Queer city : gay London from the Romans to the present day
(Book)
Author
Published
New York : Abrams Press, 2018.
Format
Book
Physical Desc
ix, 262 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), color maps ; 22 cm
Appears on list
Status
Main Library - Adult
306.766 Ack
1 available
306.766 Ack
1 available
Description
Loading Description...
Also in this Series
Checking series information...
Copies
Location | Call Number | Status |
---|---|---|
Main Library - Adult | 306.766 Ack | On Shelf |
More Details
Published
New York : Abrams Press, 2018.
Language
English
Notes
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 235-244) and index.
Description
Peter Ackroyd is our preeminent chronicler of London. In Queer City, he looks at the metropolis in a whole new way - through the history and experiences of its gay population. In Roman Londinium the penis was worshipped and homosexuality was considered admirable. The city was dotted with lupanaria ('wolf dens' or public pleasure houses), fornices (brothels) and thermiae (hot baths). Then came the Emperor Constantine, with his bishops and clergy, monks and missionaries. His rule was accompanied by the first laws against queer practices. What followed was an endless loop of alternating permissiveness and censure, from the notorious Normans, whose military might depended on masculine loyalty, and the fashionable female transvestism of the 1620s; to the frenzy of executions for sodomy in the early 1800s and the 'gay plague' in the 1980s. Ackroyd takes us right into this hidden city, celebrating its diversity, thrills and energy on the one hand; but reminding us of its very real terrors, dangers and risks on the other. In a city of superlatives, it is perhaps this endless sexual fluidity and resilience that epitomise the real triumph of London.
Reviews from GoodReads
Loading GoodReads Reviews.