Muscle in Literature

[musclehabilles]

This question is mainly for other bibliophiles in the forum (we can be myophiles, too!): Does anyone have any books or novels where one or more men are described--even briefly--as being muscular or in shape? I've stumbled upon one or two in the books I've read, so I thought I'd share this idea with the rest of you. I was thinking that, perhaps, we could post these excerpts (complete with the novel's title).

Let me know what you think.

[RadRx]

What about Tom (Daisy's husband) from 'The Great Gatsby?' I seem to recall a rather detailed description of his athletic physique in riding attire from that book.

[musclehabilles]

Sadly, I don't remember that scene in the book. But then, I read it about five years ago. However, if you've got the book, then by all means, let's see the excerpt!

Here's one such excerpt from the book The X-Files: Goblins, page 149. It's not much, but it's a start.

"[...] and despite the wind and chill, he was in shirtsleeves and jeans. Most of him was lean, but his arms were hugely muscled, all out of proportion to the rest of him."

[ts1976]

Now, I don't know if the genre can be deemed literature with a capital L, or whether it would appeal to most here, but there's always romance novels . The main male characters are almost always muscular, or at least fit. And then there's erotic romance, where the man is almost always hung, as well.

Two authors that immediately come to mind are Sherri L. King and Angela Knight, who have been published at [COLOR=Red]Ellora's Cave[/COLOR], which is a good place start if anyone is interested. E-books are less expensive than paper ones, so if you don't like what you've read, it's not so bad.

Also, gay romantic erotica has been making inroads into the market during the past year or so. I don't know how it would read to an actual gay man, though, as the books are geared towards women.

If anyone wants suggestions, please feel free to ask.

[CelticMuscle]

Around the World in Eighty Days (1872)

Passepartout was a true Parisian of Paris. Since he had abandoned his own country for England, taking service as a valet, he had in vain searched for a master after his own heart. Passepartout was by no means one of those pert dunces depicted by Moliere with a bold gaze and a nose held high in the air; he was an honest fellow, with a pleasant face, lips a trifle protruding, soft-mannered and serviceable, with a good round head, such as one likes to see on the shoulders of a friend. His eyes were blue, his complexion rubicund, his figure almost portly and well-built, his body muscular, and his physical powers fully developed by the exercises of his younger days. His brown hair was somewhat tumbled; for, while the ancient sculptors are said to have known eighteen methods of arranging Minerva's tresses, Passepartout was familiar with but one of dressing his own: three strokes of a large-tooth comb completed his toilet.

Journey to the Centre of the Earth (1874?)

He was conversing in the Danish language with a tall man, of robust build. This fine fellow must have been possessed of great strength. His eyes, set in a large and ingenuous face, seemed to me very intelligent; they were of a dreamy sea-blue. Long hair, which would have been called red even in England, fell in long meshes upon his broad shoulders. The movements of this native were lithe and supple; but he made little use of his arms in speaking, like a man who knew nothing or cared nothing about the language of gestures. His whole appearance bespoke perfect calmness and self-possession, not indolence but tranquillity. It was felt at once that he would be beholden to nobody, that he worked for his own convenience, and that nothing in this world could astonish or disturb his philosophic calmness.

A description of Hans, the traveller's guide

[koral]

as pointed out to me by my little (i mean it) bro the spy high book Edward Red has two bodyguards in it. they were given growth hormones eventually ending up 9 feet tall muscular beyond belief. there are about ten full pages in the book at different points that describe them and their strength. the book is by AJ BUTCHER

[tnachiker]

I read it as a teenager, as stated earlier, it doesn't qualify as great Literature, but in Tom Clancy's The Sum of All Fears, Clancy spends several pages introducing the Lakota tribesman who is helping the bomb makers. He is a massive man and Clancy goes to some lengths in describing his strength and musculature.

[deetrakt]

The Jack Reacher thrillers by Lee Child feature a fair amount of muscle (starting with the ex-Army MP title hero) and much violence as well as very good writing and plotting. In Persuader, one of the villains Reacher tackles is a huge, jacked bodybuilder/killer (something like 6'8" and 350 lbs. if memory serves).

