Saturday 4 March 2017

Iwan Bloch on the erotic engravings of Fanny Hill

Henry Spencer Ashbee (1834–1900) (aka Pisanus Fraxi) claims, in his Catena Librorum Tacendorum (1885), 83, that "Few works have been more frequently illustrated than the Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure." He goes on to describe five mezzotints, "designed probably by George Morland, and engraved by his brother-in-law, William Ward, or by John Raphael Smith" (ibid.). (The whole of this book is available on the Internet Archive here.)

Ashbee cites La Bibliophile Fantaisiste (Geneva, 1869), 48, for the five plates he discusses, "with eight others." This information was repeated, in turn, by Iwan Bloch (aka Eugen Duehren; 1872–1922), who translated it into German in his Das Geschlechtsleben in England, mit besonderer Beziehung auf London, 3 Teile in 3 Bänden (Berlin, 1901-3) [Sex life in England, with special reference to London, 3 parts in 3 volumes]. This work was revised and shortened as Englische Sittengeschichte, 2 vols. (Berlin, 1912) [The history of English customs].

Bloch's earlier, longer work was twice translated (much abridged): first in America by Richard Deniston as Ethnological and cultural studies of the sex life in England: illustrated, as revealed in its erotic and obscene literature and art; with nine private cabinets of illustrations by the greatest English masters of erotic art, Translated and Edited by Richard Deniston (New York: Falstaff Press, 1934) and second in England by William H. Forstern as Sexual Life in England: Past and Present (London: Alfred Aldor, 1938; repr. London: Arco Publications, in association with the Rodney Book Service, 1958). The whole of Ethnological and cultural studies of the sex life in England is on the Internet Archive here; but Sexual Life in England: Past and Present is not online.

Given how horribly complicated it is trying to unravel the relationship between the above books, I thought it might be worth using the passage concerning the mezzotints by Morland (1763-1804) in Das Geschlechtsleben in England (vol.2 of which is online here) to show the differences between the three texts. I have put the British translation first, since it sticks closer to the German.

The Bloch passage is Das Geschlechtsleben in England, mit besonderer Beziehung auf London, 2.296–97; translated as Sexual Life in England: Past and Present (1958), 650; Ethnological and cultural studies of the sex life in England, 350–51:

Auch Zeichnungen zu eigentlichen obscönen und erotischen Schriften hat George Morland in Verbindung mit Ward und J. R Smith geliefert, vor allem die fünf folgenden vortreffllichen Mezzotintos zu John Cleland's „Memoire of a woman of pleasure"

No. 1. Fanny Hill and Phoebe. Phoebe berührt Fanny in indecenter Weise. Rechts ein Tisch mit einer brennenden Kerze.
No. 2. Mrs. Brown, the Horse Grenadier, and Fanny Hill. Fanny beobachtet durch eine Glasthür die fette Mrs. Brown in einer Liebesszene mit einem Soldaten.
No. 3. Fanny Hill, Louisa, and the Nosegay Boy. Der Junge und die zwei Freudenmädchen. Im Vordergründe ein Korb mit Blumen. Rechte auf dem Stuhl eine Rate.
No. 4. Harriet ravish'd in the Summer House (Harriet wird in dem Sommerhäuschen genotzüchtigt).
No. 4a. Dieselbe Szene ohne Titel, mit leichten Differenzen in Haartracht und Kleidung der Frau, der Ausstattung des Raumes u.s.w. Ist wohl die ältere-Zeichnung, und No. 4 eine spätere Kopie.
No. 5. Harriet and the Barronet (sie). Ein Paar auf einer Ottomane, während zwei andere Paare hinter demselben stehen und sie beobachten.
No. 5a. Dieselbe Scene mit leichten Aenderungen. Sopha, Haarfarbe und Haartrachten sind verschieden, rechts ist ein Lehnstuhl, links im Vordergründe Männerlut und Stiefel.

Forstern [the bracketed bits below are the bits of the German text omitted from his translation]

George Morland, in association with Ward and J. R. Smith, also supplied illustratons to obscene books. The following five excellent mezzotintos were for "Memoir of a Woman of Pleasure"

1. Fanny Hill and Phoebe. Phoebe touching Fanny in an indecent manner. [To the right, a table with a burning candle.]
2. Mrs. Brown, the Horse Grenadier, and Fanny Hill. Fanny watching through a glass door a love scene between the stout Mrs. Brown and a soldier.
3. Fanny Hill, Louisa, and the Nosegay Boy. Youth and two prostitutes. Basket of flowers and rod.
4. Harriet ravish'd in the Summerhouse. [Harriet is raped in the summer cottage]
[4a. The same scene without title, with slight differences in the hair and clothes of the woman, and the equipment in the room etc. This is probably the older drawing, and no. 4 a later copy.]
5. Harriet and the Barronet (sic). A couple on a setee, with two other watching them.
[5a. The same scene with slight changes. Sopha, hair colour and style are different. On the right is an arm-chair, on the left in the foreground men's boots and boots.]

Deniston

Morland also illustrated the real erotic works. His best known are the five superb mezzotints to John Cleland's Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure:

No. 1. Fanny Hill and Phoebe. Phoebe is initiating Fanny into tribadic practices.
[No.2] and Fanny Hill. Fanny secretly observes the fat Mrs. Brown being engaged by a lusty soldier.
No. 3. Fanny Hill, Louisa, and the Nosegay Boy. The youth is engaged with the two prostitutes. In the foreground a basket with flowers. At the right, a rod on a stool.
No. 4. Harriet ravish'd in the Summer House. A powerful drawing of a forcible rape.
No. 5. Harriet and the Barronet (sic). A couple engaged on the ottoman, while two other couples stand behind and watch them.

As you can see above, both Forstern and Deniston shorten Bloch's text, thought they do it is slightlly different ways. Both omit any mention of the "table with a burning candle" in no.1; but sometimes Fortern includes more detail (explaining, in no.2, that Fanny is "watching through a glass door") and somethimes Deniston includes more (describing no. 4 as "A powerful drawing of a forcible rape"). In general, Deniston is more informal ("the stout Mrs. Brown and a soldier" vs "the fat Mrs. Brown being engaged by a lusty soldier"), and is inclined to explain more ("Phoebe touching Fanny in an indecent manner" vs "Phoebe is initiating Fanny into tribadic practices"). What this means is that neither Forstern nor Deniston can be relied on.

* * * * *

The five Mezzotints described by Ashbee and Bloch are below. Where I could find both coloured and uncoloured versions, I include both.


BTW: if you'd like to buy a set of these engravings, be prepared to pay a lot! See here for a set which sold for Euro 15,600 in 2006.

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