The Use of Gender in the Interpretation of BDSM
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On Sadomasochism: Taxonomies and Language
Nicole Eitmann On Sadomasochism: Taxonomies and Language Governments try to regulate sadomasochistic activities (S/M). Curiously, though, no common definition of S/M exists and there is a dearth of statistically valid social science research on who engages in S/M or how participants define the practice. This makes it hard to answer even the most basic questions shaping state laws and policies with respect to S/M. This paper begins to develop a richer definition of sadomasochistic activities based on the reported common practices of those engaging in S/M. The larger question it asks, though, is why so little effort has been made by social scientists in general and sex researchers in particular to understand the practice and those who participate in it. As many social sci- entists correctly observe, sadomasochism has its “basis in the culture of the larger society.”1 Rethinking sadomasochism in this way may shed some light on the present age. A DEFINITIONAL QUAGMIRE In Montana, sadomasochistic abuse includes the depiction of a per- son clad in undergarments or in a revealing or bizarre costume.2 In Illinois, it is illegal to distribute or sell obscene material—defined in part as “sado- masochistic sexual acts, whether normal or perverted, actual or simu- lated.”3 The lack of a clear definition of what constitutes S/M is one major difficulty in developing appropriate policies with respect to S/M activities. Clearly, S/M means different things to different people, and there is a wide range of possible S/M activities—from light spanking or -
Bdsm) Communities
BOUND BY CONSENT: CONCEPTS OF CONSENT WITHIN THE LEATHER AND BONDAGE, DOMINATION, SADOMASOCHISM (BDSM) COMMUNITIES A Thesis by Anita Fulkerson Bachelor of General Studies, Wichita State University, 1993 Submitted to the Department of Liberal Studies and the faculty of the Graduate School of Wichita State University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts December 2010 © Copyright 2010 by Anita Fulkerson All Rights Reserved Note that thesis work is protected by copyright, with all rights reserved. Only the author has the legal right to publish, produce, sell, or distribute this work. Author permission is needed for others to directly quote significant amounts of information in their own work or to summarize substantial amounts of information in their own work. Limited amounts of information cited, paraphrased, or summarized from the work may be used with proper citation of where to find the original work. BOUND BY CONSENT: CONCEPTS OF CONSENT WITHIN THE LEATHER AND BONDAGE, DOMINATION, SADOMASOCHISM (BDSM) COMMUNITIES The following faculty members have examined the final copy of this thesis for form and content, and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Arts with a major in Liberal Studies _______________________________________ Ron Matson, Committee Chair _______________________________________ Linnea Glen-Maye, Committee Member _______________________________________ Jodie Hertzog, Committee Member _______________________________________ Patricia Phillips, Committee Member iii DEDICATION To my Ma'am, my parents, and my Leather Family iv When you build consent, you build the Community. v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to thank my adviser, Ron Matson, for his unwavering belief in this topic and in my ability to do it justice and his unending enthusiasm for the project. -
Sex, Violence and the Body: the Erotics of Wounding
Sex, Violence and the Body The Erotics of Wounding Edited by Viv Burr and Jeff Hearn PPL-UK_SVB-Burr_FM.qxd 9/24/2008 2:33 PM Page i Sex, Violence and the Body PPL-UK_SVB-Burr_FM.qxd 9/24/2008 2:33 PM Page ii Also by Viv Burr AN INTRODUCTION TO SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIONISM GENDER AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY INVITATION TO PERSONAL CONSTRUCT PSYCHOLOGY (with Trevor W. Butt) THE PERSON IN SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY Also by Jeff Hearn BIRTH AND AFTERBIRTH: A Materialist Account ‘SEX’ AT ‘WORK’: The Power and Paradox of Organisation Sexuality (with Wendy Parkin) THE GENDER OF OPPRESSION: Men, Masculinity and the Critique of Marxism MEN, MASCULINITIES AND SOCIAL THEORY (co-editor with David Morgan) MEN IN THE PUBLIC EYE: The Construction and Deconstruction of Public Men and Public Patriarchies THE VIOLENCES OF MEN: How Men Talk about and How Agencies Respond to Men’s Violence to Women CONSUMING CULTURES: Power and Resistance (co-editor with Sasha Roseneil) TRANSFORMING POLITICS: Power and Resistance (co-editor with Paul Bagguley) GENDER, SEXUALITY AND VIOLENCE IN ORGANIZATIONS: The Unspoken Forces of Organization Violations (with Wendy Parkin) ENDING GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE: A Call for Global Action to Involve Men (with Harry Ferguson et al.) INFORMATION SOCIETY AND THE WORKPLACE: Spaces, Boundaries and Agency (co-editor with Tuula Heiskanen) GENDER AND ORGANISATIONS IN FLUX? (co-editor with Päivi Eriksson et al.) HANDBOOK OF STUDIES ON MEN AND MASCULINITIES (co-editor with Michael Kimmel and R. W. Connell) MEN AND MASCULINITIES IN EUROPE (with Keith Pringle et al.) -
