a little queer history

[kindkit]

I made an attempt at reading Fanny Hill recently, and found it fairly unreadable but, in its way, remarkably queer. It's porn written by a man from a woman's POV, featuring lots of lovingly detailed descriptions of handsome young men with enormous cocks. (The cocks are generally referred to as "machines," which I suspect is a transliteration of the

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[halotolerant]

No, I didn't mean that either, sorry if it sounded like I did. What I meant was that when I read Fanny Hill I thought it would be like the more aggressive, mindless kind of porn, written in the third person, with shopping lists of men visiting Fanny Hill and no emotional insight. I was surprised that she was a more rounded character and that she had some more agency than just 'attractive woman likes men' and that there was an idea that she enjoyed being with some men more than others, and other more subtle elements. If Cleland was queer or had queer experiences, then he would not be the sort of unenlightened unimaginative straight man that I had imagined writing the book I had imagined, if you see what I mean. Added to which, of course, as you point out, the desiring gaze on the male body.

I've never read Possession as it didn't appeal on reading the blurb and Dan Brown ruined 'historical document quest!' for me. But I do enjoy books about engagement with history when well or subtly done, and I think Stevenson falls into that category. I did read it ages ago and can't remember the precise details, but do recall almost missing a train station because I was so engrossed in it! *g*