Stephanie Rothrock: Outside Reading: 2: Marquis De Sade

I thought it might be fun to include someone a bit extreme from another class, the Marquis De Sade. He relates to this class on two fronts, first for his views on religion and second for his views on love....plus, he's just fun.

On Love:
Love and modesty do not exist. They are superficial attempts by women to turn down men who they do not wish to sleep with. Marriage is also frowned upon. He states that no one should possess a woman. She is not a good or an object. While this part is positive, it turns negative. He states that women are to be shared by men. While this means she cannot be owned, it also means she cannot say no. De Sade believes that rape is appropriate given that women exist for the happiness of men. He believes that it is the natural order since men are stronger than women. De Sade does not understand the idea of Agape. He sees only Eros. Everything he believes in is sexual in nature. He believes that incest, adultery, and sodomy are all perfectly normal, that they in fact benefit society.

On Religion:
This last argument brings us into his views on religion. As a libertine, he is anti-God. This means that he sees men as just that. There is no higher power and therefore no one to answer to. If this is so then our ideas of morality are based on nothing and there is no true authority. We should be free to do as we please. The result would be anarchy and transgression. This should not surprise us given that Sadism is named for De Sade.

De Sade is adamant against Christianity. He believes that the morals we hold with regards to sexuality are based solely on Christian tradition. There is no real reason in his view to prohibit the sexual behaviors listed above. He argues that they are perfectly acceptable in other countries and in our history and therefore the only negativity is based on one secular view with no fact behind it. De Sade is the epitome of a libertine. He believes that everything should be permitted, and sexuality embraced.

Random aside: I really liked the representation portrayed by Geoffrey Rush in Quills. You can see his rebellious personality which gives a better representation of the Marquis De Sade's personality. I especially like how he applauds himself whenever he finds new ways to break the rules in the asylum, getting his work published and circulated by using blood, a chicken bone, and wine.