The role of sadism and masochism in fiction has attracted serious scholarly attention. Anthony Storr has commented that the volume of sadomasochist pornography shows that sadomasochistic interest is widespread in Western society; John Kucich has noted the importance of masochism in late-19th-century British colonial fiction. This article presents appearances of sadomasochism in literature and works of fiction in the various media.
Novels Titles are sorted in chronological order.
Pre-19th century
Aloisiae Sigaeae, Toletanae, Satyra sotadica de arcanis Amoris et Veneris (1660) by Nicolas Chorier, translated into English as A Dialogue between a Married Woman and a Maid in various editions. depicts an older woman giving sexual instruction to a younger, recommending the spiritual and erotic benefits of a flogging. Fanny Hill (1749) by John Cleland – depicts mutual flagellation, between Fanny and an English client. The understanding of flagellation is in transition from an aphrodisiac practice intended to improve sexual performance to a sexual activity in its own right. Fashionable Lectures: composed and delivered with Birch Discipline () on the theme of flagellation by dominant women in positions of authority. The 120 Days of Sodom (1785), Justine (1791), Philosophy in the Bedroom (1795), and Juliette (1797) by the Marquis de Sade – Have an extreme, sadistic perspective. "The term sadism derives from the Marquis de Sade (1740–1814), a French nobleman imprisoned for his libertinism, and for writing fantastic novels, such as Justine and Juliette that equated sexual pleasure with the inflicting of pain, humiliation, and cruelty". Anti-Justine (1798) by Nicolas-Edme Rétif – A response to the works of de Sade, written in a like style, describing the opposite political point of view.
19th century
The Lustful Turk, or Lascivious Scenes from a Harem (1828) by Anonymous. First published in England by John Benjamin Brookes, the book was not widely known until it was reprinted by William Dugdale in 1893. This tale of sex and sadism consists largely of a series of letters written by its heroine, Emily Barlow, after being abducted by Moorish pirates and held prisoner in an Algerian harem. The David F. Friedman sexploitation film The Lustful Turk (1968) is based on the novel. Exhibition of Female Flagellants (1830) attributed, probably falsely, to Theresa Berkley, published by George Cannon. The principal activity described is flagellation, mainly of women by women, described in a theatrical, fetishistic style. It was republished around 1872 by John Camden Hotten. The New Ladies' Tickler, or Adventures of Lady Lovesport and the Audacious Harry (1866) by Edward Sellon – dealing with flagellation and lesbian incest The Romance of Chastisement (1866) by St George Stock, a probable pseudonym, also credited with The Whippingham Papers (John Camden Hotten: London). A pornographic collection on the theme of flagellation. Reprinted by Charles Carrington in 1902 as The Magnetism of the Rod or the Revelations of Miss Darcy. Revelries! and Devilries!! (1867), anonymous, published by William Dugdale. Said to be the collaboration of four Oxford scholars and an army officer. The book is a linked collection of stories in which sadism is a theme. Personal Recollections of the Use of the Rod (1868) by "Margaret Anson", pseudonym of British author James Glass Bertram (John Camden Hotten: York, date given as 1857). As is common in this genre, the author/narrator is given as female, and the perpetrators and victims are mainly women. Reprinted by Blue Moon Books in 2000; also published as The Merry Order of St. Bridget. Translated in French as Une société de flagellantes. Réminiscences et révélations d'une soubrette de grande maison (1901) by Jean de Villiot, illustrated by Martin van Maële. Flagellation & the Flagellants: A History of the Rod (1868) by "Rev. William Cooper", again James Glass Bertram, a best-seller for Hotten. Memoiren einer Sängerin (1868). Translated to French as Les Memoirs d'une chanteuse allemande and to English as Pauline, the Prima Dona or Memoirs of an Opera Singer. Published anonymously but likely authored by Wilhelmine Schröder-Devrient. Originally published after her death in two installments in 1868 and 1875; reprinted often since. Venus in Furs (1870) by Leopold von Sacher-Masoch – Autobiographical novel wherein the protagonist encourages his mistress to enslave and mistreat him. Many of Sacher-Masoch's other works contain themes of sadomasochism and female dominance of the male. The term 'Masochism' derives from von Sacher-Masoch's name. The Romance of Lust (1873–1876) published by William Lazenby includes flagellation by a governess among a variety of sexual activities, such as incest, orgies, masturbation, lesbianism, fellatio, cunnilingus, gay sex, anal sex, and double penetration. The Convent School, or Early Experiences of A Young Flagellant (1876) by "Rosa Coote", pseudonym of the author and publisher, William Dugdale, in which a woman is whipped and tortured by two men. Experimental Lecture (1878/9) by "Colonel Spanker", published by Charles Carrington, on sadistic flagellation. The Colonel and his circle have a house in Park Lane where young ladies are kidnapped, humiliated, whipped and raped. Miss Coote's Confession (1879–1880), an epistolary serial novella also supposedly by Rosa Coote in The Pearl, a pornographic magazine published by William Lazenby, deals with flagellation at home and at school. In The Brothers Karamazov (1880), Fyodor Pavlovitch says,
