John Cleland

Fanny Hill Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure Illustrated John Cleland

emoirs of a Woman of Pleasure-popularly known as Fanny Hill (an anglicisation of the Latin mons veneris, mound of Venus)-is an erotic novel by English novelist John Cleland first published in London in 1748. Written while the author was in debtors' prison in London, it is considered "the first original English prose pornography, and the first pornography to use the form of the novel". It is one of the most prosecuted and banned books in history. The book exemplifies the use of euphemism. The text has no "dirty words" or explicit scientific terms for body parts, but uses many literary devices to describe genitalia. For example, the vagina is sometimes referred to as "the nethermouth," which is also an example of psychological displacement. A critical edition by Peter Sabor includes a bibliography and explanatory notes. The collection 'Launching "Fanny Hill"' contains several essays on the historical, social and economic themes underlying the novel.