John Clelandâs notorious novel, first published as Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure in 1748, is considered the first modern âerotic novelâ in English, and has become a byword in the battle against the censorship of literature. The eponymous heroine, a poor country girl, arrives in the riotous London of the 18th Century, and is inducted into a life of vice, first in the capitalâs brothels, and later as the companion of wealthy and eminent men. However, the great triumph of the novel is to portray Fanny as resourceful, intelligent, and frequently joyful, and Clelandâs writing is witty, learned, and full of classical allusion.
With an introduction by Sean Walsh.
John Clelandâs notorious novel, first published as Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure in 1748, is considered the first modern âerotic novelâ in English, and has become a byword in the battle against the censorship of literature. The eponymous heroine, a poor country girl, arrives in the riotous London of the 18th Century, and is inducted into a life of vice, first in the capitalâs brothels, and later as the companion of wealthy and eminent men. However, the great triumph of the novel is to portray Fanny as resourceful, intelligent, and frequently joyful, and Clelandâs writing is witty, learned, and full of classical allusion.
With an introduction by Sean Walsh.