|
More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
|
le vice anglais
|
|
(French for 'the English vice') Early 20C term for a masochistic interest in flagellation, said with some justification to be a peculiarly English perversion. The most prominent example was *Swinburne. Victorian pornography abounds in scenes of flagellation; and titillating stories in today's tabloid press, of the naughty vicar variety, frequently include spanking. The origin is often said to be the rituals of birching and caning which until recently were characteristic of English *public schools. Certainly it has been a taste associated mainly with the upper classes.
|
|
|
|