The whore's story : women, pornography, and the British novel, 1684-1830
This fresh and persuasively argued book examines the origins of pornography in Britain and presents a comprehensive overview of women's role in the evolution of obscene fiction. Carefully monitoring the complex interconnections between three related debates--that over the masquerade, that over the novel, and that over prostitution--Mudge contextualizes the growing literary need to separate good fiction from bad and argues that that process was of crucial importance to the emergence of a new, middle-class state. Looking closely at sermons, medical manuals, periodical essays, and political tract
Criticism, interpretation, etc
1 online resource (xiv, 276 pages) : illustrations
9780198030874, 9786610834303, 9780195135053, 0198030878, 661083430X, 0195135059
252663913
Introduction. Women, Pornography, and Literary History; PART I: Popular Culture and the Emergence of the Modern State; 1. Masquerades and Prostitutes; 2. The Feminization of the Novel; 3. Women Writers, Gothic Novels, Romantic Poets; PART II: Pornography and Literature; 4. Passionate Women and Unruly Novels; 5. Venus in the Marketplace; 6. Virgins, Whores, and Devils; Conclusion. The Whore's Story; Notes; Index; A; B; C; D; E; F; G; H; I; J; K; L; M; N; O; P; Q; R; S; T; U; V; W; Z