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EspañolEROTIC LITERATURE
'Erotic literature' is a literary genre that either takes the form of erotica written to arouse the reader, or to give instruction in sexual technique. Much classic erotic literature is of novel length, although there are also erotic short stories. Some poetry has been classed as erotic.
Sex manuals such as the Kama Sutra are some of the best known works of erotic literature. The Ananga Ranga is a lesser known one, aimed specifically at preventing the separation of a husband and wife.
Directories of prostitutes and their services have also historically served as a sexual education in print, such as ''Harris's List of Covent Garden Ladies'' (1757-1795). The rise of the novel in 18th century England provided a new medium for erotica. One of the most famous in this new genre was ''Fanny Hill'' by John Cleland. This book set a new standard in literary smut and has often been adapted for the cinema in the 20th century.
In the Victorian period, the quality of erotic fiction was much below that of the previous century — it was written by 'hacks'. However, some contained borrowings from established literary models, such as Dickens. It also featured a curious form of social stratification. Even in the throes of orgasm, the social distinctions between master and servant (including form of address) were scrupulously observed. Significant elements of sado-masochism were present in some examples, perhaps reflecting the influence of the English public school. These works were often anonymous, and undated, and include such classics of the genre as:
★ ''The Way of a Man with a Maid''
★ ''The Autobiography of a Flea''
★ ''Beatrice''
Towards the end of the century, a more 'cultured' form of erotica began to appear. This was associated with the Decadents, in particular, with Aubrey Beardsley and the Yellow Book. But it was also to be found in France, amongst such writers as Pierre Louys, author of the 'Chanson de Bilitis' (a celebration of lesbianism and sexual awakening).
From around the late 1970s, many sex manuals have been published and openly sold in the western world, notably ''The Joy of Sex''. Sex manuals specifically written for sexual minorities are also now published.
'Erotic fiction' is the name given to fiction that deals with sex or sexual themes, generally in a more literary or serious way than the fiction seen in pornographic magazines and sometimes including elements of satire or social criticism.
Works of significant literary merit that can be classed as erotic literature include:
★ The ''Satyricon'' of Petronius Arbiter
★ ''Delta of Venus'' by Anaïs Nin
★ The ''Story of O'' by Pauline Réage
★ '' by Vladimir Nabokov
★ ''The Bicycle Rider'' by Guy Davenport
★ ''The 120 Days of Sodom'' by the Marquis de Sade
★ ''Story of the Eye'' by Georges Bataille
★ ''Tropic of Cancer'' by Henry Miller
Romantic novels are sometimes marketed as erotica — or vice versa, as "mainstream" romance in recent years has begun to exhibit blatant (if poetic) descriptions of sex.
Artist's books [1] explore relations between the literary, poetic, comic, and artistic representations of sex.
There is a substantial overlap between legal erotic literature and illegal pornography, with the distinction traditionally having been made in the English-speaking courts on the basis of perceived literary merit. This was particularly true of works aimed at men, which generally use explicit descriptions of sexual acts. Many banned books have been suppressed because they also contained erotic visual images, which has traditionally been easier to prosecute than text.
In the USA, the First Amendment gives protection to written fiction - although in one case, a man pled guilty and was convicted for writing unpublished stories (these were works of fiction concerning sexually abusing children) that were contained only in his personal and private journal. That conviction was later overturned on appeal.[2]
In the UK purely textual pornographic texts, with no hint of libel, have not been prosecuted since the ''Inside Linda Lovelace'' trial collapsed in 1976.
Importing books and texts across national borders can sometimes be subject to more stringent laws than in the nations concerned. Customs officers are often permitted to seize even merely 'indecent' works that would be perfectly legal to sell and possess once one is inside the nations concerned. Canada has been particularly notorious for such border seizures.
In some nations, even purely textual erotic literature is still deemed illegal and is also prosecuted.
The Internet and digital revolution in the history of erotic depictions, has blurred older forms of representing scenes of a sexual nature, although research indicates erotic literature was available among the poor and performed at public readings in 1700s Britain.[1]
Readers of erotic fiction in most of the world's liberal democracies are now able to indulge their fantasies in the comfort and privacy of their homes, without the social and legal restrictions of a pre-digital era. Online bookstores now legally carry a range of professional, commercial and non-commercial erotic writing.
The Web also serves as a hub for non-profit story distribution, offering readers the opportunity to become authors, writing anonymously and posting their own stories. Most online authors adopt a colorful pseudonym (and can develop cult fan followings within their genre), though a small number use (or claim to use) their real names. Among transgendered authors, it's common practice to adopt a feminine alter-ego, although it's not unheard of for a writer to use his own first name.
