From his infamous libertine novels to his championing of atheism, the Marquis de Sade's writing remains as powerful and shocking today as when it was first published.
This Very Short Introduction disentangles the real Sade from his almost demonic reputation of the past 200 years, and examines the literary and artistic legacy he has left behind. John Phillips reveals a revolutionary thinker determined to illuminate the dark corners of the human psyche, challenge the taboos of religious morality, and put the human body back into philosophy.