Dark Eros: The Imagination of Sadism

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Summary: I want to thank James Reed
Review: For now, i would only like to thank you for your insight into the Marquis De Sade and i have not read the recommended book yet. Suffice it to say i was about to slip back into the depravity he has gifted us with. I am into bondage and sadomasochism and i've recently seen the movie "Quills". It gave me the thirst again....for the perversion and depravity of the mind...for the pain and the pleasure intermingled. I was searching for anything ABOUT the Marquis.....but i started to get drawn into the ones BY the Marquis. Until i saw your review, and i wanted to say thank you for that. Because, now i will start the research with the recommended book and post my review. I have a feeling you've helped me tremendously, how much you may never know.

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Summary: An excellent book
Review: I found this book to be most intriguing. Not as well known as many of Moore's "sweeter" works, I believe that this book is beneficial reading for both clinicians and lay persons alike. Moore's premise is that De Sade serves as a guide to the darker side of humanity, and as such, needs to be listened to. I would highly recommend this book for any clinicians working with sexually aggressive behavior and/or sexual victimization.

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Summary: Open debate for scientific progress
Review: Moore provides a quick tour on Sade's perspective in a very objective and comprehensive tone. The end of the book is devoted to therapeutics: form sadistic behavior to Sadeian perspective.
You have to be familiar either with sadomasochism or Sade's work to take the most of the book, as it doesn't provide easy answers. Though, this is one of the most empathetic works I'd ever read. In a theme commonly catalogued and limited as a sexual perversion, the text enables honest, practical discussion.

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Summary: I want to thank James Reed
Review: Over the years the Grand Marquis has been receiving a pretty bad rap. Has he been misunderstood? What Thomas Moore shows in this book is that without the dark side we would not have the bright side, the light. There is a purpose for the dark; it can be both instructive and healing. If you plan on reading anything by de Sade, read this book first. If you are a firm believer that everything is black or white, good or bad, this book might change the way you think. And isn't that what books are for?

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Summary: If you search, you will find it.
Review: Thomas Moore's "Dark Eros" has a clear agenda to achieve -- to show that Sade was a genius who saw the reality of the human mind and emotional needs. Unfortunately this agenda clouds his logic at times and limits the quotations and questions he addresses in his book. If you haven't read Sade yourself, please do so before you get this book then judge the comments and theories promoted in this book. This is not to say that Moore analysis is poor or completely incorrect, just that by being so focused on finding the genius in Sade and the sadism in everyday life he is blinded to historical and gender questions and evidence to answer these questions.

Rating:
Summary: If you search, you will find it.
Review: Thomas Moore's "Dark Eros" has a clear agenda to achieve -- to show that Sade was a genius who saw the reality of the human mind and emotional needs. Unfortunately this agenda clouds his logic at times and limits the quotations and questions he addresses in his book. If you haven't read Sade yourself, please do so before you get this book then judge the comments and theories promoted in this book. This is not to say that Moore analysis is poor or completely incorrect, just that by being so focused on finding the genius in Sade and the sadism in everyday life he is blinded to historical and gender questions and evidence to answer these questions.