[nypup2train]

CelticMuscle's Jules Verne quotes reminded me (it's a very roundabout sort of trip, inside my brain... not unlike driving the county routes in MA state, for the few who've suffered that particular Rotary Hell) ...indirectly, reminded me of another Literary(tm) example:

In "A Passage To India" by E. M. Forster, the lead characters (for reasons that completely escape me) find themselves attending legal proceedings at a regional Indian court. The narrator, in setting this scene, embarks on quite a lengthy descriptive exploration of the couthouse, which eventually finds its way to an court worker who's been entrusted the critical job of manually fanning... either the justice/magistrate or the general assemblage, I forget which... with a large, low-tech fan-on-a-pole.

If I recall correctly (I'm reaching back to High School here and I'm 31 now, so...), the description of the fan-operator was QUITE detailed, taking pains to mention that he was quite tall, broad-shouldered and well-muscled, apparently not in keeping with expectations of the local populace.

Sadly, I best remember this because, in the 1964 film adaptation of the book, the character (or set-dressing) remained... but he appeared as a conspicuously old-and-frail Indian man, not the virile he-man described in the book.

Apparently, I was protoqueer enough 14 years ago -- and I KNOW I was already well aware of my muscle... "curiosity", whateve it meant. And the description was at least intriguing enough that I was looking forward to that scene -- I remember feeling inconsolably wounded by that particular exercise of directorial license. (Not like the movie OR the book held much else to titillate horny young cockhounds, of EITHER sex...)


..Hey, whadya know? I just pulled up Amazon's listing for the novel, and tried out their "Search inside" feature. Found it!

I'm not even going to TEMPT Amazon's lawyers to feed on my tender marrow, so no reposting the fruits of my search here (plus I'd have to retype from the page image), but if you follow the link and choose "Search Inside", then after logging in:

• Search for: - punkah (the name of the fan-contraption)
• Choose: - p. 241 (I think it's the third hit)

[charliepanayi]

The Tom Wolfe novels The Bonfire of the Vanities and A Man In Full have brief references to guys' muscular physiques at certain points in them.

[CelticMuscle]

If I may use the following examples:

Example 1: Passepartout from "Around the World in Eighty Days"

Text Extract:

Passepartout was a true Parisian of Paris. Since he had abandoned his own country for England, taking service as a valet, he had in vain searched for a master after his own heart. Passepartout was by no means one of those pert dunces depicted by Moliere with a bold gaze and a nose held high in the air; he was an honest fellow, with a pleasant face, lips a trifle protruding, soft-mannered and serviceable, with a good round head, such as one likes to see on the shoulders of a friend. His eyes were blue, his complexion rubicund, his figure almost portly and well-built, his body muscular, and his physical powers fully developed by the exercises of his younger days. His brown hair was somewhat tumbled; for, while the ancient sculptors are said to have known eighteen methods of arranging Minerva's tresses, Passepartout was familiar with but one of dressing his own: three strokes of a large-tooth comb completed his toilet.

Movie appearances by:

Jackie Chan (2004)
http://www.hollywoodjesus.com/movie/around_world/07.jpg

Catinflas (1956)
http://www.threemoviebuffs.com/miscr...ic_80days1.jpg

Rigadon (1983)
http://www.cjetech.co.uk/watched_it/willyfog3.jpg

[CelticMuscle]

Example 2: Porthos from "The Three Musketeers"

Text Extract:

?He (Captain Treville) was of middle height; but his person was so admirably shaped and so well proportioned that more than once in his struggles with Porthos he had overcome the giant whose physical strength was proverbial among the Musketeers?

