This project examines eighteenth-century attitudes towards sodomy in the cities of Antwerp, Bruges, Lille and Nantes. The scholarship on homosexuality in the past emphasizes that the eighteenth century marked a significant turning point in the evolving (self-)perception of homo-erotic desires in early modern Europe. Around 1700, a distinctly homosexual subculture developed and from then onwards, homo-erotic desires stemmed from an exclusive sexual preference.
However, these conclusions are based on findings for a limited number of metropolises (Paris, London and Amsterdam). In the field of queer studies, these cities have come to represent eighteenth- century Europe as a whole. My own preparatory research on medium-sized cities such as eighteenth-century Antwerp and Bruges, however, shows that the perception of sodomy was much more continuous. My project further elaborates on this observation. In doing so, I overcome two important limitations of earlier studies. 1) My project transcends national borders and opts for a transnational comparison. 2) My project is not limited to well-studied metropolises but analyses medium-sized cities that were largely ignored in the historiography on eighteenth-century sodomy.
By doing so, I refute one of the greatest paradigms in the field of queer studies, namely the abrupt transition from sodomite to homosexual, and emphasize the enormous variety of individual significances attached to experiencing homoerotic desires by historical actors.