@classicallyclare: It’s banned book week so why not kick off a new series… ✨Why they don’t want you to read this✨ I am vehemently anti book banning under any circumstance. (Yes, I acknowledge that dangerous texts exist, but they should be studied, analyzed, and criticized so we can learn and move forward.) So I wanted to highlight banned books that you may or may not know about. Starting with… Fanny Hill, or Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure, by John Cleland. I picked this up because I’m working on a video essay on a related topic. But beyond what I shared in this short video, Fanny Hill was a crucial libertine text in the Enlightenment Age of the 18th century. This was a period fraught with the pursuit of individualism, skepticism, liberty, and reason. Like many erotic texts of the time, it put into practice the “philosophie du plaisir,” a libertine philosophy that attacked the bastions of sexual repression and moral teachings of the Catholic Church. The novel doesn’t contain an obscene word despite being banned for obscenity. The erotic scenes also don’t read as sexy or raunchy… rather, it is philosophical and focuses on nature, experience, and ethical implications of sensual and sexual experiences. It is hedonistic, sure, but within the context of its historical placement, it is understandable. Would I recommend it? Well, yes and no. No for the story (it’s not very good). Yes if you’re interested in the rejection of conservative moral expectations in the enlightenment age. #BookTok #booktoker #classicliterature #bannedbooksweek #BookRecommendations

classicallyclare

Open In TikTok:

Region: SG

Wednesday 08 October 2025 02:47:59 GMT