Passive bigotry, pseudo-science and Roman arrogance

[Theres]

i've been reading Vitruvius' 'The Ten Books on Architecture', which i'm finding to be fascinating.

however i was absolutely laughing out loud as i began the first chapter of Book 6, which deals with the design of the house.
the arrogance and inherent racism shown in what are purported to be scientific 'facts' is quite amusing, although i have no doubt that this was considered valid in the day...

http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin/ptext?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.02.0073;query=chapter%3D%2350;layout=;loc=6.preface%201

[Lupabitch]

Authors are most often products of their times. You can see the influences of Victorian Britain on the works of both Crowley and Gardner, though in different manners. This is why we need to understand the context things are written in. While the trappings may not make sense to us, and even seem ignorant, reading between the lines is an art form that's no to be discounted. (In other words, learn to take what's useful and leave what no longer works.)

[Theres]

Authors are most often products of their times. You can see the influences of Victorian Britain on the works of both Crowley and Gardner, though in different manners. This is why we need to understand the context things are written in. While the trappings may not make sense to us, and even seem ignorant, reading between the lines is an art form that's no to be discounted. (In other words, learn to take what's useful and leave what no longer works.)
i have no arguement with that, for the most part. i would even add that these premises must be seen in a chronological context.

but that doesn't make it any less funny!

[Stoirmeacha]

Authors are most often products of their times. You can see the influences of Victorian Britain on the works of both Crowley and Gardner, though in different manners. This is why we need to understand the context things are written in. While the trappings may not make sense to us, and even seem ignorant, reading between the lines is an art form that's no to be discounted. (In other words, learn to take what's useful and leave what no longer works.)
Is Victorian Erotica a product of its time?

[Lupabitch]

Is Victorian Erotica a product of its time?

Of course. Just because a society may be repressed on the surface doesn't mean there's nothing going on underneath that surface. Victorian times are stereotyped as being incredibly proper and sexless, but the open repression led to plenty of underground expressions. No doubt there are academic papers studying the relationship between Victorian sexual repression on the surface, the resultant expressions of sexuality in the underground, and the style and most common topics in erotica of the time.

[Zephyrstorm]

Is Victorian Erotica a product of its time?

Absolutely. :)
If you'd like to see just how the Victorian world danced around the subject of sex, here's a book:
http://www.amazon.com/Exposed-Victorian-Nude-Alison-Smith/dp/0823016331
Victoria and Albert had quite the collection of nude art. Some of it downright pornographic in nature. ;)

And to actually comment on the topic at hand directly, every time I read Walden again, I catch some tidbit of Thoreau's biases and bigotries and they make me blink at the least. This time I'm really taking my time to dissect and think about it.