Primitive Marriage: Victorian Anthropology, the Novel, and Sexual Modernity by Kathy Alexis (review).

"Primitive Marriage: Victorian Anthropology, the Novel, and Sexual Modernity" by Kathy Alexis Psomiades explores how Victorian anthropology influenced the marriage plot in Victorian novels. The book argues that anthropological theories of marriage and kinship, such as those by Henry Maine, Edward Tylor, and John McLennan, shaped the narrative structure and themes of novels published after the mid-1860s. These novels, referred to as "post-anthropological novels," aimed to theorize sexual modernity and were deeply engaged in the Victorian anthropological project. The book's chapters analyze specific novels by authors such as Anthony Trollope, George Eliot, and Thomas Hardy, examining how they incorporated anthropological ideas into their narratives. The author cautions that while Victorian anthropology opened possibilities for anti-institutional erotics, it could also be harnessed by biopolitical regimes like eugenics. Overall, the book provides a nuanced understanding of how Victorian anthropology shaped Victorian literature and offers insights into the intersections of sexuality, gender, and power in the Victorian era. [Extracted from the article]