Before Wilde: Sex between Men in Britain’s Age of Reform

by Charles Upchurch

This book examines changing perceptions of sex between men in early Victorian Britain, a significant yet surprisingly little explored period in the history of Western sexuality. Looking at the dramatic transformations of the era―changes in the family and in the law, the emergence of the world's first police force, the growth of a national media, and more―Charles Upchurch asks how perceptions of same-sex desire changed between men, in families, and in the larger society. To illuminate these questions, he mines a rich trove of previously unexamined sources, including hundreds of articles pertaining to sex between men that appeared in mainstream newspapers. The first book to relate this topic to broader economic, social, and political changes in the early nineteenth century, Before Wilde sheds new light on the central question of how and when sex acts became identities.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, LGBT, Queer, Queer Lit, Victorian, Academic

288 pages, Hardcover

First published April 22, 2009

About the author

Charles Upchurch is an Associate Professor of British History at Florida State University and the author of Before Wilde: Sex between Men in Britain's age of Reform.

Reviews

[Valorie Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Before Wilde" might be a slightly misleading (though accurate) title for this book--it focuses largely on the early 19th century, and to my memory his analysis stops in the 1860s. Wilde's trials were in 1895, so that's about 35 years not covered here. Some of that gap is covered in Matt Cook's London and the Culture of Homosexuality 1885-1914.

However! This book is a well-researched fascinating investigation into the lives and activities of homosexual men in England (especially London) in the 18th and first half of the 19th centuries. It both lays foundational work for HG Cocks' book about the late Victorian Era, and works really well as a stand alone source. If LGBT history interests you, pick up this book!

[Andre · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good book. It had a nice introduction and insights into how sex between men was seen based on class in the Britain's Age of Reform. Therefore we get an insight into class differences and what that entails e.g. upper class thought that due to them not needing to earn their fortune they have the head free for government.
The book was interesting in its short info about cross-dressers, public spaces for sex and molly houses and other private institutions. Of course there isn't much info, the book states so itself that not much is recorded. Also interesting how e.g. for working class men sex with a guy could still be considered ok of some sorts if its for finacial gain and you are not the passive (aka effeminate one). You get some infos about some rather unusual cases of cross-dressers and prostitution as well as asking yourself e.g. what sort of soldiers usually gurded the tower if homosexual advances happened there.
But I am not going to lie: the chapter about the changing laws after 1820 is pretty boring.
Also, it is a nice comment that self-understandings by any group are always unique to their times, but I would not have made that the last sentence of the book.

[Shinynickel]

Interested because of this review: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/larry-k...