Venus in Furs

Venus in Furs (1870) is a novella by Austrian writer Leopold von Sacher-Masoch, first published as part of his proposed collection of short stories, The Legacy of Cain. Sacher-Masoch planned for the collection to detail his worldview, but he only completed the first two sections. The novella follows Severin von Kusiemski’s time with Wanda von Dunajew, a widow he meets at a health resort, and explores The Exploration of Sexual Power Dynamics, The Psychological Negotiation of Power and Submission, and The Influence of Societal Norms on Sexual Behavior. The narrative framing device allows Severin to advise his friend, the narrator, on a dream he had regarding Venus dressed in fur. Venus in Furs led to the development of the terms “sadomasochism,” by Sigmund Freud, and “masochism,” referring to those that derive sexual pleasure from pain. David Ives adapted the story for the stage under the title Venus in Fur in 2010, setting the story in New York City. Roman Polanski adapted Ives’s play into a film in 2012.

This guide uses the Public Domain Books Kindle eBook edition of the text, published May 17, 2012, and translated from German by Fernanda Savage.