Over the years, many non-profit sites have limited themselves to a particular sub-genre (or fetish). Other websites have started and then vanished (or have never been updated or properly maintained). Similarly, many part-work stories have been started but then never progressed beyond "part 1". Just a few of the more widely known free sites that have endured over the years include:
★ The Scarlet (magazine) website has a selection of erotic stories under the heading 'Cliterature'. [2] These stories have usually appeared in the magazine so they have been sub-edited and are to a high standard.
★ The ''alt.sex.stories Text Repository'', or ASSTR, began as a small FTP site in 1996 for tabulating and hosting the output of A.S.S.'s members. It has since expanded into a free hosting site, similar to GeoCities or Angelfire but specializing in erotica. It now hosts the erotic literature of nearly two thousand authors, including some of the biggest and most well-loved in the field.
★ Storiesonline.net: A large archive, founded in early 1998 by its owner Lazeez as a personal hobby site. Its evolution over the years turned it into a general submission site and an easy-to-use alternative to ASSTR with a sophisticated search engine. It accepts all types of submissions.
★ The ''Nifty Erotic Stories Archive'' has archived homosexual/alternative-sexuality erotica since 1993 and permits non-published amateurs to submit, provided the story does not portray graphic violence, abusive situations, etc., but it does permit stories depicting sexual activities among minors and between minors and adults. As of 2007, "Nifty" archived more than 100,000 stories comprising 2.2GB.
★ ''Fictionmania'', founded in late 1997, archives the works of any writers (amateur or professional), provided the story involves transgendered erotica. In 2002, Fictionmania averaged 161 new story submissions each month.
★ The advent of web 2.0 has led to new interactive sites like ''Lush Erotic Stories'' where users can submit, vote for, embellish, and comment on erotic stories.
★ Open-submissions sites such as ''Literotica'', ''C-S-S-A'', ''Sex Stories Post'', ''Electronic Wilderness Publishing'', ''mindspired.com Erotic Stories'', and ''The Wolf Pub'' publish a wide variety of erotic literature. ''Literotica'', in particular, is one of the most popular erotic text sites in existence, with nearly 25,000 registered authors (as of late 2005) contributing about 100,000 stories, poems, essays, illustrated stories and audio stories in a huge variety of categories. Electronic Wilderness Publishing , Or EWP for short, was the youngest of these sites until The Wolf Pub or just The Pub. EWP and The Pub was created by Net Wolf.
★ 'Erotic Stories at mindspired.com' - 'The mindspired.com Project' [Erotic Stories to stimulate your mind], provides free access to original erotic literature. The archive is moderated and provides unrestricted access to erotic stories [fiction/non-fiction/poetry] as well as writer's resources, discussion forums for members and a very open real-time chat room.
★ The Erotica Readers and Writers Association, established in 1996, is a moderated online archive of erotic fiction, poetry and non-fiction articles, as well as an association for writers of erotica. It also includes articles about authorship, author resources, calls for submissions, and publishing opportunities.
★ OystersandChocolate.com, co-owned and co-edited by Jordan LaRousse and Samantha Sade, is a sex-positive women's erotica site that features artwork, photography, columns, erotic product reviews, a readers' forum, and erotic fiction categorized as Vanilla (heterosexual couples), Licorice Whips (BDSM), Dirty Martini (voyeurism, fetish and other kinks), and All About the Oysters (lesbian tales). The site also accepts unsolicited writing and art submissions as well as hosts quarterly writing contests. Note that not all submissions are automatically accepted for publication at OystersandChocolate.com as it is not a repository site. Every submission will go through a rigorous evaluation process by the editors.
★ Samarelart.com, owned by world renowned digital erotic artist Samarel, is a free erotica site that features original artwork, adult stories and poetry, sex guide, and a weekly updated webzine.
With the advent of podcasting and MP3s, it is possible that erotic literature will find new outlets in the form of an Internet-based market in downloadable audio books.
★ RedWordSaid is a collection of downloadable erotic audio stories produced with sex soundscapes. (strictly commercial site, nothing is free.)
★ Scarlet (magazine)
★ Black Lace (books)
★ List of authors of erotic works
★ List of pornographic book publishers
★ Romance novel
★ RedLightBooks.com
★ Raw Desire
★ BLAM! BLAM! (an erotic bedside journal)
★ www.samarelart.com
1. Science and the Artist's Book
2. Ohio man convicted for "obscene" stories in his private journal
★ ''Encyclopedia of erotic literature'', ed. by Gaëtan Brulotte; John Phillips, New York, NY [etc.]: Routledge, 2006
★ The Pornographic Imagination in Styles of Radical Will, Susan Sontag, , , Picador, 1969, ISBN 0-312-42021-8
★ Patrick J. Kearney (1982), ''A history of Erotic Literature''
★ Michael J. Weller (2005), "The Secret Blue Book", bookartbookshop [3], London.
