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The 120 Days Of Sodom: And Other Writings (Arena Books) [Paperback]

Marquis De Sade D.A.F. (Author), Simone de Beauvoir (Introduction)
3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
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Book Description

Publication Date: 4 July 1991 | Series: Arena Books

The 120 Days of Sodom is the Marquis de Sade's masterpiece. A still unsurpassed catalogue of sexual perversions and the first systematic exploration of the psychopathology of sex, it was written during Sade's lengthy imprisonment for sexual deviancy and blasphemy and then lost after the storming of the Bastille during the French Revolution in 1789.

Later rediscovered, the manuscript remained unpublished until 1936 and is now introduced by Simone de Beauvoir's landmark essay, 'Must We Burn Sade?' Unique in its enduring capacity to shock and provoke, The 120 Days of Sodom must stand as one of the most controversial books ever written, and a fine example of the Libertine novel, a genre inspired by eroticism and anti-establishmentarianism, that effectively ended with the French Revolution.

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Product details

  • Paperback: 816 pages
  • Publisher: Arrow; New Ed edition (4 July 1991)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0099629607
  • ISBN-13: 978-0099629603
  • Product Dimensions: 12.8 x 4.5 x 19.4 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 298,753 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Review

Sade was one of the most radical minds in Western history, one that touched, with astonishing fusion of madness and cold rationality, on some of the most central aspects of psychic life... He remains a great, horrifying, but also vastly illuminating figure (Newsweek )

Book Description

The magnum opus of infamous French libertine, aristocrat, erotic author and extremist politician, the Marquis de Sade. The ultimate exploration of sexual deviation including sado-masochism and violent sexual abuse, this is a shocking insight into the psychopathology of sex, seen through the eyes of history's most famous sexual deviant. With an introduction by famous feminist writer and literary critic, Simone de Beauvoir.
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
69 of 71 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Comic and cruel 16 Mar 2001
By nrkelly@yahoo.com
Format:Paperback
De Sade's opus and no surprise that his name would forever more be synonymous with vicious acts meted out purely for sexual gratification. A catalogue of sexual deviations, degenerating into ever-increasing cruelty as a group of captives (mainly children) are tormented and tortured to death.

An excellent translation. It is a surprisingly comic work which draws the reader in. It is also a subversive work, portraying the horrors as perpetrated by those with the unlimited resources to indulge their murderous tastes and the power or connections to avoid having to answer for them. Often they represent the law, as with the judge who always sentences everyone appearing before him to death, so that he can watch the execution from an overlooking apartment whilst fornicating at the same time.

Written in prison, it is incomplete. Only the first 30 days have been written out in full; the rest being in note form. It still makes for entertaining reading, although it is probably this incompleteness which makes the entire work disproportionately concerned with eating excrement (one of the earlier and milder sexual quirks).

Even in a world largely numbed to horror, some of this stuff is still unbelievable. Essential reading for anyone interested in the human psyche.

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49 of 56 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Read it for the right reasons! 18 April 2000
By Mr Anthony K. Walker/anthonykarl@awalker28.freeserve.co.uk
Format:Paperback
See a bishop, a nobleman, a lawyer and a banker getting up to their antics, which I would call murderous, except that it`s fiction. In real life, these types get up to REAL murderous things - but they won`t be found here. Instead, many will probably buy and read it for the wrong reasons. I would issue a warning that this is not Sade`s best work by a long shot and will teach you nothing about Sade as a man and thinker; only about his bitterness in prison. It is important to remember, if you buy this book, that it was Sade`s revulsion for atrocity and hypocrisy which prompted him to write this Absurdist saga. Recommended, but NOT as an introduction for one who is ignorant of Sade! For better intros, carry on down the list of works and check out FRANCINE DU PLESSIX GRAY and MAURICE LEVER. Or read: THE MYSTIFIED MAGISTRATE, CRIMES OF LOVE, or GOTHIC TALES. (And better still: LETTERS FROM PRISON) Anthony Walker.
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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars You can burn this book -- but read it first! 2 Mar 1999
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
De Sade paints a powerful picture of a deliberate and apparently regular descent into hell (or libertine heaven, depending on who you are in the book) by a selected cast of characters at an isolated chateau. All means of inflaming and fulfilling sexual appetite are explored, and then some more. Yes, this may be an allegory on power and corruption, but is equally an exploration of sexuality peppered with acts of free will when devoid of morality. Of course, such matters take some considerable toll on the participants, as the most chilling reckoning shows at the end of the book, where head counts are made of persons at the start and at the end of the sojourn.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
1.0 out of 5 stars boring
just goes on and on and on with poor plot trying to build up into something sensual which is not the case unless you like books about eating muck.
Published 2 months ago by H. Grocott
1.0 out of 5 stars Horrible but classic world
I am so glad I have finished reading this book! I needed to read it for my work,but I kept feeling sick as l read it. Read more
Published 2 months ago by Prof Mark Cowling
2.0 out of 5 stars Disturbing....
This might be literary but it is basically hardcore porn of the worst kind... necrophilia, pedophilia, bestiality etc. Read more
Published 3 months ago by Chicken
1.0 out of 5 stars terrible writing style from sick mind
The book is far too long ! Yes, I realise it was originally serialised but wanted to read some of his work as I'de heard about his books and the myths surroundin the author for... Read more
Published 4 months ago by kim
2.0 out of 5 stars meh...
started as though it would be an OK read, the writings aregood but the latter half is beyond readable, it's quite sickening more so than i expected! Read more
Published on 6 July 2010 by Helen Dixon
4.0 out of 5 stars The Divine Marquis...
One thing I've always told my students is this: *never* read the Marquis de Sade. Regardless of how "shock-proof" you may *think* you are, you are not too numb to suffer the... Read more
Published on 3 Feb 2010 by Marked Wayne
5.0 out of 5 stars Who taught you to torture?
Perceiving De Sade as a pornogapher speaks volumes about the reviewer, rather than the book. If this is seen as porn or erotica then seek help. Read more
Published on 27 Jan 2010 by Dr. Delvis Memphistopheles
3.0 out of 5 stars Amusing in parts...
I read the book a few years ago and whilst I agree that the Simple Passions were sometimes amusing (if you like to laugh at other people's foibles), I felt the book got nastier as... Read more
Published on 29 Sep 2006 by Mr. Peter Jones
3.0 out of 5 stars Tedium redefined
An interesting read, and an insight into a horrific side of human nature; but the repetition is overwhelming and I found myself skipping through endless descriptions of... Read more
Published on 30 May 2006 by Mr. P. J. Davy
1.0 out of 5 stars Very overrated
I read this book really knowing very little about it. I had heard it described as 'a catalogue of perversions', and that probably describes it very well. Read more
Published on 10 Mar 2003 by michael_m
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