The Mysteries of Verbena House, or, Miss Bellasis Birched for Thieving (1882) by "Etonensis" [pseud.], actually by George Augustus Sala and James Campbell Reddie (co-author of The Sins of the Cities of the Plain). The Whippingham Papers (1888) with poetry ascribed to Algernon Charles Swinburne, edited by St. George H. Stock, a probable pseudonym, also credited with The Romance of Chastisement (1866). A collection of Victorian stories and verse about erotic flagellation. The Yellow Room (1891) by anonymous (generally attributed to "M. Le Comte Du Bouleau", aka Stanislas Matthew de Rhodes). – Novella about an eighteen-year-old girl educated and disciplined by her stern aunt and uncle. Reprinted along with the novella Letters to a Lady Friend, in Whipped into Shape: Two Classic Erotic Novellas by Renaissance E Books Inc. (2004). Gynecocracy: A Narrative of the Adventures and Psychological Experiences of Julian Robinson, by "Viscount Ladywood" [pseud.] (1893), the author recounts his punishment as a boy at the hands of the governess to whom he is sent, along with three female cousins, after having taken indecent liberties with a household maid. Forced to wear girls' clothing as his ordinary attire, Julian, now Julia, is subjected to frequent flagellations, as are his cousins, one of whom he later marries, submitting to her dominance through continued forced feminization and crossdressing. Raped on the Railway: a True Story of a Lady who was first ravished and then flagellated on the Scotch Express (1894), anonymous, by Charles Carrington A married woman is raped by a stranger in a locked railway compartment and in a common trope in later Victorian pornography is depicted as ultimately taking pleasure in the act: she is then flagellated by her brother-in-law for the latter transgression. The plot may have been inspired by the real-life case of Colonel Valentine Baker, who was convicted of an indecent assault on a young woman in a railway carriage in 1875. An American adaptation, or plagiarism, was published in New York City under the title Raped on the Elevated Railway, a True Story of a Lady who was First Ravished and then Flagellated on the Uptown Express, illustrating the Perils of Travel in the New Machine Age set in New York. A Full and True Account of the Wonderful Mission of Earl Lavender (1895) by John Davidson (London: Ward & Downey). A burlesque on the Decadent movement with private whipping clubs and other flagellatory adventures from noted poet, playwright, and humorist John Davidson. Tales of Fun and Flagellation (1896) by Lady Gay Spanker [pseud.]. A diverse collection of anecdotes and stories. The Torture Garden (1899) by Octave Mirbeau An allegorical examination of Western society, and of the human condition. The Memoirs of Dolly Morton: The Story of A Woman's Part in the Struggle to Free the Slaves, An Account of the Whippings, Rapes, and Violences that Preceded the Civil War in America, with Curious Anthropological Observations on the Radical Diversities in the Conformation of the Female Bottom and the Way Different Women Endure Chastisement (1899) under the pseudonym Jean de Villiot, probably Hugues Rebell or Charles Carrington. Edited and published in London and Paris by Charles Carrington. Another edition was published in Philadelphia in 1904. Lashed into Lust: The Caprice of a Flagellator (1899) by Anonymous. – French novel reprinted in 1908 with "James Lovebirch" as author. Reprinted in 2000 by Blue Moon Books (New York).
20th century
"Frank" and I (1902) by Anonymous. Originally published in three volumes in England. Edwardian novel of flagellation pornography. A wealthy young man, who is "a lover of the rod", takes in "Frank", a teenage girl disguised as a boy. A 1983 film was released under the alternative titles Frank and I and Lady Libertine. Woman and Her Master (1904) by Jean de Villiot, pseudonym of Georges Grassal – a novel of flagellation erotica translated into English by Charles Carrington from the original 1902 French edition, La Femme et son maître.
La Flagellation Passionnelle (1906) by Don Brennus Aléra, pseudonym of Paul Guérard. Between 1903 and 1936 he wrote and illustrated around 100 historical and contemporary novels about flagellation and crossdressing petticoat punishment. Les Onze Mille Verges (The eleven thousand rods) by Guillaume Apollinaire – written in the 1906–1907 period; the publication is unsigned and undated. Picasso thought this was the finest book he had ever read. Sadopaideia: Being the Experiences of Cecil Prendergast Undergraduate of the University of Oxford Shewing How he was Led Through the Pleasant Paths of Masochism to the Supreme joys of Sadism. (1907) by anonymous. – Two-volume tale of a man who experiences both dominance and submission. Anthony Storr attributes it to Algernon Charles Swinburne. The Beautiful Flagellants of New York (1907) by Lord Drialys (The Society of British Bibliophiles [Charles Carrington]: Paris) – follows an intrepid traveller's adventures from Chicago to Boston to New York. Originally published in three volumes, one for each city. Reprinted by Olympia Press as The Beautiful Flagellants of Chicago, Boston and New York. The Way of a Man with a Maid (ca. 1908) by Anonymous. First published in France, exact date and author unknown. Three-volume Edwardian novel of abduction, sex and sadism. Often reprinted as a single volume under the shorter title A Man with a Maid. Adapted to film in 1975 called What the Swedish Butler Saw. La Comtesse au fouet (1908), by Pierre Dumarchey (Pierre Mac Orlan) – the story of a cruel dominatrix who turns the male hero into a "dog-man". Under the pen-name Miss Sadie Blackeyes, he wrote popular flagellation novels such as Baby douce fille (1910), Miss: The memoirs of a young lady of quality containing recollections of boarding school discipline and intimate details of her chastisement (1912), and Petite Dactylo et autres textes de flagellation (1913). And as "Anonymous" wrote Masochists in America (Le Masochisme en Amérique: Recueil des récits et impressions personnelles d'une victime du féminisme) (1905). Coups de Fouet (1908) by Lord Birchisgood [pseud.] (Édition Parisienne, Roberts & Dardailons Éditeurs: Paris). Author of Le Tour d'Europe d'un flagellant (1909), et al.