Justine

📘 About This Book

Marquis de Sade verfasste diesen Klassiker der erotischen Weltliteratur während seiner Inhaftierung in der Bastille. De Sade bearbeitete sein Werk mehrfach, und es liegt nunmehr in drei Fassungen vor. Es handelt sich bei diesem Buch um die dritte und längste Version von de Sades Roman.Justine und Juliette sind die Töchter eines bankrotten Kaufmanns. Nach dem Tod der nahezu mittellosen Mutter beschließt Juliette, als Prostituierte ins Bordell zu gehen, verübt eine Reihe von Verbrechen, erwirbt Reichtum und wird glücklich. Justine hingegen wählt den Weg der Tugend, erlebt hierbei eine Reihe von Abenteuern und Missgeschicken und wird fortwährend Verfolgungen und Erniedrigungen ausgesetzt, bis sie - wegen Mordes und Brandstiftung unter Anklage stehend - wieder ihre Schwester trifft, der sie ihr Lebensschicksal erzählt, bevor sie in einem Gewitter vom Blitz erschlagen wird.

📖 Summary

Marquis de Sade penned the foundational classic of transgressive literature, Justine, during his notorious imprisonment in the Bastille. Reflecting the complex genesis of a text the author revised heavily over time, this 2015 edition presents the third and longest version of de Sade's provocative novel. The narrative serves as a sprawling philosophical and narrative exploration centering on two orphaned sisters, Justine and Juliette, whose divergent life paths test the very limits of morality, virtue, and vice in an indifferent universe. Following the bankruptcy of their father and the subsequent death of their destitute mother, the sisters are forced to forge their own paths in a harsh society, setting the stage for a stark allegory of human destiny. The trajectory of the two sisters forms a sharp dichotomy that challenges conventional moral expectations of the era. Juliette, choosing the path of calculated transgression, decides to enter a brothel as a prostitute. Rather than suffering the ruin traditionally prescribed by moralistic tales of the time, Juliette proceeds to commit a series of crimes, accumulating vast wealth and ultimately achieving worldly happiness and security. Her success becomes a biting commentary on the perceived hypocrisy of societal structures, suggesting that cunning and a disregard for virtue are more practical tools for survival and prosperity than honesty and moral uprightness. In stark contrast stands Justine, who steadfastly resolves to walk the narrow and difficult path of virtue. Her commitment to goodness, however, brings her no peace or reward. Instead, Justine experiences a relentless succession of harrowing adventures, severe misadventures, continuous persecutions, and profound humiliations at the hands of corrupt figures who abuse her innocence. Despite her enduring goodness, fate continually conspires against her, driving home the author's bleak philosophical inquiries into whether virtue holds any intrinsic power or protection in a world seemingly governed by cruelty and chaos. Her trials culminate in a dramatic convergence when she stands falsely accused of crimes she did not commit, facing charges of murder and arson, only to cross paths once more with her prosperous and secure sister, Juliette. This edition captures the fullest expression of de Sade's controversial intellectual project. Through the harrowing trials of Justine and the triumphant cynicism of Juliette, the text transcends simple storytelling to engage with deep philosophical provocations regarding power, human nature, and the cosmic order. It remains an essential artifact for readers interested in the history of erotic literature, Enlightenment-era philosophy, and the darker margins of human imagination.

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