Re-assessing the Marquis de Sade - Audio

Re-assessing the Marquis de Sade

De Sade's status as a literary philosopher and his relationship to materialist philosophy is expertly analysed, along with several pertinent readings from his works.

The materialist philosophy

De Sade's works are filled with violent and sexual excess, but what are his motives for producing such provocative material? Shock, or something more?

Normalising the abnormal

How did the revolution inspire and inform de Sade's writing, if at all? The historical aspect and de Sade's personal experiences are analysed and explained.

De sade and the french revolution

Imprisoned for much of his adult life, de Sade's writings are rife with institutional motifs. This discussion highlights and explains principal autobiographical and fictional examples.

Horror and imprisonment

Scolastico

Donatien Alphonse François, better known as The Marquis de Sade, is infamous throughout literature and popular culture for a life and body of work that pushed boundaries. Literally synonymous with sexual and violent excess, his reputation as a writer is often clouded by the extreme nature of his work. In a series of lively and engaging discussions, Alex Barber, Angelica Goodden and Timo Airaksinen re-assess both the man and his writing in social, historical and literary contexts, providing an insight into an often-misunderstood figure with much to say about the culture that produced him. This material forms part of The Open University course A207 From Enlightenment to Romanticism c.1780-1830.

Re-assessing the Marquis de Sade