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The Kiss
A History of Passion and Power
Brief Description
This book tells the surprising history of our most intimate gesture: the kiss. Richly illustrated, it explores a millennium of kisses, asking how and why the kiss has retained its power over the centuries, and what it might mean today. From the furtive kisses of fated...
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See moreA richly illustrated historical guide to kissing in art, politics, science and literature
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Description
This book tells the surprising history of our most intimate gesture: the kiss. Richly illustrated, it explores a millennium of kisses, asking how and why the kiss has retained its power over the centuries, and what it might mean today.
From the furtive kisses of fated lovers Heloise and Abelard to The Godfather's 'kiss of death', Katie Barclay shows how the kiss can be romantic, peaceful, transgressive, intimate, erotic and more. There are kisses that are bad ideas, dangerous kisses and funny ones. New kisses are invented and old ones fall out of favour.
While the kiss continues to change, Barclay shows that we kiss fewer people, and less often, than we used to. The Kiss reveals a cultural inheritance transmitted in story and song, art and literature, and through the everyday kisses that we receive from our parents, or reserve for our lovers; when we kiss, we kiss with the weight of history.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781836392613
Publisher: Reaktion Books
Format: Hardback
Date Published: 01 August 2026
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Reaktion Books
Illustration: 34 illustrations, 20 in colour
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Width: 138.0mm
Height: 216.0mm
Weight: 0g
Pages: 240
About the Author
Katie Barclay is a historian of love and relationships, who has published widely in the field of the history of emotions, gender history, law and family life. She is the author of seven books, including Loneliness in World History (2025). She is Professor of History at Macquarie University, Sydney.
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