Rondeaux Parisiens

SWINBURNE, ALGERNON CHARLES

Verlag: printed for private circulation only [T.J. Wise], London, 1917

One of 35 copies of an unusually interesting - and unsettling - text for one of Wise's pamphlets, inscribed by him: "To Charles Maggs, esq., with sincere regards from Thos. J. Wise." Swinburne was a bitter opponent of the "new journalism" exemplified by W.T. Stead's `Pall Mall Gazette' and wrote this poetic invective against it, specifically against Stead's "The Maiden Tribute of Babylon", the very important serialised expos of paedophilia in Victorian England which led to the long overdue raising of the age of consent. Swinburne was outraged at the glee displayed by the French press over these revelations of the darker nature of British 19th Century morality. In an egregiously hypocritical introduction - even by his own standards - Wise alludes to Swinburne's reluctance to publish the text in his own lifetime, concluding: "The poet's well known opinions, and in particular his unmeasured sympathy with childhood and youth, would certainly be in full accord with the wiser provisions of the [Criminal Law Amendment] Act. It is perfectly apparent that what aroused, and probably amused, him was the transparent cant exhibited in the fantastic vapourings of the French press." Thankfully, a very scarce item - the last copy at auction was in 1992. Wrappers slightly foxed, otherwise fine. Bestandsnummer des Verkäufers 20710

Bibliografische Details

Titel: Rondeaux Parisiens
Verlag: printed for private circulation only [T.J. Wise], London
Erscheinungsdatum: 1917
Einband: Softcover