that love binds one as a slave early on. The book really never grew from there as literature or entertainment. ( )
  AliceAnna | Oct 23, 2014 |
after reading the 50 shades of grey whichni found rather boring and badly written, i was curious about well written books in this genre. i think i found one. not sure that i desire to be like O but the story was intersting and in some parts arousing. and you might even get a few ideas here and there. i did not bother me that it went not too deep into O's mind. i geuss it would be rather difficult to put this kind of life choice in words and make is ndestandable for an outsider.
i will be looking for similar books. ( )
1 vote kakadoo202 | Jul 5, 2014 |
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