Don Juan of Colomia (Translated)
2011
First Published
3.59
Average Rating
61
Number of Pages
- Modern English translation
- From "Don Juan von Kolomea" (1866)
- Annotated Leopold von Sacher-Masoch (1836-1895) is best known for the German-language novellas he wrote—many of them published only after his death—whose main theme was the sexual perversion that came to be named “Masochism” after him. The heroes of such prose works welcomed the ill treatment and physical pain that their dominating lovers inflicted on them. Some characters of "Don Juan of Colomia" (1866) exhibit this tendency. This novella was, in a sense, literary training for the even steamier and well-known "Venus in Furs," which he published four years later. The story is set in Sacher-Masoch’s own birth region of the eastern Austro-Hungarian Empire: Colomia (Kolomea, Kolomiya) is now in Ukraine. It is quite possible that some autobiographical elements are woven into the tale. As if foreshadowing later events, a whip is cracked (innocently enough) in the fourth paragraph of the story and in various passages throughout. As you read, you may find your own assessments of the title character of "Don Juan of Colomia" fluctuating between views of a gracious gentleman and champion of women’s rights... or those of a brilliant moral philosopher... or those of a self-deluding buffoon and sex pervert.
Avg Rating
3.59
Number of Ratings
51
5 STARS
20%
4 STARS
35%
3 STARS
31%
2 STARS
12%
1 STARS
2%
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