A provocative rediscovery that changes how we read desire: The Erotic Motive in Literature unlocks the hidden currents of longing that drive great works of art. Albert Mordell s classic study maps the subtle architecture of eroticism across centuries of fiction and poetry. With keen psychological insight and rigorous literary criticism, Mordell traces how erotic themes in literature shape character, plot, symbol, and moral imagination from veiled allusions in the canon to explicit treatments that scandalized earlier readers. This book explores literature and sexuality not as sensationalism but as a vital engine of narrative and aesthetic power, offering readers a lucid historical literary analysis and a nuanced psychology of literature. Long unavailable and quietly influential, this Albert Mordell book resurfaces in a finely restored Alpha Editions volume. This edition has been revived from decades out of print, carefully restored for today s and future generations, and presented as more than a reprint a collector s item and cultural treasure for classic literature collectors and curious newcomers alike. Whether you re drawn to erotic literature analysis, literary theory, or the intersections of literature and desire, this edited and annotated release illuminates erotic motive study, eroticism in art, and classic literary critique with clarity and passion. Essential for students, scholars, and readers eager to confront how desire shapes stories, thought, and history.