Fanny Hill
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Product Description
Product Description
Forced by the death of her parents to seek her fortune in London, Fanny Hill is duped into prostitution by an old procuress. In Mrs Brown's bawdy-house the naïve young woman begins her sexual initiation - progressing from innocence to curiosity and desire - and soon embarks on her own path in pursuit of pleasure, until she at last finds true love. John Cleland's story of Fanny's rise to respectability was denounced after its publication by the then Bishop of London as 'an open insult upon Religion and good manners', while James Boswell called it 'a most licentious and inflaming book'. But beside its highly entertaining and boisterous depictions of a startling variety of sexual acts, Fanny Hill stands as one of the great works of eighteenth-century fiction for its unique combination of parody, erotica and philosophy of sensuality.
About the Author
John Cleland was born in 1710, eldest son of William Cleland, an officer and friend of the Pope. For a while hoe worked for the East India Company, rising from soldiers to businessman to secretary of the Bombay Council, though he returned to London in 1741. He then became a literary hack and journalist and was imprisoned for debt on several occasions, and on one such occasion used the time to write Fanny Hill. He died in Westminster in January 1789.
Peter Wagner is a lecturer at the Catholic University of Eichstatt in Bavaria. His books in English include a study of Puritanism in colonial New England, and a survey of erotica in the age of Enlightenment.
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First Sentence
I sit down to give you an undeniable proof of my considering your desires as indispensible orders: ungracious then as the task may be. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
I sit down to give you an undeniable proof of my considering your desires as indispensible orders: ungracious then as the task may be. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Table of Contents | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I'll readily admit one of the reasons I was drawn to this book is its reputation as 'a dirty book' which to my mind it still has. I wouldn't hesitate to read for instance Moll Flanders in a crowded train, but found myself hesitant to do so with 'Fanny Hill', however prudish that may sound. However, read it I did, and it proved to be a very interesting experience though for entirely different reasons.
Is there then no sex in the book? On the contrary, there's lots of it. But if you want to be 'titillated' (as Cleland would say) think twice before you consider reading 'Fanny Hill'. First of all, I think you'll find that since 1749, when 'Fanny Hill' was first published, we have grown accustomed to a lot more, and that in a much more explicit style. Cleland may describe sexual acts but he does so 'without naming names', and in a way this book that once scandalized therefore now at times seems a bit ludicrous (as in 'that store-bag of nature's prime sweets that is so pleasingly attached to its conduit-pipe, from which we receive them;'). At the very least, I found myself admiring Cleland for his virtually endless store of synonyms, euphemisms and circumlocutions. But, given the fact that we (or I at least) are accustomed to a more explicit style, and taking into account that Cleland writes in often extremely long sentences, I found myself rarely 'titillated'.
This does not imply that I did not find myself interested, on the contrary. One of the interesting things about 'Fanny Hill' is that, in terms of philosophy and outlook on life, this is in fact a very middle-class, conservative book. As much as Fanny comes to enjoy sex with a wide variety of people (both men and women), it is to her first and foremost the means to a single end: earning enough money to stop being a prostitute and become respectable in the eyes of society. This is evident from lots of small remarks Fanny makes throughout the book, but also from her reaction to for instance casual, gratuitous sex (which she has only once, with a sailor, afterwards condemning herself for being so stupid), or homosexuality (which she once observes without being seen herself, and afterwards roundly condemns as a gross sin against Nature). In that respect it is also noteworthy that the very first man she has sex with becomes the love of her life, so even if he was not her husband at the time, at least it's her future husband that 'deflowers' her virginity (which is as it should be if you wanted to consider yourself a respectable woman).
So, to sum up: if it's mere excitement you're looking for (and I'm not saying that that is a bad thing) I would advise you to go elsewhere, but if you're interested to travel as in a time-capsule to the 18th century by all means read 'Fanny Hill'.
Is there then no sex in the book? On the contrary, there's lots of it. But if you want to be 'titillated' (as Cleland would say) think twice before you consider reading 'Fanny Hill'. First of all, I think you'll find that since 1749, when 'Fanny Hill' was first published, we have grown accustomed to a lot more, and that in a much more explicit style. Cleland may describe sexual acts but he does so 'without naming names', and in a way this book that once scandalized therefore now at times seems a bit ludicrous (as in 'that store-bag of nature's prime sweets that is so pleasingly attached to its conduit-pipe, from which we receive them;'). At the very least, I found myself admiring Cleland for his virtually endless store of synonyms, euphemisms and circumlocutions. But, given the fact that we (or I at least) are accustomed to a more explicit style, and taking into account that Cleland writes in often extremely long sentences, I found myself rarely 'titillated'.
This does not imply that I did not find myself interested, on the contrary. One of the interesting things about 'Fanny Hill' is that, in terms of philosophy and outlook on life, this is in fact a very middle-class, conservative book. As much as Fanny comes to enjoy sex with a wide variety of people (both men and women), it is to her first and foremost the means to a single end: earning enough money to stop being a prostitute and become respectable in the eyes of society. This is evident from lots of small remarks Fanny makes throughout the book, but also from her reaction to for instance casual, gratuitous sex (which she has only once, with a sailor, afterwards condemning herself for being so stupid), or homosexuality (which she once observes without being seen herself, and afterwards roundly condemns as a gross sin against Nature). In that respect it is also noteworthy that the very first man she has sex with becomes the love of her life, so even if he was not her husband at the time, at least it's her future husband that 'deflowers' her virginity (which is as it should be if you wanted to consider yourself a respectable woman).
So, to sum up: if it's mere excitement you're looking for (and I'm not saying that that is a bad thing) I would advise you to go elsewhere, but if you're interested to travel as in a time-capsule to the 18th century by all means read 'Fanny Hill'.
15 of 21 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Fanny Hill is one of the most pornographic pieces of writing I have ever read! But, its fabulously "colourfull" descriptions of the most intimate of actions makes it quite an enjoyable book. The whole book is just sex,sex,sex, but this is not as vulgar as one might initially think. The subject matter is dealt with in a sensitive and delicate manner, consentrating more on the pleasure for BOTH of the sexes, rather than the physical aspect. The book tells the story of a fictitious woman named Fanny Hill, who, from her lowly country background goes by accident rather than choice to London. Here, fate is not on her side and she is forced to work in a "brothel" where she makes an escape with one of her "clients". More misfortunes occur and she is forced then to become a kept mistress. Then after a close encounter with a errand boy, Fanny, turned out of her home, again turns to prostitution, this time in a more elegant establishment. The main bulk of the story is based here and details all that went on between the girls and the gentlemen that visited them.
Even though this book is very enjoyable, I can't help thinking that the ending was somewhat of a disappiontment. The fact that Fanny becomes rich and meets up, by pure chance, with her long lost beau seems to be too Fairy Tale like for such an intimate and gritty story.
2 of 3 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
excellent book and gives a brilliant insight into how a young girl can be drawn into prostitution but how she survives and comes a wealthy woman.Not pornography but erotic
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
A pretty raunchy book sold here as classic fiction
Medium-soft porn set in 18th Century England. If you want to be turned on sexually then better stuff is available on the internet. Read more
Published 22 months ago by Brownbear101
Oh I say!
Not as interesting as the previous reviewer's description seems to suggest, this bawdy romp is generic smutty literature. Read more
Published on 2 April 2009 by Captain Pugwash
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