mid atlantic - 24 February 2012 11:47 PM

Lovecraft himself probably never much of a sex life ; according to his biographers, he had one unhappy marriage and spent most of his adult life living with an aunt.  Poor Howie.

Then, of course, there was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-1898), better known as Lewis Carroll; mathematician, Anglican clergyman, author and photographer. He never married, and seemed to have had a difficult time in forming relationships with mature women, but he liked to be around young girls. There is a legend that he proposed marriage to Alice Liddell (the inspiration for Alice of “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”) when she was 11. He also liked to photograph pre-adolescent girls, nude or semi-nude, quite often in distinctly erotic poses; but this, by all accounts, was quite a common practise at the time - a naked child was supposed to be symbolic of innocence, or purity, or something. There is some evidence, admittedly circumstantial, that Carroll harboured a lot of suppressed guilt for his “sinful” urges, but he kept snapping away anyway.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll

Those naughty Victorians…...

Theflyingsorcerer.

Theflyingsorcerer - 27 February 2012 11:43 PM

mid atlantic - 24 February 2012 11:47 PM

Lovecraft himself probably never much of a sex life ; according to his biographers, he had one unhappy marriage and spent most of his adult life living with an aunt.  Poor Howie.

Then, of course, there was Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (1832-1898), better known as Lewis Carroll; mathematician, Anglican clergyman, author and photographer. He never married, and seemed to have had a difficult time in forming relationships with mature women, but he liked to be around young girls. There is a legend that he proposed marriage to Alice Liddell (the inspiration for Alice of “Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland”) when she was 11. He also liked to photograph pre-adolescent girls, nude or semi-nude, quite often in distinctly erotic poses; but this, by all accounts, was quite a common practise at the time - a naked child was supposed to be symbolic of innocence, or purity, or something. There is some evidence, admittedly circumstantial, that Carroll harboured a lot of suppressed guilt for his “sinful” urges, but he kept snapping away anyway.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lewis_Carroll

Those naughty Victorians…...

Theflyingsorcerer.

Hate to say it, but Carroll was most definitly a pedophile. Grown men who hang around children more than they must are always suspicious.

I don’t know, M-A.  The etymology is pedo=child, phile=love, but the present meaning tilts strongly to including a sexual component.  There’s plenty of evidence that Carroll liked being around children, but none that he was sexually involved with them.  And, what about male elementary school teachers?  They could get other jobs so “more than they must” doesn’t really excuse them.  Would you say all of them are pedophiles? [I know, from the recent events in Los Angeles, it seems a fair number of pedophiles were hired as teachers.]

Occam

Occam. - 28 February 2012 08:48 PM

I don’t know, M-A.  The etymology is pedo=child, phile=love, but the present meaning tilts strongly to including a sexual component.  There’s plenty of evidence that Carroll liked being around children, but none that he was sexually involved with them.  And, what about male elementary school teachers?  They could get other jobs so “more than they must” doesn’t really excuse them.  Would you say all of them are pedophiles? [I know, from the recent events in Los Angeles, it seems a fair number of pedophiles were hired as teachers.]

Occam

Hmmm true; in Carrol’s case however, the reports of his photos and drawings of small girls would be enough to warrent an investigation. Possessing erotica that depicts a certain person or people is a very reliable indicator of attraction to said person or people.  It could be true that Carroll was attracted to children, but never engaged in any sexual activity with them. In my elementary school, there was only one male teacher.  He was found guilty of pedophaelia later on; I’m probably biased.