ABSTRACT
Popular culture is often thought of as ‘low’ – created and consumed by people of low income, low status, low education, and, it is often implied, low morals. Sex also tends to be thought of as ‘low’ – involving the lower body and base desires.1 This correlation leads to the assumption that cultural discourses about sexuality are naturally popular or socially ‘low.’ But what role did the depiction of sexual activity play in the popular culture of Western Europe in the sixteenth century? More specifically, was the literary representation of sexual acts more common in popular or elite culture? Though the distinction between classical and popular culture was crucial in the sixteenth century, the division was not absolute. Social and educational elites often participated in both cultures, and the two cultures were somewhat permeable, though the transmission tended to be in one direction, from high to low.2 Popular culture adopted ideas, motifs, characters, and other material from high culture, whereas high culture was increasingly concerned to differentiate itself from the culture of the common people.
