ABSTRACT
The publication of Swinburne’s notorious Poems and Ballads in 1866 was one of the most sensational literary scandals of the nineteenth century. Condemned for its celebration of extreme sexual desire and its exploration of subjects guaranteed to outrage Victorian sensibilities, such as homosexuality, the collection was quickly withdrawn by its publisher over fears of prosecution. Biographical studies have since portrayed Swinburne as easily led or possibly innocent in matters of public taste. However, by resurveying the circumstances around the publication of Poems and Ballads, this chapter proposes that the poet was well aware of the furor his work would cause and that he encouraged, even orchestrated it. Taking note of his masochistic tendencies and analyzing the poet’s rhetoric in his aggressive defense of his work, Notes on Poems and Reviews, Swinburne is depicted as attempting to transfer a dionysiac fervor to his critics to provoke a savage and prolonged critical attack. In positioning Poems and Ballads as a challenge to contemporary political and social concerns over pornography, Swinburne is also shown as offering himself up as a sacrificial victim for public consumption while ensuring his place in literary history.
