Lisa Z. Sigel

 International Exposure demonstrates the wealth of desires woven into the fabric of European history: desires about empire and nation, about self and other, about plenty and dearth. By documenting the diverse meanings of pornography, senior scholars from across disciplines show the ways that sexuality became central to the individual, to the nation, and to the transnational character of modern society.

How did concepts of sex & gender, race & class, home & empire develop in Victorian society? Here, Sigel charts the evolution of these ideas through the medium of pornography (PN). She details its prod'n., dist'n., & cons'n. in Great Britain between Waterloo & WWI. Sigel examines how this medium changed over time to explore key questions: How did Brit. society define PN? Who had access to it? What did people make of its ideas? And how did these messages affect sexual & social dynamics? PN offered people a way to make sense of sexuality & its relationship to the world during the transition of Brit. society from an era of radical politics to one of consumer pleasures. Illustrated with literary & visual materials drawn from public & private collections.