Product Description

In 1928, Georges Bataille published this first novel under a pseudonym, a legendary shocker that uncovers the dark side of the erotic by means of forbidden obsessive fantasies of excess and sexual extremes. A classic of pornographic literature, Story of the Eye finds the parallels in Sade and Nietzsche and in the investigations of contemporary psychology; it also forecasts Bataille's own theories of ecstasy, death and transgression which he developed in later work.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #29072 in Books
• Published on: 2001-01-01
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 104 pages

Amazon.com Review
Only Georges Bataille could write, of an eyeball removed from a corpse, that "the caress of the eye over the skin is so utterly, so extraordinarily gentle, and the sensation is so bizarre that it has something of a rooster's horrible crowing." Bataille has been called a "metaphysician of evil," specializing in blasphemy, profanation, and horror. Story of the Eye, written in 1928, is his best-known work; it is unashamedly surrealistic, both disgusting and fascinating, and packed with seemingly endless violations. It's something of an underground classic, rediscovered by each new generation. Most recently, the Icelandic pop singer Björk Guðdmundsdóttir cites Story of the Eye as a major inspiration: she made a music video that alludes to Bataille's erotic uses of eggs, and she plans to read an excerpt for an album. Warning: Story of the Eye is graphically sexual, and is only for adults who are not easily offended.

Language Notes
Text: English, French (translation)

Customer Reviews

So different and interesting read
This is the strangest book I have ever read. But I am learning now as a grown women that not every thing in a is about Monsters or happy endings. This is a dark and disturbing book that is very thought prevoking. I feel as though I am reading a secret diary and I love it. Makes me look at me and how society views sexuality. Yes, the main charactors are a little crazy but it is a erotic fantasy many of us would like to visit if only for an afternoon. PS What's up with the eggs???

Great First Novel
This was Bataille's first novel and it is the first novel by Bataille that I've read. It was recommended to me by a friend as well as Amazon.com after I informed them both that I had read Venus in Furs, which I love. Initially I found Bataille's open pornographic style a bit surprising and it took me while to adjust. Because of this I missed the literary significance in the first few chapters. However, once I adjusted I saw what wonderful modern scenes he was creating, and how complete they were. All I can do is offer a panegyric for this book, which I would recommend to anyone interested in sexual deviance.

Haunting Endeavor Plunging Across Literary Boundaries (featuring medicore storytelling)
Well, chances are probably good that if you're reading this then you've heard of the classic erotic Story of the Eye. It's sheer outrageous absurdity in the form of sensation overload. Pornographic endeavors of the most grotesque, extraordinary, and perverse leads the narrative (i. e. bulls and eggs) and drives the main themes straight to the point. Mr. Bataille's work is mostly driven on his philosophy that, like de Sade, focuses on violence, death, isolation, irrationality versus rationality (the will to life of Schoepenhauer, and the spirit of Nietzsche) and of course passion (through sex and desire). At times the book was arousing, at times disgusting, but inevitably the story becomes so numbing that I lost sense of my own human characteristics. If that sounds like a stretch to you, read the book and see what you think. This book is a shocker that disables social and literary boundaries, though the form of the book (13(?) chapters, linear narrative) is only clouded over by some poor narration. For fans of Henry Miller, Marquis de Sade, Anais Nin's erotica, and the Story of O, check this out, but be weary that this book is more meta than you might care for.