★ Linda Williams, ''Hardcore: Power, Pleasure, and the 'Frenzy of the Visible', (University of California Press, 1999)
| Contents |
| History |
| Erotic fiction |
| Legal status |
| Internet erotic fiction |
| See also |
| External links |
| References |
History
Sex manuals such as the Kama Sutra are some of the best known works of erotic literature. The Ananga Ranga is a lesser known one, aimed specifically at preventing the separation of a husband and wife.
Directories of prostitutes and their services have also historically served as a sexual education in print, such as ''Harris's List of Covent Garden Ladies'' (1757-1795). The rise of the novel in 18th century England provided a new medium for erotica. One of the most famous in this new genre was ''Fanny Hill'' by John Cleland. This book set a new standard in literary smut and has often been adapted for the cinema in the 20th century.
In the Victorian period, the quality of erotic fiction was much below that of the previous century — it was written by 'hacks'. However, some contained borrowings from established literary models, such as Dickens. It also featured a curious form of social stratification. Even in the throes of orgasm, the social distinctions between master and servant (including form of address) were scrupulously observed. Significant elements of sado-masochism were present in some examples, perhaps reflecting the influence of the English public school. These works were often anonymous, and undated, and include such classics of the genre as:
★ ''The Way of a Man with a Maid''
★ ''The Autobiography of a Flea''
★ ''Beatrice''
Towards the end of the century, a more 'cultured' form of erotica began to appear. This was associated with the Decadents, in particular, with Aubrey Beardsley and the Yellow Book. But it was also to be found in France, amongst such writers as Pierre Louys, author of the 'Chanson de Bilitis' (a celebration of lesbianism and sexual awakening).
From around the late 1970s, many sex manuals have been published and openly sold in the western world, notably ''The Joy of Sex''. Sex manuals specifically written for sexual minorities are also now published.
Erotic fiction
'Erotic fiction' is the name given to fiction that deals with sex or sexual themes, generally in a more literary or serious way than the fiction seen in pornographic magazines and sometimes including elements of satire or social criticism.
Works of significant literary merit that can be classed as erotic literature include:
★ The ''Satyricon'' of Petronius Arbiter
★ ''Delta of Venus'' by Anaïs Nin
★ The ''Story of O'' by Pauline Réage
★ '' by Vladimir Nabokov
★ ''The Bicycle Rider'' by Guy Davenport
★ ''The 120 Days of Sodom'' by the Marquis de Sade
★ ''Story of the Eye'' by Georges Bataille
★ ''Tropic of Cancer'' by Henry Miller
Romantic novels are sometimes marketed as erotica — or vice versa, as "mainstream" romance in recent years has begun to exhibit blatant (if poetic) descriptions of sex.
Artist's books [1] explore relations between the literary, poetic, comic, and artistic representations of sex.
Legal status
There is a substantial overlap between legal erotic literature and illegal pornography, with the distinction traditionally having been made in the English-speaking courts on the basis of perceived literary merit. This was particularly true of works aimed at men, which generally use explicit descriptions of sexual acts. Many banned books have been suppressed because they also contained erotic visual images, which has traditionally been easier to prosecute than text.
In the USA, the First Amendment gives protection to written fiction - although in one case, a man pled guilty and was convicted for writing unpublished stories (these were works of fiction concerning sexually abusing children) that were contained only in his personal and private journal. That conviction was later overturned on appeal.[2]
In the UK purely textual pornographic texts, with no hint of libel, have not been prosecuted since the ''Inside Linda Lovelace'' trial collapsed in 1976.
Importing books and texts across national borders can sometimes be subject to more stringent laws than in the nations concerned. Customs officers are often permitted to seize even merely 'indecent' works that would be perfectly legal to sell and possess once one is inside the nations concerned. Canada has been particularly notorious for such border seizures.
In some nations, even purely textual erotic literature is still deemed illegal and is also prosecuted.
Internet erotic fiction
The Internet and digital revolution in the history of erotic depictions, has blurred older forms of representing scenes of a sexual nature, although research indicates erotic literature was available among the poor and performed at public readings in 1700s Britain.[1]
Readers of erotic fiction in most of the world's liberal democracies are now able to indulge their fantasies in the comfort and privacy of their homes, without the social and legal restrictions of a pre-digital era. Online bookstores now legally carry a range of professional, commercial and non-commercial erotic writing.
The Web also serves as a hub for non-profit story distribution, offering readers the opportunity to become authors, writing anonymously and posting their own stories. Most online authors adopt a colorful pseudonym (and can develop cult fan followings within their genre), though a small number use (or claim to use) their real names. Among transgendered authors, it's common practice to adopt a feminine alter-ego, although it's not unheard of for a writer to use his own first name.
