Lascivious Bodies Book Review

History is a field renowned for dullness, however, Julie Peakman brings history to life in her book “Lascivious Bodies: A Sexual History of the Eighteenth Century.” No page is left untouched by the nearly comical records of sexual practices and interactions. This is without a doubt the most interesting book on any area of history I have had the pleasure of reading. While remaining humorous, Peakman touches on all aspects of sex, sexuality, and perspectives on sex for the extended eighteenth century. Anyone who would like to learn the history of sex should read Peakman’s work with the understanding that London was the sex capitol of the world which attracted people from all regions, meaning that the points made in this book are not exclusive to British culture. Peakman states that this book is an …show more content…
She has written numerous books on the sexual history of England, primarily 18th century perversions.As an British woman, her book does somewhat reflect that her focus when researching is British women, although she is careful not to allow that to keep her from also exploring other perspectives of sex, especially the homosexual perspective. As so much of history is missing the female perspective, this focus strengthens her …show more content…
Although there are feminist undertones, she is careful to present only the opinions of the people being studied and not her own. It would appear that the author had no political purposes behind writing this book. She wanted to allow readers to greatly enjoy what they read, a goal that has succeeded. One should be aware, before reading this book, that she has several other, more recent, books on the same theme in which she delves into more specific topics which might be of more interest to