Los fuegos de la lujuria

Our idea of medieval sex is full of myths, from the chastity belt to the right of seigneur. In this work the author builds, from exquisite attention to documentary sources, a rich and fascinating panorama of sex in the Middle Ages. Thus, some men decided to castrate themselves so as not to go to hell, and not all monasteries were a haven of abstinence. For Alfonso X the Wise's Siete Partidas, incest went beyond blood ties, and the Parliament of Paris sentenced a sow to flames for allegedly inciting zoophilic practices. Other aspects of medieval sex are familiar to us. Were relationships before marriage so frowned upon? How were rapes and child abuse dealt with? Were women merely passive subjects? What consideration received homosexual relations? Did non-binary individuals exist in the Middle Ages? By exploring her sexual life, Katherine Harvey gives voice back to the common people -and not so common- of the Middle Ages and allows us to know some of her most personal experiences. The Fires of Lust is an intimate and magnificent journey into an unknown Middle Ages.