Part fable, part legend, this is a compelling story of a woman subjected to the gamut of male sado-masochistic urges. O is imprisoned in an elegant château, at the mercy of her torturers. Probably the most famous erotic novel of all time and described by Graham Greene as ‘A rare thing, a pornographic book well written and without a trace of obscenity’.
‘You are here to serve your masters. During the day, in connection with the maintenance of the household, you will perform whatever chores are assigned to you, such as sweeping, putting the books back in place, arranging flowers, or waiting upon table. Your tasks will not be more onerous than these. But at the first word or gesture you will stop in the middle of whatever you happen to be doing, addressing yourself to your one primary task…, which is to avail yourself to be used. Your hands are not your own, neither are your breasts, nor, above all, is any one of the orifices of your body, which we are at liberty to explore and into which, we may, whenever we so please, introduce ourselves’.