Desire
A History of European Sexuality
Anna Clark(Author)
Routledge (Publisher)
3rd Edition
Will be published approx. on 31. July 2026
356 pages
E-Book
978-1-040-91763-3 (ISBN)
System requirements
for ePUB without DRM
E-Book Single Licence
You are acquiring a single user licence for this eBook, which you might not transfer. [L]
Not yet available
Description
Alles über E-Books | Antworten auf Fragen rund um E-Books, Kopierschutz und Dateiformate finden Sie in unserem Info- & Hilfebereich.
A sweeping survey of sexuality in Europe from the ancient Greeks to the present, Desire: A History of European Sexuality follows changing attitudes to two major concepts of sexual desire-desire as dangerous, polluting, and disorderly, and desire as creative, transcendent, even revolutionary-through the major turning points of European history.
Chronological in structure, and wide ranging in scope, Desire addresses such topics as sex in ancient Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, sexual contact and culture clash in Spain and colonial Mesoamerica, new attitudes toward sexuality in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and sex in Bolshevik Russia and Nazi Germany. The book introduces the concept of "twilight moments" to describe activities seen as shameful or dishonorable, but which were tolerated when concealed by shadows, and integrates the history of heterosexuality with same-sex desire, as well as exploring the emotions of love and lust alongside the politics of sex and personal experiences.
This new edition has been updated to include more on trans histories and sexual identities in the context of the recent multiplication of sexual and gender identities. It also brings in more on materialism, embodiment, and the history of emotion. In addition to the new chapter on imperialism from the second edition, the third edition now includes an additional chapter on early medieval Christianity and Islam, concentrating on the tensions between mysticism and regulation. The book concludes with a new chapter that explores how activists from the 1970s onward linked sexual pleasure to bodily care, particularly in the contexts of abortion, AIDS, and gender-affirming trans healthcare.
Drawing on a rich array of sources, including poetry, novels, pornography, and film, as well as court records, autobiographies, and personal letters, and written in a lively, engaging style, Desire remains an essential resource for scholars and students of the history of European sexuality, as well as women's and gender history, social and cultural history, and LGBTQ history.
Chronological in structure, and wide ranging in scope, Desire addresses such topics as sex in ancient Judaism, Christianity, and Islam, sexual contact and culture clash in Spain and colonial Mesoamerica, new attitudes toward sexuality in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and sex in Bolshevik Russia and Nazi Germany. The book introduces the concept of "twilight moments" to describe activities seen as shameful or dishonorable, but which were tolerated when concealed by shadows, and integrates the history of heterosexuality with same-sex desire, as well as exploring the emotions of love and lust alongside the politics of sex and personal experiences.
This new edition has been updated to include more on trans histories and sexual identities in the context of the recent multiplication of sexual and gender identities. It also brings in more on materialism, embodiment, and the history of emotion. In addition to the new chapter on imperialism from the second edition, the third edition now includes an additional chapter on early medieval Christianity and Islam, concentrating on the tensions between mysticism and regulation. The book concludes with a new chapter that explores how activists from the 1970s onward linked sexual pleasure to bodily care, particularly in the contexts of abortion, AIDS, and gender-affirming trans healthcare.
Drawing on a rich array of sources, including poetry, novels, pornography, and film, as well as court records, autobiographies, and personal letters, and written in a lively, engaging style, Desire remains an essential resource for scholars and students of the history of European sexuality, as well as women's and gender history, social and cultural history, and LGBTQ history.
Reviews / Votes
"This new edition of Anna Clark's landmark text Desire remains both authoritative and innovative, creatively deploying her concept of "twilight moments" to think through transgression, possibility, regulation, opportunity, and the complexity of human life across two millennia with nuance and sensitivity."Justin Bengry Visiting Senior Research Fellow, King's College London
"With new and thoughtful updates, Anna Clark's Desire remains one of the most important and indispensable histories of sexuality yet written. Beautifully written, it is a joy to read, and remains an urgent piece of historical research."
Eleanor Janega, Guest Teacher, Department of International History, LSE
More details
Edition
3rd edition
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Taylor & Francis Ltd
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
Reflowable
Illustrations
15 Halftones, black and white; 15 Illustrations, black and white
ISBN-13
978-1-040-91763-3 (9781040917633)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Person
Anna Clark is Professor of History at the University of Minnesota. Her most recent book is Alternative Histories of the Self: A Cultural History of Sexuality and Secrets (2017). She has also published Women's Silence, Men's Violence: Sexual Assault in Britain, 1780-1845 (1987), The Struggle for the Breeches: Gender and the Making of the British Working Class (1995), and Scandal: The Sexual Politics of the British Constitution (2003).
Content
1. Introduction: Sexuality and the problem of Western civilization 2. Sex and the city: Greece and Rome 3. Divine desire in ancient Judaism and the beginnings of Christianity 4. Desire in the early Middle Ages, 600-1200 CE: mysticism and regulation 5. From twilight moments to moral panics: the regulation of sex from the thirteenth to the sixteenth century 6. Sexual contact and culture clash in Spain and colonial Mesoamerica 7. Enlightening desire: new attitudes toward sexuality in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries 8. In the Victorian twilight. sex out of wedlock, sexual commerce, and same-sex desire, 1750-1870 9. Boundaries of the nation, boundaries of the self, 1860-1914
Chapter 10. Sex and imperialism, 1857-1939 11. Managing desire or consuming sex in interwar culture 12. Sex and the state in the 1930s: Sweden, the Soviet Union, and Nazi Germany 13. The reconstruction of desire and sexual consumerism in postwar Europe 14. Sexual citizenship and sexual nationalism in times of crisis
Chapter 10. Sex and imperialism, 1857-1939 11. Managing desire or consuming sex in interwar culture 12. Sex and the state in the 1930s: Sweden, the Soviet Union, and Nazi Germany 13. The reconstruction of desire and sexual consumerism in postwar Europe 14. Sexual citizenship and sexual nationalism in times of crisis
System requirements
File format: ePUB
Copy protection: without DRM (Digital Rights Management)
System requirements:
- Computer (Windows; MacOS X; Linux): Use a reader that can handle the file format ePUB, such as Adobe Digital Editions or FBReader – both free (see eBook Help).
- Tablet/Smartphone (Android; iOS): Install the free app Adobe Digital Editions or the app PocketBook (see eBook Help).
- E-reader: Bookeen, Kobo, Pocketbook, Sony, Tolino and many more (not Kindle).
The file format ePUB works well for novels and non-fiction books – i.e., 'flowing' text without complex layout. On an e-reader or smartphone, line and page breaks automatically adjust to fit the small displays.
This eBook does not use copy protection or Digital Rights Management
For more information, see our eBook Help page.
