120 Jours De Sade

Les 120 journées de Sodome. The 120 Days of Sodom ... English rendering ... by Pieralessandro Casavini, etc

The Wild Girl, Natural Man, and the Monster

This study looks at the lives of the most famous "wild children" of eighteenth-century Europe, showing how they open a window onto European ideas about the potential and perfectibility of mankind. Julia V. Douthwaite recounts reports of feral children such as the wild girl of Champagne (captured in 1731 and baptized as Marie-Angélique Leblanc), offering a fascinating glimpse into beliefs about the difference between man and beast and the means once used to civilize the uncivilized. A variety of educational experiments failed to tame these feral children by the standards of the day. After telling their stories, Douthwaite turns to literature that reflects on similar experiments to perfect human subjects. Her examples range from utopian schemes for progressive childrearing to philosophical tales of animated statues, from revolutionary theories of regenerated men to Gothic tales of scientists run amok. Encompassing thinkers such as Rousseau, Sade, Defoe, and Mary Shelley, Douthwaite shows how the Enlightenment conceived of mankind as an infinitely malleable entity, first with optimism, then with apprehension. Exposing the darker side of eighteenth-century thought, she demonstrates how advances in science gave rise to troubling ethical concerns, as parents, scientists, and politicians tried to perfect mankind with disastrous results.

The temple of venus

Amsterdam rejoices in more than simply its famous canals and its celebrated collections of the works of Rembrandt, Vermeer and Van Gogh. It has a museum dedicated to the Goddess of Love, which welcomes no fewer than 500,000 visitors a year. From all over the world people come in their thousands to this unusual establishment known as “The Temple of Venus”. First put on display together in 1985 by Monique van Marle and her father, this collection of erotic works is exceptional for the quality of the objects exhibited, its engravings and its photographs of yesteryear. Far from being a focus for voyeuristic prurience, the Museum is intended to be understood as a serious centre for the history of erotic art. This book takes us on a guided tour of this fascinating place devoted to a fascinating subject.