Philosophy in the Boudoir: Or, The Immoral Mentors

'Philosophy in the Bedroom', or how the education of Eugénie, a young girl of an astounding naivety when it comes to everything related to sex, is used as a pretext to offer a big fuckery (literally) as sad as a porn movie encompassing from adultery to gay sex, and incest to rape. The poor girl is surely better entertained than in a convent, but, honestly, what bollocks!

Is there any 'philosophy'? Well, apart from the word figuring in the title, you'll be hard pressed to find any in here! The problem with Sade, as always, is that he caricatures, and caricatures outrageously at that. To him, nature can only be cruel and violent, and so our instincts can only be cruel and violent too. Rape and murder are, in fact, here justified in a show more short ending essay, libertarian for sure but reading more like some idiotic anarchist pamphlet written by an angry teen than a ethos to be adopted by any kind of decent society, let alone a society even giving in to our natural instincts (Sade seems to have never heard of empathy...)!

Can we reproach him his naivety, though? After all, Sade was battling with questions still dividing us all nowadays, and, if we can forgive him his answers, this kind of idiocy (everything is natural, so everything should be allowed -just have a look at what goes on in certain socio-biologist circles...) still circulate quite dangerously... Regardless, other thinkers (even of his time) were more clued on!

It may be entertaining as literary pornography (although perverse at times). From a purely intellectual perspective, though, the ideas defended here might be revolutionary, but they're also so caricatural it borders on the laughably ridiculous. One star for the porn, and another for the effort. And I'm done with Sade! show less

De Sade veers between pornography and political theory in a series of dialogues; I definitely found the latter more interesting. Especially as some of group sex goings-on seemed logistically infeasible. The book is worth reading for De Sade's fascinating political views. The participants in the dialogues don't really deserve to be called characters, as they are clearly De Sade's mouthpieces. This seems fair enough, considering the book is meant to be a sort of textbook to lead young girls astray. On the one hand De Sade condemns homophobia, women's subjugation in marriage, and intolerant religious laws in a manner that feels oddly contemporary. On the other, he argues that murder should be legal and women have no right whatsoever to show more refuse sexual advances. It's impressive how shocking De Sade can still be, more than 200 years after he wrote this book.

In his arguments for greater freedom, De Sade the libertine appears to be a forerunner of today's libertarians. This amused me as nowadays libertarianism is heavily associated with economics, something De Sade clearly couldn't care less about. I read Philosophy in the Boudoir just after finishing The End of History and the Last Man by Francis Fukuyama, and was delighted to find similarities between the two. For example, both Fukuyama and De Sade note that in a democratic society of equal rights, the individual desire for mastery still needs an outlet. Whereas Fukuyama suggests sport, De Sade firmly believes that the solution is sex. show less

As a writer, I thoroughly enjoy the works of the Marquis de Sade, but as a philosopher, I have my reservations (and well-founded they are too!). This book was crude in a way that offends the sensibilities, disgusting in a way that destroys all things pure and good about carnal pleasure, and yet it still manages to be a book ahead of its time. There are questions as to whether the opinions held in this book are Sade's own, and as it was written as a satire, I found it within myself to be able to read the entire book, even when everything I believed in was ridiculed, even when I was embarassed to read any further, even when I thought a more deranged and inhuman piece of literature had never been written. There are valuable ideas in here, show more I will say that. But there are also ideas that I could see, if they were ever to be put into practice, leading into complete anarchy and murder and completely unrestrained cruelty. Nevertheless, I respect the Marquis de Sade for his ability to shock and his libertinage, though I don't agree with most of it. And it was entertaining to see people's faces when they saw the illustrations on the cover and back of the book. However, I don't know if I'd recommend it, simply because I don't know what kind of light that would cast on me if I were to do so. It is philosophy "out of the box," to say the least... show less

So if you don't like reading erotica or don't like books the use foul language you should stay away from the Marquis de Sade.

Furthermore, if you've ever wondered about the etymology of the word sadism, it's from this man.

This book is meant to shock you, to rock you to your core. He challenges religion, politics and everything under the sun, all while narrating an orgy. This book is totally depraved and utterly riddled with debauchery.

I sometimes found his rants on politics, religion and the state a little bit long and lengthy - I felt that some of his book was just purely for shock value, no other reason. There were some brilliant lines in this, though, that have stuck with me till this day.

It's not for everyone, but I enjoyed it - show more and this edition is also beautiful! (If a little sexually explicit.) show less

Set in a bedroom, the two lead characters make the argument that the only moral system that reinforces the recent political revolution is libertinism, and that if the people of France fail to adopt the libertine philosophy, France will be destined to return to a monarchic state. In the chapter titled 'Fifth Dialogue', there is a lengthy section where the character Chevalier reads a philosophical pamphlet titled 'Frenchmen, Some More Effort If You Wish To Become Republicans'. The pamphlet clearly represents Sade's philosophy on religion and morality, a philosophy he passionately hopes the citizens of France will embrace and codify into the laws of their new republican government. Continually throughout the work, Sade makes the argument show more that one must embrace atheism, reject society's beliefs about pleasure and pain, and further makes his argument that if any crime is committed while seeking pleasure than it cannot be condemned. WIKI.org show less

I found this book to be a bit much. Portnoy's Complaint dealt with sexuality much more effectively than Philosophy In the Boudoir and I do realize that there is more to this book than plain sexuality and the plight of the libertine was very much engaged in freedom of sex I just found it to be too much.

One could agree with the atheistic critic, and the enlightment view of the human rights, but there is this big but: one has to care for the other! one 's freedom stop at the other freedom begins.
Sade here doesn't limit the quest of pleasure, be it incest, torture, murder.