Sade’s Queer Theory

I have always been a fan of Sade, as I thought he was way too advanced for his time. Consequently, he paid the price! So, when I saw on H-Net list the advertisement of a new book on him, I thought I should share the news with you. It may be a little bit expensive to buy but I will be there when the library gets it.

William F. Edmiston, Sade: Queer Theorist, Voltaire Foundation, SVEC 2013:03, ISBN 978-0-7294-1064-9, x+244 pages, £60 / €80 / $105.

“Following an overview of queer theory, William F. Edmiston examines the categories of sex, gender and sexuality as treated in some of Sade’s best- and lesser-known works. He demonstrates the extent to which Sade erodes the boundaries of sexual opposition through discourses justifying rather than illegitimizing ‘unlawful’ sex. Edmiston reveals the coexistence of two competing discourses on sexuality: a proclivity that cannot be eradicated, and a habit that one can choose to adopt. This pioneering re-reading culminates with an examination of how recent biographies attempt to force Sade into a normal/abnormal dichotomy, manipulating police reports, personal correspondence or narratorial interventions to establish (or not) the author’s homosexuality.”

As seen in H-Net