POWER DYNAMICS IN FIFTY SHADES OF GREY 1

Power Dynamics in Fifty Shades of Grey

Daisy Glaspie

Texas Tech University

POWER DYNAMICS IN FIFTY SHADES OF GREY 2

Power dynamics in a relationship largely lie in the hands of the one who makes the most money. In most cases, a man is expected to be the breadwinner of the household in a heterosexual relationship. This could stem, perhaps, from the age-old belief that the man is the head of the household who should be not only a protector, but also a provider.

But what happens when this source of power is carried over into the bedroom? Fifty

Shade of Grey gives us a good idea of how quickly power can escalate and turn an equal- partner relationship into a dominant-submissive relationship in more ways than just sexual.

Van Reenen (2014) explores the woman’s perspective and thoughts on a BDSM

(bondage, discipline, sadism and masochism) relationship using feminist theory. Van

Reenen explains that women are often mistreated and underappreciated in these sorts of relationships. The author states that, “Fifty Shades mostly reproduces familiar patterns of gender-stereotyping with models that explicitly sanction male dominance and sexual aggression” (Van Reenen, 2014, p. 223). This mirrors the ideas that because the male figure, Christian Grey, has an exceptional amount of money and wealth, he has the power to control his counterpart, Anastasia Steele.

Diving even further into these ideas, Van Reenen (2014) openly discusses how these kinds of relationships can promote abuse, both physical and emotional. Van Reenen states that intimate partner violence (IVP) in both the United States and the United

Kingdom has become a rising issue in recent years, mostly regarding the woman in the relationship. Statistics from this research show a drastic increase in the percentages of

IVP over recent years. A connection between the Fifty Shades phenomenon and the increase of abusive relationships has come into question. This article makes the case that POWER DYNAMICS IN FIFTY SHADES OF GREY 3 the ideas and practices mentioned in the book series, as well as the movie slowly made its way into modern-day relationships.

Results from the emotional and physical abuse being demonstrated in Fifty

Shades of Grey has left some women feeling weak and powerless in what was once an equal-partner relationship as explained by Bonomi, Altenburger, and Walton (2013). This article takes a clear stance of showing just how much the power dynamic of a relationship can affect the female involved. The authors highlight Christian being the dominant and

Anastasia being the submissive, where Christian uses his wealth and political standing in the economy to try to establish complete control over Anastasia.

This form of control, as well as the amount Christian exercises, becomes toxic to

Anastasia’s well being (Bonomi, Altenburger, and Walton, 2013). She begins involving him in every aspect of her life, and she is no longer able to make decisions for herself without worrying about the wrath he will unleash on her if he finds out she has been thinking and acting independently. Regardless of the intimidation she feels, the sense of wanting to be with Christian consumes her. Bonomi, Altenburger and Walton (2013) relate this to the common occurrence of the “yearning” a submissive begins to feel towards her dominant. They explain that the submissive acts in such a way becasue the one with less power in the relationship craves the love and approval of their powerful, dominant partner. This fictitious relationship mirrors those in real life with women all across the world.

Keeping all of these ideas in mind, one can begin to wonder what sparked the power dynamics that are fueled by wealth. In Christian Grey’s case, he was abused as a child and forced into a BDSM relationship during adolescence. Knowing this truth brings POWER DYNAMICS IN FIFTY SHADES OF GREY 4 about the argument on whether or not Christian has a truly evil side, or whether this part of him was brought about by other outside forces. Al-Mahadin (2013) tries to bring clarity to this ongoing debate. Al-Mahadin explains has striven his whole life to be successful and make something of himself, because of his hard up-bringing. This results in indulgence of his luxurious lifestyle. His past experiences, mixed with his high social standing, gives him the sense of importance and, in return, an idea that he has to exercise control in all elements of his life.

Whenever Anastasia, a simple, meek college student walks into his life, he immediately targets her as his next submissive. Anastasia is not so willing to conform to the lifestyle he intends to keep living, which brings about a challenge for Christian. A man who has had everything his whole adult life is not about to be told he cannot have something by a weak girl such as Anastasia. His power consumes him, and he soon becomes obsessed with gaining control over her. Al-Mahadin (2013) explains this behavior less as a sadistic relationship, but more as a “masochistic relationship” (p. 568).

His masochism has become his identity from all the power he holds, which in turn heavily affects his relationships with women, especially Anastasia.

The power dynamics expressed by Christian Grey toward Anastasia Steele are ones that could be described as extreme. This could be partly why most people do not always make the connection of an abusive relationship with power dynamics. The idea that the husband, or male figure, in the relationship is supposed to be dominating is one that dates back to old times. However, when the knowledge of one’s power over their counterpart is used as an excuse to express control over said partner, this is where verbal and physical abuse are born. POWER DYNAMICS IN FIFTY SHADES OF GREY 5

References

Al-Mahadin, S. (2013). Is Christian a Sadist? Fifty Shades of Grey in popular

imagination. Feminist Media Studies, 13(3), 566-570. doi:

10.1018/14680777.2013786271.

Bonomi, A. E., Altenburger, L. E., & Walton, N. L. (2013). ‘Double Crap!’ Abuse and

harmed identity in Fifty Shades of Grey. Journal of Women’s Health (15409996),

22(9), 733-744. doi:10.1081/jwh.2013.4344.

Van Reenen, D. (2014). Is this really what women want? An analysis of Fifty Shades of

Grey and modern feminist thought. South African Journal of Philosophy, 33(2),

223-233. doi:10.1081/02580136.2014.925730.