# The Most Disgusting Works Ever Written **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [October 15, 2010, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204 "2010-10-15T01:44:51Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Pullet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Pullet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Pullet)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 7:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/101 "2010-10-18T07:33:50Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Incidentally, there is currently a movie going around called [A Serbian Film](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A_Serbian_Film) which might well be the answer to the OP’s question if asked about movies. The wiki description alone will scar your brain. Wow, a movie that is on par with [Visitor Q](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visitor_Q). Didn’t expect that. ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/102 "2010-10-18T12:03:16Z")
[Closer](http://www.amazon.com/Closer-Novel-Cooper-Dennis/dp/080213212X/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1287402017&sr=1-6), by Dennis Cooper. From Wiki: > [@VPRO Television; article in Dutch](#): > > George in Closer, whose room is full of Disney figures, himself becomes the toy of two forty-year-old men obsessed with the beauty of pain and suffering. In Frisk, an ex-friend is writing Julian letters: reports or fantasies of sex and violence. The description of the sexual murdering of young men is a melange of blood and slippery internal organs, too unappetizing to quote. The letters are being sent from a Holland windmill, in its isolation an ideal place for exploring the raw reality of sex, violence and death. I definitely felt kinda ill reading parts of this book. One part has a man giving a young man an anesthetic injection so that the younger guy doesn’t feel anything below the waist. The quote is something along the lines of “…so you don’t feel anything while I take you apart down there.” Also, people eat poop. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Weird\_One](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7bcc69/32.png) [@The\_Weird\_One](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Weird_One)\ **Post date:** [October 18, 2010, 1:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/103 "2010-10-18T13:41:52Z")
> [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](#): > > I won’t deny that I am morbidly fascinated by de Sade but I can’t see any normal person being “aroused” by it since almost all the sex is perverted. That’s why we’re called “perverts.” And when a _lot_ of people have some form of sexual perversion, guess what? It’s normal. ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/104 "2010-10-19T00:19:50Z")
> [@The\_Weird\_One](#): > > That’s why we’re called “perverts.” And when a _lot_ of people have some form of sexual perversion, guess what? It’s normal. It includes pedophilia, rape, torture, and murder. Is that normal? ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 12:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/105 "2010-10-19T00:29:40Z")
“perverted” might have too broad a word to use, but I can ceratinly understand and share **Qin’s** bewilderment about how somebody can be turned on by torture, murder and rape. What the hell is erotic about any of those things? ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/106 "2010-10-19T00:34:43Z")
I’m not really into murder or torture, but reading about rape does it for me. Justine was definitely one of the most erotic texts I’ve ever read. (Take that, overrated Histoire d’O!) ---
**Author:** ![Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/f04885/32.png) [@Qin\_Shi\_Huangdi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Qin_Shi_Huangdi)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/107 "2010-10-19T00:35:59Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > I’m not really into murder or torture, but reading about rape does it for me. Justine was definitely one of the most erotic texts I’ve ever read. (Take that, overrated Histoire d’O!) Erotic in the sense “it had lots and lots and lots of sexual content” or “it was really sexy and arousing”? ---
**Author:** ![Lumpy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lumpy/32/446_2.png) [@Lumpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lumpy)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 12:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/108 "2010-10-19T00:42:45Z")
Wasn’t it DeSade himself who said that since people and their behaviors are products of nature, nothing is “unnatural”? ETA: I haven’t read enough about him to know his full philosophical and religious beliefs, but what little I know suggests the man was almost a proto-Nietzsche. ---
**Author:** ![Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a88e57/32.png) [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fried_Dough_Ho)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/109 "2010-10-19T00:45:29Z")
> [@Pullet](#): > > Wow, a movie that is on par with [Visitor Q](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visitor_Q). Didn’t expect that. Trust me, _Visitor Q_ pales in comparison with _A Serbian Film_. Visitor Q at least has comedic elements to it… ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/110 "2010-10-19T00:46:32Z")
> [@Freudian\_Slit](#): > > I’m not really into murder or torture, but reading about rape does it for me. Justine was definitely one of the most erotic texts I’ve ever read. (Take that, overrated Histoire d’O!) If you don’t mind me asking, do you also get excited hearing about women being raped for real? Is physical and emotional violence to women only exciting to you if it happens to somebody else, or would you think it would be exciting if it happened to you too? Forgive my impertinence, but I’ve heard that a lot of women have rape fantasies and I can’t fathom why. What, exactly, is erotic about it? ---
**Author:** ![Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/a88e57/32.png) [@Fried\_Dough\_Ho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fried_Dough_Ho)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/111 "2010-10-19T00:48:53Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > If you don’t mind me asking, do you also get excited hearing about women being raped for real? Is physical and emotional violence to women only exciting to you if it happens to somebody else, or would you think it would be exciting if it happened to you too? > > Forgive my impertinence, but I’ve heard that a lot of women have rape fantasies and I can’t fathom why. What, exactly, is erotic about it? It is the idea of feeling pleasure at the hands of someone else, in spite of one’s self. ---
**Author:** ![Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 1:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/112 "2010-10-19T01:22:39Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Forgive my impertinence, but I’ve heard that a lot of women have rape fantasies and I can’t fathom why. What, exactly, is erotic about it? Lot’s of people have sexual fantasies about things that they would not want to experience in real life. Men and women, alike. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 1:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/113 "2010-10-19T01:41:14Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > If you don’t mind me asking, do you also get excited hearing about women being raped for real? Is physical and emotional violence to women only exciting to you if it happens to somebody else, or would you think it would be exciting if it happened to you too? > > Forgive my impertinence, but I’ve heard that a lot of women have rape fantasies and I can’t fathom why. What, exactly, is erotic about it? I don’t know. As **Frank** said, it’s common to have fantasies about things you wouldn’t wouldn’t necessarily want to do. Maybe it’s the idea of something dangerous in a controlled setting, like a roller coaster or scary movie? ---
**Author:** ![CutterJohn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/91b2a8/32.png) [@CutterJohn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CutterJohn)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/114 "2010-10-19T04:20:25Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Forgive my impertinence, but I’ve heard that a lot of women have rape fantasies and I can’t fathom why. What, exactly, is erotic about it? BDSM is pretty much a rape/torture/slave fantasy rolled into one leather/vinyl bound activity. I hear its quite popular. They are basically freedom fantasies, being given an excuse/forced to shed societies restraints and values, being given an excuse to be able to rut like wild animals again. Fantasy, of course, since that always ends badly. Hence why a big part of the fantasy, if you ever wander into the darker regions of porn, is that the victim ultimately enjoys it in some manner or is ‘converted’. Its little different than vigilante fantasy that is highly successful in Hollywood. The most disgusting, disturbing book I have read, is [“I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream”](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I_Have_No_Mouth,_and_I_Must_Scream), by Harlan Ellison. Should not be read by a young teenager. \>\_\< ---
**Author:** ![AClockworkMelon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aclockworkmelon/32/10803_2.png) [@AClockworkMelon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AClockworkMelon)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 7:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/115 "2010-10-19T07:48:06Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > If you don’t mind me asking, do you also get excited hearing about women being raped for real? Is physical and emotional violence to women only exciting to you if it happens to somebody else, or would you think it would be exciting if it happened to you too? > > Forgive my impertinence, but I’ve heard that a lot of women have rape fantasies and I can’t fathom why. What, exactly, is erotic about it? We’ve had this talk before- I’ve told you that I, like **Slit** , am turned on by rape scenarios and have acted them out with partners. But I’m pretty horrified when I hear about actual rapes. I think it’s somewhat analogous to my enjoying blowing up buildings and mowing down pedestrians in GTA despite being disgusted by violence IRL. ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 11:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/116 "2010-10-19T11:07:37Z")
According to the Attackclan, GTA was not good for my driving. I thought they’d like going to school in a police cruiser. ---
**Author:** ![Ferret\_Herder](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/e47774/32.png) [@Ferret\_Herder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferret_Herder)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 11:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/117 "2010-10-19T11:15:12Z")
> [@AClockworkMelon](#): > > We’ve had this talk before- I’ve told you that I, like **Slit** , am turned on by rape scenarios and have acted them out with partners. But I’m pretty horrified when I hear about actual rapes. I think it’s somewhat analogous to my enjoying blowing up buildings and mowing down pedestrians in GTA despite being disgusted by violence IRL. Yup. Fantasy sex games versus rape is like the difference between playing a very competitive and fun game of paintball versus being stalked by some psycho with a gun. Night and day. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 11:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/118 "2010-10-19T11:42:48Z")
> [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](#): > > According to the Attackclan, GTA was not good for my driving. I kind of figured that out about the third time I drove off an overpass at maximum speed just because it got me to Asuka faster. “You know…maybe this isn’t the best game to teach good driving habits.” ---
**Author:** ![Martiju](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e8c25b/32.png) [@Martiju](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martiju)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 1:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/119 "2010-10-19T13:28:54Z")
> [@MsWhatsit](#): > > Right, I got that it’s a satire, it’s just that the satire failed completely to work for me. > > I actually thought the movie version did a much better job with the material than the Ellis book did. YMMV, of course. Fair point - but ‘it didn’t work for me’ sounds quite a bit different to ‘devoid of literary merit’. The latter suggests it is a pointless novel and therefore, as the OP might suggest, might as well never have existed. The former is a subjective opinion. I only say because, having read the book about 4 times now at approximately 8 yr intervals, it is near the top of my list of favourite, intelligent and compelling reads, and I notice new aspects to it every time. The film, on the other hand, was a major letdown with an ending that completely subverts the satire in the novel. A classic case of letting Hollywood produce a classical, dull and moralistic tale out of a work of genius - in my opinion! As for the OP, like others I’m wondering what your motive is here. Having read all your posts in this thread, I think you might just be a little too naive still to genuinely grasp that horrific thoughts, feelings and actions are actually part of the real world, and suppressing the expression of such is not only impractical but also would deny the world some great (and, admittedly, not so great) works of art. Just as a final thought OP, why do you think de Sade is remembered (and reproduced) nearly 300 years after his birth? Even more to the point, if and when you do/did read such works, what did it mean to you - did it alter your perception of the world, of other people or of yourself in any way? Pretty key questions if literary criticism is what you’re aiming at, I think. ---
**Author:** ![StusBlues](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dc4da7/32.png) [@StusBlues](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StusBlues)\ **Post date:** [October 19, 2010, 1:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204/120 "2010-10-19T13:36:13Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > “perverted” might have too broad a word to use, but I can ceratinly understand and share **Qin’s** bewilderment about how somebody can be turned on by torture, murder and rape. What the hell is erotic about any of those things? I’ll let the [Red Hot Chili Peppers](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=diXDf7Q-QkU#)answer this. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-disgusting-works-ever-written/557204.md?page=7)