Daniel Defoe, Conjugal Lewdness

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Daniel Defoe’s

Conjugal Lewdness: or, Matrimonial Whoredom

was published in 1727, when Defoe was in his late sixties and approaching the end of his life, although the Preface suggests that the book was begun almost thirty years earlier (p. iv). Like so many of Defoe’s works, it immediately provoked controversy. The Introduction describes the adverse response that greeted the advance publicity for the book, with critics attacking the work’s title, which, according to Defoe, was viewed as “a Breach upon Modesty” and offensive to their ears (p. 7). This may in part explain why, in a second edition published a few months after the first, it was more innocuously entitled

A Treatise Concerning the Use and Abuse of the Marriage Bed

.

But while the original provocative title was designed

1056 words

Citation: Bellamy, Liz. "Conjugal Lewdness". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 22 March 2005 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=5916, accessed 19 March 2024.]

5916 Conjugal Lewdness 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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