Claiming that a story centering around a spanking fetish is serious literature is a bit like claiming one subscribes to Playboy for the articles. The claim is bound to be met with derisive snorts and skeptical incredulity.

Yet, I'll have to submit myself to the suspicious chuckles in order to review Robert Coover's Spanking the Maid, for I must make the claim that this book is more than erotica and that its purpose goes beyond the stroking of reader fantasies. No, Coover has something more to say than just that.

Oh wait, I'm supposed to warn you here. This is part of a Very Sordid Write-Off and there may be things in this review that some people find offensive.

Spanking the Maid is so replete with metaphors and symbolism that it would be a high school English teacher's wet dream if it weren't for the fact that the instruments of the metaphor are S&M scenarios, erections, and bloody fetuses.

So what is Coover talking about in the novel?

Assuming the Position

On the surface, it is a story about a maid and a master. Neither of them have names nor do we even know what they look like. The maid is striving to achieve perfection as defined by the master and "the manuals." Every time she makes an error--no matter how slight, she backs out of the room and begins the task again.

When the master finds fault with her, he punishes her. He is frustrated with her, frustrated with her not only because she is imperfect, but because she cannot understand how difficult his job is and how he can never let the slightest flaw go uncorrected--even when he is tired and would rather let her slip into carelessness.

Yet, the more he punishes her, the worse she becomes at her tasks. She becomes increasingly sloppy, clumsy, and forgetful. Eventually the care for her task and the love of her work lifts from her and she feels freer and more relaxed even as the intensity of punishments increase.

As the maid becomes more free, the master becomes more tied down. The "manuals" are never defined in the novella--Coover is not about to make anything about this novella easy--but they bind the master to perform certain punishments in certain ways according to the offense. He is dogmatic about their delivery.

Interwoven in the strivings of the maid and the punishments of the master are other recurring elements. The garden is always right outside the window, a garden that occupies their thoughts but that they seem unable to reach for most of the novel. The master has recurring dreams about his teachers and his schooldays. The maid is constantly finding horrifying and frighteningly inappropriate objects in the master's bed.

Dropping the Pants

It is superficial, though, to say that the novella is about what I've just described in the above paragraphs. That is simply the plot--the device used to deliver the message that Coover really wants to communicate.

Coover is exploring themes of creation and destruction, of life and death, and of worship and devotion. It is a story of obsession and obligation.

It is not a book that provides answers to the questions it raises--questions about how a creator interacts with his creation, how we change with each cycle of our life even as we strive to improve rather than change, how one overcomes tedium and despair in the act of creation, and whether there is any meaning to striving.

I found myself fascinated by the relationships and how each person's actions led to changes in the other. The maid is worshipful and is intensely focused on doing her task exactly right. She has been taught that her role is part of a higher purpose. She repeats to herself her instructions, aware that no detail or movement is too small to escape care:

She enters, deliberately, gravely, without affectation, circumspect in her motions (as she's been taught), not stamping too loud, nor dragging her legs after her, but advancing sedately, discreetly, glancing briefly at the empty, rumpled bed, the cast-off nightclothes. She hesitates. No. Again. She enters. Deliberately and gravely, without affectation, not stamping too loud, nor dragging her legs after her, not marching as if leading a dance, not keeping time with her head and hands, nor staring or turning her head either one way or the other, but advancing sedately and discreetly through the door, across the polished floor, past the empty rumpled bed and cast-off nightclothes (not glancing, that's better), to the tall curtains along the far wall. As she's been taught. Now, with a humble yet authoritative gesture, she draws the curtains open." (page 9).

Even the slightest glance out of place was enough to cause her to back up and try again--in the beginning. She strives for perfection and appreciates her master for teaching her the duties of her role and her proper place in society and in their relationship--for "inventing her soul."

Yet as the cycles continue (and Coover is deliberately vague about whether these cycles are hours, days, weeks, years, or centuries), the maid becomes more sloppy. Her errors become more extreme and obvious. The reader starts to question whether she is searching for ways to err, though her confusion makes one doubt that. Rather, the pursuit of perfection seems to have morphed into the pursuit of a role that will give both maid and master a place. Achieving that elusive perfection would displace both of them.

