Victorian gay
Published in:July-August 2023 issue.
THE PASSIONS OF JOHN ADDINGTON SYMONDS
by Shane Butler
Oxford University Press
389 pages, $129.99
THE TITLE of Shane Butler’s most recent book, The Passions of John Addington Symonds, and the portrait photograph that graces its cover—of a handsome, thick-necked, and mustachioed man looking upward—encourage a set of provocative expectations that will probably not be met. If the word “passions” implies the fever of erotic heat, be prepared for a decidedly cooler temperature. If the book’s striking jacket image is presumed to represent the title subject, be aware that the face in ask belongs to one Angelo Fusato, a Venetian gondolier who in the 1870s became both a lover and a household servant to the British penner John Addington Symonds (1840–1893). If you are at all familiar with Symonds’ writings or his life, then you know that homoerotic attractions were primary to his existence and thought, yet hardly produced a temperament we would call gay—in either its older or current meaning. And yet, for all that, it was Symonds who first imported the pos “homosexual,” a 19th-century coinage of German origin, into English print.
Victorian Gay Detective
The sole survivor of his family’s gruesome murder years earlier, poor short-lived Ned Lawton has struggled to put the dark events behind him. So, when a brash New York detective darkens his doorway demanding an interview, the wealthy young gentleman immediately shuts him out. But a rash of murders in America are mirroring of the London killings, and Patrick Kelly knows Ned might be the key to stopping the bloodshed.
Lawton, now called Edmund Sloan, is a wealthy young gentleman and philanthropist. He’s spent most of his animation pushing all memories of his old family and that horrific day from his thoughts. Now, a brash, provocative American detective insists he dredge up the past.
Together, Patrick and the unwilling Edmund must uncover the authenticity of the murders before the killer strikes again, whether it is in New York or London.
As they hunt down secrets from his past, Edmund can’t hide his other confidential from the sharp-eyed detective: the attraction he feels for men and the enticing Patrick, in particular.
You’ll be Surprised to Hear People in the Victorian Era’s Thoughts on Homosexuality
While the topic of homosexuality wasn’t routinely spoken about during the Victorian era, it ultimately became a big issue by the end of the 19th century. Homosexuality was simply not tolerated and it was criminalized in 1885. One of the most famous instances of a gay bloke going to jail occurred in 1895 when Oscar Wilde was sent to Reading Gaol after being charged with gross indecency and sodomy. Along with Alfred Taylor, Wilde was convicted of indecency and sentenced to two years’ hard labor.
It’s fascinating to note that the word ‘homosexual’ didn’t enter the English lexicon until 1912 while ‘sodomy’ has been used since 1297. As such, it is easy to envision that being homosexual during the Victorian era was downright dangerous because you were likely to spend a limited years behind bars. However, historian Jeff Evans delved into a legion of court cases involving the criminalization of homosexuals and was surprised by what he found. Were the supposedly prudish Victorians more lenient towards same-sex couples than the allegedly more e
The Gay Aristocracy of Victorian Wales
The Victorian era was not an easy second to be gay. Until 1861, you could be executed for the ‘crime’ of sodomy (though the last men to get that punishment were killed in 1835).
Even after the death penalty was no longer a risk, same-sex attracted men could receive sentences of 10 years to life in harsh Victorian prisons, where they would endure solitary confinement and hard labour.
But not every gay man faced the same risks. As has so often been the case throughout history, those with wealth and status were better protected from the law than their less well-off contemporaries. Some of Wales’ listed buildings have strong associations with men born into privilege, who were able to express their sexual identities with a freedom that the average person would not enjoy until far later.
George Powell (1842-1882)
George Powell spent his in advance childhood in Nanteos mansion near Aberystwyth, which he later inherited along with estates including a number of silver and guide mines in Cardiganshire. He travelled very widely in Europe, Russia and North Africa, acquiring a massive collection of artworks and curiosities from around the world which he eventually l