Keep calm and [expletive deleted] on
In my ongoing quest to broaden my horizons, I present to you a tantalizing nonfictional morsel.
Where there are people, there are sexual appetites - some healthy, some downright insatiable. Taking that view, it's only logical that when the Romans settled in Britain in the early days of the first millenium, they had some girls shipped to the territory to placate them. Since then, Romans have been replaced by the natives, but the appetite for sex has only grown: prostitution sees booms in business and various degrees of respectability, both of which rise and fall over the course of nearly 2,000 years of copulation. Catharine Arnold explores the changing views on sex and sexual activity, showing accounts from the lowest of whores all the ways to kings who couldn't keep it in their pants. Like it or not, the sex industry of London has always been - and by several accounts, will continue to be - integral to the ever-evolving city's economy and society.
Straightforward as most history texts must be - but with a rather more alluring subject - The Sexual History of London takes itself seriously so as to rise above the smut it chronicles. This is not the easiest task, as Londoners throughout history prove to have some of the filthiest minds and desires of any culture. More often than not, prostitutes and their pimps and madams are at the forefront of the narrative, as their line of work throws them into the path of the horny, the lonely, and the adventurous. Arnold discusses the kinds of lives whores can hope to live; depending on the time and circumstance, a prostitute can either be a sad sack or a working woman who's doing well for herself. It is especially in the Victorian era that sexual freedom is stifled, at least in theory. Arnold's scope includes not just straight sex, but gays and lesbians, including a great section about Oscar Wilde's outrageous court case. We also see the popularity of literary erotica, which sometimes was construed as a legitimate art form ... and sometimes not. Arnold tends to jump back and forth within the span of a half-century, and although it's decently easy to follow, it seems to be a sign that she's trying to compress a lot of information in a limited number of pages. I think given the subject matter, she could have lengthened the book by at least another fifty pages.
Arnold offers a little in the way of commentary. For the most parts she lets the history as she documents it speak for itself. But she makes a few good points: prostitution by choice and prostitution by force are two different things; and although whores are condemned, the men who supply them with business are conveniently looked over. She leaves the reader with the impression that trying to put a stop to prostitution (not to be confused with sex trafficking) would be an impossible task. Whether you agree or disagree, history does seem to be on her side.
As to the writing style, this book is very accessible, apart from some awkward formal language every now and then. Trust to your own sensibilities on whether or not a frank examination of sex through the ages - and the cultural impact thereof - would be something you can handle. For me, at times the graphic descriptions were hard to get through, but I was never bored. Rating: 4.5 tricks out of 5.
Straightforward as most history texts must be - but with a rather more alluring subject - The Sexual History of London takes itself seriously so as to rise above the smut it chronicles. This is not the easiest task, as Londoners throughout history prove to have some of the filthiest minds and desires of any culture. More often than not, prostitutes and their pimps and madams are at the forefront of the narrative, as their line of work throws them into the path of the horny, the lonely, and the adventurous. Arnold discusses the kinds of lives whores can hope to live; depending on the time and circumstance, a prostitute can either be a sad sack or a working woman who's doing well for herself. It is especially in the Victorian era that sexual freedom is stifled, at least in theory. Arnold's scope includes not just straight sex, but gays and lesbians, including a great section about Oscar Wilde's outrageous court case. We also see the popularity of literary erotica, which sometimes was construed as a legitimate art form ... and sometimes not. Arnold tends to jump back and forth within the span of a half-century, and although it's decently easy to follow, it seems to be a sign that she's trying to compress a lot of information in a limited number of pages. I think given the subject matter, she could have lengthened the book by at least another fifty pages.
Arnold offers a little in the way of commentary. For the most parts she lets the history as she documents it speak for itself. But she makes a few good points: prostitution by choice and prostitution by force are two different things; and although whores are condemned, the men who supply them with business are conveniently looked over. She leaves the reader with the impression that trying to put a stop to prostitution (not to be confused with sex trafficking) would be an impossible task. Whether you agree or disagree, history does seem to be on her side.
As to the writing style, this book is very accessible, apart from some awkward formal language every now and then. Trust to your own sensibilities on whether or not a frank examination of sex through the ages - and the cultural impact thereof - would be something you can handle. For me, at times the graphic descriptions were hard to get through, but I was never bored. Rating: 4.5 tricks out of 5.
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