![]() ![]() Consequently, he glorifies as well as vilifies the four main protagonists, alternately declaring them freethinking heroes and debased villains, often in the same passage. In this introduction, he contradicts himself, at one point insisting that one should not be horrified by the 600 passions outlined in the story because everybody has their own tastes, but at the same time going out of his way to warn the reader of the horrors that lie ahead, suggesting that the reader should have doubts about continuing. The story does portray some black humor, and de Sade seems almost light-hearted in his introduction, referring to the reader as "friendly reader". ![]() Either at the outset, or during the writing of the work, de Sade had evidently decided he would not be able to complete it in full and elected to write out the remaining three-quarters in brief and finish it later. After that, the remaining three parts are written as a draft, in note form, with de Sade's notes to himself still present in most translations. The novel is notable for not existing in a complete state, with only the first section being written in detail. Since they state that the sensations produced by the organs of hearing are the most erotic, they intend to listen to various tales of depravity from four veteran prostitutes, which will inspire them to engage in similar activities with their victims. Four wealthy libertines lock themselves in a castle, the Château de Silling, along with a number of victims and accomplices (the description of Silling matches de Sade's own castle, the Château de Lacoste). The novel takes place over five months, November to March. The 120 Days of Sodom is set in a remote medieval castle, high in the mountains and surrounded by forests, detached from the rest of the world, either at the end of Louis XIV's reign or at the beginning of the Régence. ![]() In 2016, a contemporary English translation of the novel was published as a Penguin Classic. It remains a highly controversial book, having been banned by multiple governments such as in the UK in the 1950s, but remains of significant interest to students, historians and literary critics. Since then, it has been translated into many languages, including English, Japanese, Spanish, Russian, and German. It was not until the latter half of the 20th century that it became more widely available in countries such as the United Kingdom, the United States and France. Sade wrote it in secrecy while imprisoned in the Bastille in 1785 shortly after he was transferred elsewhere the Bastille was attacked by revolutionaries, leading him to believe the work was destroyed, but unbeknownst to him it was instead recovered and preserved by a mysterious figure and subsequently handed over to a multitude of people, culminating in its publication in 1904. The novel was never completed its first chapter was written according to Sade's written plan, but the subsequent chapters are in the form of rough drafts and notes, often consisting of graphic descriptions of the novel's scenes. The madams relate stories of their most memorable clients, whose crimes and tortures inspire the libertines to likewise and increasingly abuse and torture their victims to their eventual deaths. Described as both pornographic and erotic, its plot revolves around the activities of four wealthy libertine men who spend four months seeking out the ultimate sexual gratification through orgies, sealing themselves away in an inaccessible castle in the heart of the Black Forest in Germany with four madams and a harem of thirty-six victims, mostly male and female teenagers. The 120 Days of Sodom, or the School of Libertinage (French: Les 120 Journées de Sodome ou l'école du libertinage) is an unfinished novel by the French writer and nobleman Donatien Alphonse François, Marquis de Sade, written in 1785 and published in 1904 after its manuscript was rediscovered. ![]()
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