Over the years, many non-profit sites have limited themselves to a particular sub-genre (or fetish). Other websites have started and then vanished (or have never been updated or properly maintained). Similarly, many part-work stories have been started but then never progressed beyond "part 1". Just a few of the more widely known free sites that have endured over the years include:
★ The Scarlet (magazine) website has a selection of erotic stories under the heading 'Cliterature'. [2] These stories have usually appeared in the magazine so they have been sub-edited and are to a high standard.
★ The ''alt.sex.stories Text Repository'', or ASSTR, began as a small FTP site in 1996 for tabulating and hosting the output of A.S.S.'s members. It has since expanded into a free hosting site, similar to GeoCities or Angelfire but specializing in erotica. It now hosts the erotic literature of nearly two thousand authors, including some of the biggest and most well-loved in the field.
★ Storiesonline.net: A large archive, founded in early 1998 by its owner Lazeez as a personal hobby site. Its evolution over the years turned it into a general submission site and an easy-to-use alternative to ASSTR with a sophisticated search engine. It accepts all types of submissions.
★ The ''Nifty Erotic Stories Archive'' has archived homosexual/alternative-sexuality erotica since 1993 and permits non-published amateurs to submit, provided the story does not portray graphic violence, abusive situations, etc., but it does permit stories depicting sexual activities among minors and between minors and adults. As of 2007, "Nifty" archived more than 100,000 stories comprising 2.2GB.
★ ''Fictionmania'', founded in late 1997, archives the works of any writers (amateur or professional), provided the story involves transgendered erotica. In 2002, Fictionmania averaged 161 new story submissions each month.
★ The advent of web 2.0 has led to new interactive sites like ''Lush Erotic Stories'' where users can submit, vote for, embellish, and comment on erotic stories.
★ Open-submissions sites such as ''Literotica'', ''C-S-S-A'', ''Sex Stories Post'', ''Electronic Wilderness Publishing'', ''mindspired.com Erotic Stories'', and ''The Wolf Pub'' publish a wide variety of erotic literature. ''Literotica'', in particular, is one of the most popular erotic text sites in existence, with nearly 25,000 registered authors (as of late 2005) contributing about 100,000 stories, poems, essays, illustrated stories and audio stories in a huge variety of categories. Electronic Wilderness Publishing , Or EWP for short, was the youngest of these sites until The Wolf Pub or just The Pub. EWP and The Pub was created by Net Wolf.
★ 'Erotic Stories at mindspired.com' - 'The mindspired.com Project' [Erotic Stories to stimulate your mind], provides free access to original erotic literature. The archive is moderated and provides unrestricted access to erotic stories [fiction/non-fiction/poetry] as well as writer's resources, discussion forums for members and a very open real-time chat room.
★ The Erotica Readers and Writers Association, established in 1996, is a moderated online archive of erotic fiction, poetry and non-fiction articles, as well as an association for writers of erotica. It also includes articles about authorship, author resources, calls for submissions, and publishing opportunities.
★ OystersandChocolate.com, co-owned and co-edited by Jordan LaRousse and Samantha Sade, is a sex-positive women's erotica site that features artwork, photography, columns, erotic product reviews, a readers' forum, and erotic fiction categorized as Vanilla (heterosexual couples), Licorice Whips (BDSM), Dirty Martini (voyeurism, fetish and other kinks), and All About the Oysters (lesbian tales). The site also accepts unsolicited writing and art submissions as well as hosts quarterly writing contests. Note that not all submissions are automatically accepted for publication at OystersandChocolate.com as it is not a repository site. Every submission will go through a rigorous evaluation process by the editors.
★ Samarelart.com, owned by world renowned digital erotic artist Samarel, is a free erotica site that features original artwork, adult stories and poetry, sex guide, and a weekly updated webzine.
With the advent of podcasting and MP3s, it is possible that erotic literature will find new outlets in the form of an Internet-based market in downloadable audio books.
★ RedWordSaid is a collection of downloadable erotic audio stories produced with sex soundscapes. (strictly commercial site, nothing is free.)
See also
★ Scarlet (magazine)
★ Black Lace (books)
★ List of authors of erotic works
★ List of pornographic book publishers
★ Romance novel
External links
★ RedLightBooks.com
★ Raw Desire
★ BLAM! BLAM! (an erotic bedside journal)
★ www.samarelart.com
References
1. Science and the Artist's Book
2. Ohio man convicted for "obscene" stories in his private journal
★ ''Encyclopedia of erotic literature'', ed. by Gaëtan Brulotte; John Phillips, New York, NY [etc.]: Routledge, 2006
★ The Pornographic Imagination in Styles of Radical Will, Susan Sontag, , , Picador, 1969, ISBN 0-312-42021-8
★ Patrick J. Kearney (1982), ''A history of Erotic Literature''
★ Michael J. Weller (2005), "The Secret Blue Book", bookartbookshop [3], London.
★ Linda Williams, ''Hardcore: Power, Pleasure, and the 'Frenzy of the Visible', (University of California Press, 1999)
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