Movie Appearances by:

Steven Spiers (2001)
http://images.allmoviephoto.com/2001...keteer_002.jpg

Oliver Platt (1993)
http://www.cyberkender.com/Puns/porthos.jpg

Porthos (1986)
http://www.muskehounds.com/jo_porthos.jpg

[CelticMuscle]

Example 3: Hercules

Text Extract

OGG file from Wikipedia

Movie Appearances by:

Paul Telfer (2003)
http://paultelfer.facesgh.com/images...e/hercmov3.jpg

Kevin Sorbo (1995)
http://sorbosanctuary.tripod.com/god-small-crop.jpg

Steve Reeves (1959)
http://www.briansdriveintheater.com/.../sreeves91.jpg

Okay, so perhaps they got it right with Hercules, but you get the general idea?

[scott_dine]

I have this book from when I was a teen and there is a very vivid description. This boy uses a spell to get mega muscles but it turns out wrong. Its one of those Pick Your Path books.

When the darkness clears from your eyes and mind, you look around with curiosity.A hand -A large powerful hand-moves in front of your face and smoothes back your hair. With a terrible sense of shock, you realize that its YOUR hand. Fearfully, you look at the rest of your body. Powerful, gigantic muscles ripple beneath your skin. Thighs and legs the size of small trees support your massive body. Powewrful muscles bulge with every breath. Even your hair feels tough.

And there is a picture of the character that just was described on the page beside it.

[Otaru_grower]

scott, which Choose Your Own Adventure book was that? I'd be really curious as I read those voraciously in grade school...

[scott_dine]

Originally Posted by Otaru_grower

scott, which Choose Your Own Adventure book was that? I'd be really curious as I read those voraciously in grade school...

An Endless Quest Book:

Revenge of the Rainbow Dragons by Rose Estes.

Its from 1983 I believe.

[cozman]

Taken from http://www.fictionbook.ru/author/puz...#TOC_id2674214

Chapter 1

"The groom, Carlo Rizzi, was a half-breed, born of a Sicilian father and the North Italian mother from whom he had inherited his blond hair and blue eyes."

"She thought him incredibly handsome. Carlo Rizzi had worked in the open desert air while very young? heavy laborer?s work. Now he had tremendous forearms and his shoulders bulged the jacket of his tux. He basked in the adoring eyes of his bride and filled her glass with wine."

Chapter 16

"He could feel Connie watching his back and so he flexed his muscles as he reached for the plate of sweet buns on the other side of the table. He?d just polished off ham and eggs but he was a big man and needed a big breakfast. He was pleased with the picture he knew he presented to his wife. Not the usual greasy dark guinzo husband but crew-cut blond, huge golden-haired forearms and broad shoulders and thin waist. And he knew he was physically stronger than any of those so-called hard guys that worked for the family. Guys like Clemenza, Tessio, Rocco Lampone, and that guy Paulie that somebody had knocked off. He wondered what the story was about that. Then for some reason he thought about Sonny. Man to man he could take Sonny, he thought . . ."

[musclehabilles]

It seems like the books I've read aren't as scenic as I had previously believed. *L* Y'all've got some good stuff.

Either way, here's another excerpt, from Stargate: Rebellion, page 153:

"From the looks of his escort, some of ther mercs hadn't bothered to bring civilian clothes with them. One had a gaudily patterned Hawaiian shirt that hung around him like a tent. Another wore a white shirt that strained over his shoulders and had to be left unbuttoned because it wouldn't stretch across his beefy chest."

[musclemike05]

Uncanny - I was thinking of posting a query on the same lines.

Michael Cunnigham's Flesh & Blood, one of the main characters is gay, and there are repeated references to him bulking up and to the bulked body he attains.

It's also one excellent book.

[arpeejay]

Not great literature but:

Chrome. By George Nader. Jove Pubns (July 1979) ISBN 0515048461

[Review at Amazon.com:]
This book is an excellent example of homosexuality in a science fiction setting. The characters are complex and believable for such a futuristic setting. The sexual encounters are more romantic than graphic, but still very erotic. Nader's style of writing is evocative and the plot moves along at a fast pace. It will keep you guessing about the outcome right to the last page. An excellent book.

