Tanya Cheadle, Sexual Progressives: Reimagining Intimacy in Scotland, 1800–1914

Kristin Hay

Research output: Contribution to journalBook/Film/Article reviewpeer-review

Abstract

Within the historiography of fin de siècle social, sexual, and political change, the Scottish experience has received limited scholarly attention. Yet, outwith the cultural centres of London was a vibrant and active network of feminists and socialists, with both national and international connections, whose lives have, until now, been marginalised within the wider historical narrative. Set against this distinctive sociocultural and religious backdrop, key figures within Scotland's radical elite are the central focus of Tanya Cheadle's monograph Sexual Progressives: Reimagining Intimacy in Scotland, 1800–1914. These influential figures transformed the cultural climate of Scotland and beyond, with the goal of redefining sex and striving for ‘a new more “authentic” sexual morality’ (p. 2). Utilising extensive archival sources – from personal letters to publications – Cheadle traces the lives of key sexually progressive Scots in delightful biographic detail. Situating them within the wider context of transnational sociosexual change and examining the interactions between private and public, Cheadle amplifies the distinctiveness and influence of Scottish sexual progressivism in the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth centuries.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)223-225
Number of pages3
JournalInnes Review
Volume72
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 30 Nov 2021

Keywords

  • gender
  • sexuality
  • history
  • scotland

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Tanya Cheadle, Sexual Progressives: Reimagining Intimacy in Scotland, 1800–1914'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this