Aestheticism and Sexual Parody 1840–1940
Aestheticism and Sexual Parody adds a new and important dimension to the concept of parody as a combative strategy by which sexually marginalized groups undermine the status quo. From W. S. Gilbert's drama, and Vernon Lee and Christopher Isherwood's prose to George Du Maurier's cartoons and Max Beerbohm's caricatures, Dennis Denisoff explores the interactions of late nineteenth and twentieth century parody and aestheticism with the texts of canonical authors such as Alfred Tennyson, Walter Pater, Algernon Swinburne, and Oscar Wilde.
- Adds cultural depth to the study of famous authors by considering their 'low brow' reception
- Written in a clear and entertaining style
- Blends historical analysis with contemporary issues
Reviews & endorsements
"...it offer[s] an important interpretation of the data...This complex working of 'high' and 'low' cultures to widen social sympathies is an original contribution to our understanding of aesthetics." English Literature in Transition
Product details
July 2001Hardback
9780521800396
208 pages
229 × 152 × 16 mm
0.48kg
7 b/w illus.
Available
Table of Contents
- Acknowledgments
- Introduction
- 1. Alfred Tennyson and the critical sexualization of Aestheticism
- 2. The leering creatures of W. H. Mallock and Vernon Lee
- 3. Gigolo economics: W. S. Gilbert and the market value of parodic promiscuity
- 4. 'Men of my own sex': genius, sexuality, and George du Maurier's artists
- 5. Epistemological misfiring in the aestheticist camp of Ada Leverson and Robert Hichens
- 6. Max Beerbohm, Christopher Isherwood, and Camp Homage
- Epilogue
- Notes
- Works cites
- Index.