Nader must have been quite a character himself. Here's a review from Imdb.com:

Born in Pasadena, California, George Nader became interested in acting while still in school and appeared in several productions at the Pasadena Playhouse. This led to several small parts in movies before earning the lead role in the infamous 3D thriller Robot Monster (1953). The movie was bad but profitable, and Nader soon had a contract with Universal Pictures. Unfortunately, the studio already had on its roster such good-looking and athletic actors as Rock Hudson, Tony Curtis and Jeff Chandler, so Nader often found himself being cast in their leftovers, usually playing parts that emphasized his "beefcake" appeal (at 6'1" and 180 pounds, Nader had the kind of physique fan magazines drooled over, and unlike many of his colleagues, he didn't shave his chest)/ However, he did enjoy a few good years in the mid-1950s, turning in a very good performance in Away All Boats (1956) before his career began to decline. He tried his hand at three TV series and then relocated to Europe, where he enjoyed a modest revival in the late 1960s starring as "Jerry Cotton" in a series of West German films.

When you search his name in Amazon, you'll also come up with Palm Springs Babylon. One can only imagine!

xoxo

Richard

[Lover_Boy]

[COLOR=red]....A lot of here books revolve around sex, murder, and intrigue. They're a step above romance novels; saved only by the fact that she is an excellent writer and developes her stories an characters well.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=#ff0000][/COLOR]
[COLOR=#ff0000]There are always at least two impossibly hot men in her novels; always described in great detail. The women are too, for those guys here that are straight.[/COLOR]
[COLOR=#ff0000][/COLOR]
[COLOR=#ff0000]Ciao,[/COLOR]
[COLOR=#ff0000][/COLOR]
[COLOR=#ff0000]L_B[/COLOR]

[lead guitarist]

Harry Crews wrote a novel called "Body", which was about female bodybuilders, but there were muscle guys in there too. There had to be, given the setting. I read it a long time ago, but I do remember that there was a trainer called "Russell Muscle".

[beeflover2001]

"Platte River," a collection of short stories by Rick Bass has at two strength-related stories. Here's a brief description from the book at amazon.com:
"Platte River"

"Field Events" introduces Paul Bunyan-sized A.C., whose muscular power moves him to dance in a field with a cow on his back. His mute need for love leads him to join the Iron family, among whom he learns to throw the discus--and much more.

The protagonist of the title story is Harley, an aging former linebacker, whose visit with a former college buddy gives him a glimpse of the limitations of his body and of the elusiveness of human connection.

If I recall, the stories are kind of depressing, although "Field Events" does have a bunch of strength feats.

[Bull]

In "Deliverance" there is a nice description of the character that Burt Reynolds played in the movie; the veins in his abs, and so forth. It stuck in my mind after all these years, so it must be pretty vivid.

In "The Lord of the Rings," Boromir is described as being quite the hunk, but it is more cumulative than any single memorable passage. For example:

"He picked up the hobbit. 'Cling to my back! I shall need my arms.' Pippin marveled at his strength, seeing the passage that he had already forced with no other tool than his great limbs."

You would think that Little John in "Robin Hood" would have quite a description, but in the classic version by Howard Pyle, this is it:

"Robin thought that he had never seen a lustier or a stouter man. Tall was Robin, but taller was the stranger by a head and a neck, for he was seven feet in height. Broad was Robin across the shoulders, but broader was the stranger by twice the breadth of a palm, while he measured at least an ell around the waist."

[CelticMuscle]

I mean, how on earth could we have gone and forgotten him of all people!

a tall man, mightily shouldered and deep of chest, with a massive corded neck and heavily muscled limbs. He was clad in silk and velvet, with the royal lions of Aquilonia worked in gold upon his rich jupon, and the crown of Aquilonia shone on his square-cut black mane; but the great sword at his side seemed more natural to him than the regal accouterments. His brow was low and broad, his eyes a volcanic blue that smoldered as if with some inner fire. His dark, scarred, almost sinister face was that of a fighting-man, and his velvet garments could not conceal the hard, dangerous lines of his limbs

Who am I talking about? Why only Conan the Barbarian of course!