My Father's Secret
WhatIMeant. Prt 2 95-222 24/08/2005 3:22 pm Page 129 David Hayes ’ First the snapshots. In this one, my father, then twenty-eight years old, is sitting in a Plymouth roadster convertible, beige with a red pinstripe along the side. It has red leather upholstery, including the rumble seat. My father was, according to my mother, a rakish bachelor who lived with a gang of fellows in a house in St. Catha- rines, nicknamed “the homestead.” His friends called him “Hurry- Up Hayes” because he walked purposefully, with short, quick steps, as though there were important things ahead. My mother was a tall, leggy brunette with an angular face who looked like a great, noble, WhatIMeant. Prt 2 95-222 24/08/2005 3:22 pm Page 130 | wading bird. She had her pick of eligible men, and chose my father. Later, when he infuriated or disappointed me, I would remind myself of this past life of his, the easy grace with which he carried himself, defining for me the idea of unforced masculinity. I believe to this day that he was more self-possessed, more relaxed with who he was than I was at his age, or, for that matter, later. Here he’s sitting, obviously posed but looking most at ease, every inch the successful executive: the double-breasted chalk-stripe suit, the dark tie with bold diagonals, the half-Windsor knot. It’s the mid-s and he is now in senior management at Abitibi’s head office on University Avenue in Toronto. Look at his steady gaze into the camera, as if to say, I am a man both comfortable and successful in this masculine world. -
Themes of SM Expression Charles Moser and Peggy J
3 Themes of SM Expression Charles Moser and Peggy J. Kleinplatz SM (also known as BDSM, i.e. Bondage and Discipline, Dominance and Submission and Sadism and Masochism) is a term used to describe a variety of sexual behaviours that have an implicit or explicit power differential as a significant aspect of the erotic interaction. Of course there are other sexual interactions or behaviours that have an implicit power differential, but that power differential is not generally eroticized in non-SM interactions. Sex partners may even disagree if a particular interaction or relationship constitutes SM, each seeing it from a different perspective. The boundaries between SM and non-SM interactions are not always clear, which is why self-definition is crucial for understanding SM phenomena. Colloquially the set of SM inclinations has been referred to deris- ively as an interest in ‘whips and chains’, but is much more complex and varied than suggested by that description. Practitioners use both numerous academic terms and jargon (e.g. S/M, B/D, WIITWD [i.e. what it is that we do], D/s, Bondage, Leather, Kink) to refer to these interests. They have been labelled controversially in the psychiatric liter- ature with diagnostic labels such as paraphilia, sadomasochism, sexual sadism, sexual masochism and fetishism. There is no evidence that the descriptions in the psychiatric literature resemble the individuals who self-identify as SM participants or that SM participants understand the implications of adopting the psychiatric terms as self-descriptors. Judging from the proliferation of SM themes in sexually explicit media, references in mainstream books, film and the news media, as well as academic studies and support groups, it is reasonable to conclude that SM is an important sexual interest for a significant number of indi- viduals. -
Bondage and Discipline, Dominance and Submission, and Sadomasochism (Bdsm)/Kink
BONDAGE AND DISCIPLINE, DOMINANCE AND SUBMISSION, 6 AND SADOMASOCHISM (BDSM)/KINK Brian is a white gay man of 55 who has been working with you in therapy for several sessions on the panic attacks and nightmares he has been expe- riencing following witnessing a person committing suicide at a tube sta- tion some months ago. For a couple of weeks you have sensed that there are some aspects of his life that he hasn’t been completely open about with you. At the end of a session he looks uncomfortable and says that there is something he has to tell you which he hopes won’t influence your opinion of him but which has been holding him back from talking about all aspects of his life. He says that he is in a 24/7 BDSM relationship as a slave for his partner, Jordan. Think about: • What is your formulation/understanding of the key issues for Brian? • What themes can you imagine emerging as you continue? • What assumptions might you bring to this? • How would you proceed? Being a kink-aware professional you let Brian know that you have some understanding of BDSM practices and relationships. He has probably already seen SM 101 and Powerful Pleasures on your bookshelf, and that probably helped him to tell you about this aspect of his life. Like many people, the idea of ‘24/7’ BDSM is one that you find difficult to understand, so you note your negative gut reaction as one you want to bracket as much as possible and explore in supervision. -
Chapter One: Fantasy Versus Reality
