Havelock Ellis: A Biography
Condition: SECONDHAND
This is a secondhand book. The jacket image is a photograph of the exact copy we have in stock. This image shows the condition of this book. Further condition remarks are below.
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: No dust jacket
Pages: Good
Markings: No markings
Condition remarks: Condition as shown in image
A richly detailed biographical work, Phyllis Grosskurth's study chronicles the life of Havelock Ellis, the pioneering Victorian-era sexologist, essayist, and social reformer whose groundbreaking writings on human sexuality challenged the rigid moral conventions of his time. Grosskurth presents an unflinching portrait of a complex and often contradictory man — a gentle intellectual giant who revolutionized the scientific study of sex while navigating a deeply unconventional personal life, including his famously open marriage to the writer Edith Lees. Drawing on extensive research and private correspondence, the biography uncovers the tensions between Ellis's public advocacy for sexual freedom and the private struggles that defined his relationships and inner world. Written with scholarly rigor yet an accessible, narrative-driven tone, it situates Ellis firmly within the broader intellectual and cultural upheavals of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Britain. This authoritative account stands as an essential read for anyone interested in the history of psychology, sexuality, and the radical thinkers who shaped modern attitudes toward the human body and desire.
Author: Phyllis Grosskurth
Format: Paperback
Published: 1985, New York University Press
Genre: Biography
Condition remarks:
Book: Good
Jacket: No dust jacket
Pages: Good
Markings: No markings
Condition remarks: Condition as shown in image
A richly detailed biographical work, Phyllis Grosskurth's study chronicles the life of Havelock Ellis, the pioneering Victorian-era sexologist, essayist, and social reformer whose groundbreaking writings on human sexuality challenged the rigid moral conventions of his time. Grosskurth presents an unflinching portrait of a complex and often contradictory man — a gentle intellectual giant who revolutionized the scientific study of sex while navigating a deeply unconventional personal life, including his famously open marriage to the writer Edith Lees. Drawing on extensive research and private correspondence, the biography uncovers the tensions between Ellis's public advocacy for sexual freedom and the private struggles that defined his relationships and inner world. Written with scholarly rigor yet an accessible, narrative-driven tone, it situates Ellis firmly within the broader intellectual and cultural upheavals of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century Britain. This authoritative account stands as an essential read for anyone interested in the history of psychology, sexuality, and the radical thinkers who shaped modern attitudes toward the human body and desire.