http://www.hillcity-comics.com/toys/...ave2_conan.jpg

[RPM]

I was about to say I don't recall any, when I suddenly remembered an old series I believe was titled Sugar Creek Gang. I think it had something like 40 books, and while the majority of it was kids getting into trouble and solving mysteries, one of the kid's dads was a farmer and his small references were always about his ropey muscular build and the power he exuded and the feats of strength he just casually did on a daily basis. I think I have the book boxed up somewhere with my other kiddie stuff, maybe I'll dig through a bit. 40 is a lot to search though, so I can't promise any good quotes I'm afraid

[buffdude4747]

In the book Brian's Song there are a couple of descriptions of muscle-bound football players on pages
-12
-32

[dcpa22]

Sci/Fi and Fantasy novels abound in muscular heroes and villains with lots of descriptions.
Don't have the book to quote it but (forgetting first name) Bakker's Prince of Nothing series has a couple characters that just ripple with muscle...

[loopy]

The Wheel of time series by Robert Jordan. Lots of male characters. The most muscular probably being Perrin, one of the main characters, who is a blacksmith.

[Doctor9]

Now...I wish I could dig up this book - but I think it is one of the ones that got purged during my last move.

"Singularity" - it was a high-school level sci-fi book - twin brothers staying at their uncle's farm for the summer - one twin is althetic, and pretty built, from the text descriptions, the other pudgy,unathletic.

What made it interesting, is that on the farm there is something like a singularity-generated wormhole. Within certain distance, time flow is accellerated - so 1 year can pass within about 8 hours normal time, if memory serves.

Well, the unathletic one decides he wants to be different from his twin, so he decides to age himself by one year - excercising, eating well (Keep food ouside the temporal accelleration perimiter - it's only going to be there 3 hours.

They spent a fair amount of time describing how he felt during all this - and we also get a good description of him after.

I had read it in High School - then spend a number of years trying to remember the title so I could buy it - eventually found it.

Always wished I could accelerate time like that - nice way to squeeze a 1-hour workkout into about 3 seconds

Doctor9

[AT2000]

That description of the virile punka-wallah has stuck in my mind over the years as well. Forster sets up the descriiption by noting that Nature would occasionally demonstrate its disdain for the idea of class by "hurling out a god" amid the usually scrawny population of India's poor..

Another conspicuous example of great attention to detail being paid to the idea of masculine strength and musculature can be found throughout Jack London's book: Seawolf - particularly regarding the character of Wolf Larson.

Here's a link to a passage that demonstrate what I mean. Click on Chapter number nine.

http://www.bibliomania.com/0/0/35/74/frameset.html

A.T.

Originally Posted by nypup2train

CelticMuscle's Jules Verne quotes reminded me (it's a very roundabout sort of trip, inside my brain... not unlike driving the county routes in MA state, for the few who've suffered that particular Rotary Hell) ...indirectly, reminded me of another Literary(tm) example:

In "A Passage To India" by E. M. Forster, the lead characters (for reasons that completely escape me) find themselves attending legal proceedings at a regional Indian court. The narrator, in setting this scene, embarks on quite a lengthy descriptive exploration of the couthouse, which eventually finds its way to an court worker who's been entrusted the critical job of manually fanning... either the justice/magistrate or the general assemblage, I forget which... with a large, low-tech fan-on-a-pole.

If I recall correctly (I'm reaching back to High School here and I'm 31 now, so...), the description of the fan-operator was QUITE detailed, taking pains to mention that he was quite tall, broad-shouldered and well-muscled, apparently not in keeping with expectations of the local populace.

Sadly, I best remember this because, in the 1964 film adaptation of the book, the character (or set-dressing) remained... but he appeared as a conspicuously old-and-frail Indian man, not the virile he-man described in the book.

Apparently, I was protoqueer enough 14 years ago -- and I KNOW I was already well aware of my muscle... "curiosity", whateve it meant. And the description was at least intriguing enough that I was looking forward to that scene -- I remember feeling inconsolably wounded by that particular exercise of directorial license. (Not like the movie OR the book held much else to titillate horny young cockhounds, of EITHER sex...)