UNIVERSITEIT GENT 2006-2007 ASPECTS OF POWER IN THE PROSE OF MARY GAITSKILL FROM A PSYCHOANALYTIC PERSPECTIVE WITH FOCUS ON SADOMASOCHISM PROMOTOR Verhandeling voorgelegd PROF. DR. GERT BUELENS aan de Faculteit Letteren en Wijsbegeerte voor het verkrijgen van de graad van licentiaat in de taal- en letterkunde: Germaanse talen door ALISE VAN HECKE - JAMESON ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I could not have completed this thesis on my own and there are many people who, both directly and indirectly, have aided me in my efforts. In particular, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to my promoter, Prof. Dr. Gert Buelens, not only for his initial interest in my topic, but also for his guidance, patience, suggestions, and critical commentary, all of which were both motivational and beneficial. I also wish to thank my good friends Elke, Johan, Kathy, Lucie, and Veerle, my brother, Ralph, and my future brother-in-law, Jeff, for their emotional support and encouragement during this trying year. My sister, Annette, deserves recognition for reading my very first, very rough draft and for keeping me sane through our telephone chats. I wish to honor the memory of my Aunt Lynne (November 1937-April 2007) who always believed in me and encouraged me to continue my education. My husband, Omer, receives extra special thanks, as he originally discovered Mary Gaitskill and planted the idea which has since grown into this thesis. Words cannot express my gratitude for his unending support and patience. I thank him for reading many of my previous drafts and offering thoughtful advice. I have also benefited from his computer skills, which saved me much precious time. -
Bdsm, Kink, and Consent: What the Law Can Learn from Consent-Driven Communities
BDSM, KINK, AND CONSENT: WHAT THE LAW CAN LEARN FROM CONSENT-DRIVEN COMMUNITIES Mika Galilee-Belfer* Millions of Americans participate in consensual, mutually agreed-upon activities such as bondage, dominance, and submission—collectively referred to as BDSM or kink—yet the relationship between individual consent to such participation and consent as legally understood and defined is imperfect at best. Because the law has not proven adept at adjudicating disputes that arise in BDSM situations, communities that practice BDSM have adopted self-policing mechanisms (formal and informal) aimed at replicating and even advancing the goals and protections of conventional law enforcement. This self-policing is particularly important because many jurisdictions hold there can be no consent to the kind of experiences often associated with BDSM; this is true in practice irrespective of the existence of statutory language regarding consent. In this Note, I compare legal communities and BDSM communities across three variables: how consent is defined, how violations are comparably adjudicated, and the types of remedies available by domain. In the process, I examine what norm-setting and rule adjudication look like when alternative communities choose to define, and then operate within, norms and controls that must be extra-legal by both necessity and design. TABLE OF CONTENTS INTRODUCTION ..................................................................................................... 508 I. CURRENT ISSUES AT THE INTERSECTION OF BDSM AND THE LAW .................. -
BDSM Culture and Submissive-Role Women Lisa R
Student Publications Student Scholarship Spring 2015 Liberation Through Domination: BDSM Culture and Submissive-Role Women Lisa R. Rivoli Gettysburg College Follow this and additional works at: https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/student_scholarship Part of the Gender and Sexuality Commons, Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons, and the Women's Studies Commons Share feedback about the accessibility of this item. Rivoli, Lisa R., "Liberation Through Domination: BDSM Culture and Submissive-Role Women" (2015). Student Publications. 318. https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/student_scholarship/318 This is the author's version of the work. This publication appears in Gettysburg College's institutional repository by permission of the copyright owner for personal use, not for redistribution. Cupola permanent link: https://cupola.gettysburg.edu/student_scholarship/ 318 This open access student research paper is brought to you by The uC pola: Scholarship at Gettysburg College. It has been accepted for inclusion by an authorized administrator of The uC pola. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Liberation Through Domination: BDSM Culture and Submissive-Role Women Abstract The alternative sexual practices of bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, and sadism and masochism (BDSM) are practiced by people all over the world. In this paper, I will examine the experiences of five submissive-role women in the Netherlands and five in south-central Pennsylvania, focusing specifically on how their involvement with the BDSM community and BDSM culture influences their self-perspective.I will begin my analysis by exploring anthropological perspectives of BDSM and their usefulness in studying sexual counterculture, followed by a consideration of feminist critiques of BDSM and societal barriers faced by women in the community. -