In one intense scene, the master punishes her with a series of instruments--though, again, Coover forces you to question whether this is one long punishment or whether they have all become melded in the minds of the participants--until he finally feels fatigued and his arm is tired. She objects that he must stop soon:

There is a curious strained expression on her face, flushed like her behind and wet with tears. "Sir, if you...if you don't stop--" "What? WHAT-?!" "You--you won't know what to do next!"

She becomes concerned about preserving their roles and he begins to think that all choice is an illusion, that he is as enslaved as she is.

Selecting an Instrument

Coover is clever in his presentation of this novel. He uses the most of every tool at his disposal. He avoids overdefinition and purposely leaves large gaps in the novel, gaps that must be filled by the reader. The reader must try to enter the mind of the author, he does not merely masturbate in view of readers--he forces them to interpret.

Nor is this book simply the mental equivalent of a one-night-stand. Though the text is sparse and the novella a mere 102 pages, there is much to rediscover through slow, deliberate acquaintance.

So where are the pictures?

I claimed at the beginning of this review that Spanking the Maid is not simply erotica, that it merely uses an erotic setting and subject to address themes that are universal.

I'll offer another proof--this book simply doesn't work as erotica and must be counted as a failure if pornography is its purpose.

A person looking for one-handed reading is destined to disappointment and will likely write Coover off as a tease. He approaches climactic situations several times only to back away from them. The repetition and circular approach can frustrate the person looking for a build-up to be resolved. Plus, Coover throws in unexpected imagery at surprising intervals, imagery which is bound to wilt most thoughts of pleasure.

Coover repeatedly says that neither master nor maid enjoy the punishments. I question whether someone into this particular fetish would identify with the denial of hedonistic impulses on the part of either party. One would hope that people do not indulge in a fetish unless there is some enjoyment on the parts of at least one of the parties.

There is also a lack of specific descriptions or appeal to the visual aspects of sexuality. Indeed, except for the master's erections when he wakes and some of the more questionable objects found in the bed, there is no mention of sex. Even the reference to the maid's posterior is made in circumspect terms that deny sexuality. It is her "sit-me-down" or her "behind." Very occasionally, the master will survey stripes on her "buttocks," but that is as coarse a description as the reader will get.

Thank you, sir, may I have another?

Critics have called this book, written in 1982, "one of Coover's most perfectly executed works." This is a fairly impressive claim considering he has won the William Faulkner award and his other books have met with critical acclaim.

Perhaps one of the reasons this book is not widely discussed in literary circles (at least, I've never seen it on a list of recommended reading) is that its subject will always make one suspicious. Indeed, I have kept the book tucked away in my book bag and refused to bring it out in the usual places where I read. Who wants to be defensive about one's reading materials or explain why one is reading a book about spanking a maid?

So why did I read this book?

It's a Very Sordid Write-Off

Epinions has many books of mature (*ahem*) titles that draw traffic to the site. Many of these books have gone unreviewed for a long time. As CLs, Grace and I wondered whether we should really be encouraging people to read books on drug manufacture, pornography, and incest. Yet, there were many titles that while racy in title would certainly add value to Epinions by having reviews in the database.

Thus this write-off was born. And who better to name the write-off after than a member who has a reputation for walking on the wild side? Of course, anyone who takes the time to look past first appearances will find a person whose caustic wit is employed in causes he is passionate about. It doesn't take long to discover that Ken is one of those solid folks who make excellent leaders even while making his enemies quiver.

Others joining in this write-off--hosted by Petra--are:

Gracef, Miselainis, Sleeper54, Jenb123, quasar, James23, Jankp, Lisa_J and Tiffy0380 Jgibson2, Xiphoid, Lyagushka ,Redlass, Erinrounds, Hypotenuse jnbmoore, Lattechick

I'm sure you'll find many entertaining reviews if you look them up!

Recommended: No