..Hey, whadya know? I just pulled up Amazon's listing for the novel, and tried out their "Search inside" feature. Found it!

I'm not even going to TEMPT Amazon's lawyers to feed on my tender marrow, so no reposting the fruits of my search here (plus I'd have to retype from the page image), but if you follow the link and choose "Search Inside", then after logging in:

• Search for: - punkah (the name of the fan-contraption)
• Choose: - p. 241 (I think it's the third hit)

[akboy58]

In science fiction:

1) Theodore Sturgeon's Godbody comes to mind. The protagonist is a Christ-like figure trying to save the world through sex, and I seem to remember that the title character fit the name. Not one of Sturgeon's best, but still ...

2) Tom Reamy's Blind Voices has some steamy scenes involving a hugely muscular (and hung) minotaur character

3) In one of Larry Niven's books (Ringworld Engineers, maybe?) there's an episode where a character does nothing but eat and exercise (and bulk up) during a long space voyage -- I always found it pretty hot.

But for sheer jack-off potential, Nader's Chrome has it all, in my opinion.

Otherwise:

Somebody mentioned Harry Crews' Body, but The Gypsy's Curse is also worth reading for its twisted (but hot) supporting bodybuilder characters.

[TheMM]

A little "l" category again or whatever, but anyways, Tom Robinson was described fairly well build (minus the left arm[?]) in "To Kill a Mockingbird."

[Yachirobi]

If Chrome were written today it would probably be posted on this site. Granted, most of the stories here head straight into pornography (nuthin' wrong with that) while Chrome just stays in the realm of erotica or the erotically charged, but it is definitely one of our books. I never finished it myself, the writing didn't jibe with me, but it definitely had wankable parts and it was a clear and unapologetic metaphor for the homosexual experience. Try and find a copy for yourselves.

[Ogrebear]

I don't know if its literature or not but there are several novels featuring the Hulk of Marvel comics fame- has anyone read them? What are the transformation descriptions like?

[MisterE]

There are several novels by Jack L. Chalker that feature muscular characters and usually transformations.

'River of the Dancing Gods' is the first of 5 books that feature a truck driver that becomes a barbarian warrior. There are other transformations as the series progresses. According to the books of rules adventures come in threes, so there should have been a sixth book in the series (if you have read the series you know what I mean) it is my understanding that there was a dispute with the publisher, they wouldn't buy the book so it was never written/finished.

In 'Lilith' (first of four books) the main character is described as well muscled and overly endowed. It has been may years since the last time I have read it, but as I recall the endowment was described as "I didn't know they could be that big".

The 'Soul Rider' series also has many transformations. In one book, I think it is number 5, all of the male main characters are transformed into blond, muscular young men.

None of these is 'Literature', but they are worth reading.

[iluvmassivemusl]

ive been trying to get the archives but when i download them they wont open at all, i tryed opening them with explorer and nothing happened, can someone please help me?

[Ogrebear]

Originally Posted by akboy58

2) Tom Reamy's Blind Voices has some steamy scenes involving a hugely muscular (and hung) minotaur character.

Is the Minotaur stuff worth digging this book up on Ebay? How much 'screen time' does he get?

Anyone got the text anywhere?

[Ogrebear]

Oh and I found another- in Salman Rushide's Satanic Verses there is a transformation of a gent into a Demon like form - growing up to 8' tall, horned and muscular.

I do seem to remember a moment when we was "considering action" and getting a huge boner in the process.

There where several other 'monsters' too. Anyone else read this one?

[TheMM]

Here's a good one:

Feyd-Rautha, the na-Baron. He's pretty much the opposite of the Baron himself. Feyd is obviously buff (roughly a modelish sorta size) while the Baron is "The floating fat man." What's interesting is that he's ripped to shreds at only the age of 16. A major muscle accomplishment if there ever was one in literature IMO. Something else to take note is that the Baron himself is outrightly gay.