5 second book review: Venus in Furs

Venus in Furs by Leopold Von Sacher-Masoch

Erotic literature has been around for a long time; way before E.L James's Fifty Shades of Grey, writers have always expressed their sexuality through writing.

This genre has been around forever. Penguin classics has a top ten list of erotic reads.

So one day, when I didn't have anything in particular to read, I picked one randomly and downloaded it. Thanks to the Project Gutenberg web page, I dipped into the kinky world of erotic fetishism, even though there are probably many other things online for those looking. But Venus in Furs is considered a classic.

The image conjured by Leopold Von Sacher-Masoch was too sumptuous to resist.

According to the book's introduction: 

'Leopold Von Sacher Mosoch's work suffers from the fault of being highly dramatic; the work is filled with swift narration, graphic representation of character, scenes and rich humour. Venus in Furs is the confession of a wretched man who could not master his tragedy of existence and takes us into the dark places that lie latent in all of us.'

Despite the threat of melodrama, I persisted.

Venus in Furs seems relatively tame nowadays as we post; postmoderns have seen everything and continue to be updated online. Venus is the confession of man's particular sexual adventure written in a hyperbolic Romantic way. The personal diary of Severin is a deep dark fantasy and obsession with a strong woman, violent episodes of mythology, whips, fur, slavery, cruelty and bondage.

Severin is emotionally and spiritually devoured by a strong, whimsical and manipulative older woman who takes advantage of his deeply rooted fetishes.

It is all a little silly but fun; the game that Severin and Wanda's play is filled with wonderfully romantic descriptions and banter. Even if, at times, Severin seems too pathetic for words, it is enjoyable in a sadomasochistic kind of way. I was curious to see how low our poor hero would go and how extreme his Venus in Furs would get. 

This book was scandalous and banned at its time of publication in 1870. But today, it is a real treat, easy to read, filled with humor and playfulness. It was a quick read, a great way to pass away time on a lazy afternoon. It didn't stimulate anything in my sex life, but then I don't have a thing for bondage; I haven't suffered a repressed childhood like our poor man Severin.