Sadomasochism to BDSM: Discourse Across Disciplines Jacqui Williams Monash University
Sadomasochism to BDSM: Discourse Across Disciplines Jacqui Williams Monash University Recent studies have revealed the stigma faced by practitioners of the sexual practice of BDSM (bondage, discipline, domination, submission, sadism, masochism). This stigma affects practitioners’ ability to be open about their sexuality and raises the question: why is this the case in this socio-historical moment? In answer, this paper analyses discourses regarding BDSM across the disciplinary boundaries of psychiatry, sociology, feminism and law. It investigates some key historical moments in the development of these discourses and reveals two discursive formations that continue to affect practitioners: pathologised practitioner and BDSM as violence. Further, this paper demonstrates how these discourses permeate the social world through the narratives produced in popular culture, and looks at the place of practitioners in these discursive formations. The sexual practice of BDSM, more commonly known as sadomasochism, is as complex as it is varied.1 Theorists frequently struggle at succinct definitions due to the range of practices involved and the changing and subjective meanings for individual practitioners.2 However, some common features are the consensual exchange of power through dominance and submission, the inclusion of pain or intense stimulation, elements of role-taking or role play, and various levels of bondage.3 Practitioners combine activities in a 'scene' or encounter and importantly these scenes are discussed and negotiated beforehand.4 Safewords (used to slow or halt play) are agreed upon and the consensual nature of the interaction is fundamental.5 Recent studies have shown that some practitioners of BDSM face issues of discrimination and stigmatisation which affect their lives and mental well-being.6 They 1 BDSM stands for: bondage, discipline, dominance, submission, sadism, masochism. -
The Feminist Sex Wars: 1975-1986 University of Michigan Winter 2018 January 3, 2018
The Feminist Sex Wars: 1975-1986 University of Michigan Winter 2018 January 3, 2018 ANTHROPOLOGY 658.003 WOMEN’S STUDIES 698.004 AMERICAN CULTURE 601.011 Wednesday 1:00PM-4:00PM 210 West Hall Professor: Gayle Rubin [email protected] Office Hours: Monday 1:30- 3PM or by appointment 104B West Hall 647-0947 COURSE DESCRIPTION This seminar is an excavation and exploration of a piece of the history of the present. The aim is to make sense of some common contemporary discourses on pornography, sexual representation, and sexual conduct by exploring their sources in feminist political conflicts of four decades ago, as well as examining how the feminist engagement in these issues was entangled in other trajectories of conflicts over sexual representation and sexual media. In the late 1970s and early 1980s, the feminist movement was rent by a series of acrimonious debates over issues relating to sexual conduct and representation. While there were disputes over many aspects of sexual behavior, some of the most intense controversy focused on “pornography,” although the definition of what constituted “pornography” was itself contested. Nonetheless, the roles of certain kinds of sexual imagery and behaviors in the creation and maintenance of male supremacy, and their causal relationships to violence against women, were contested with unusual ferocity. While these debates have largely subsided within feminism, they have not disappeared. Moreover, they continually affect a variety of other cultural conflicts which erupt on an almost daily basis. Debates about government funding of sexually explicit art, concern over the putative dangers of on-line sexual content, and struggles over what imagery is appropriate for public display are constant features of the cultural landscape. -
In the Company of Men: Male Dominance and Sexual Harassment
IN THE COMPANY OF MEN The Northeastern Series on Gender, Crime, and Law edited by Claire Renzetti, St. Joseph’s University Battered Women in the Courtroom: The Power of Judicial Responses James Ptacek Divided Passions: Public Opinions on Abortion and the Death Penalty Kimberly J. Cook Emotional Trials: The Moral Dilemmas of Women Criminal Defense Attorneys Cynthia Siemsen Gender and Community Policing: Walking the Talk Susan L. Miller Harsh Punishment: International Experiences of Women’s Imprisonment edited by Sandy Cook and Susanne Davies Listening to Olivia: Violence, Poverty, and Prostitution Jody Raphael No Safe Haven: Stories of Women in Prison Lori B. Girshick Saving Bernice: Battered Women, Welfare, and Poverty Jody Raphael Understanding Domestic Homicide Neil Websdale Woman-to-Woman Sexual Violence: Does She Call It Rape? Lori B. Girshick IN THE COMPANY OF MEN Male Dominance and Sexual Harassment Edited by James E. Gruber and Phoebe Morgan Northeastern University Press Northeastern University Press Copyright by James E. Gruber and Phoebe Morgan All rights reserved. Except for the quotation of short passages for the purposes of criticism and review, no part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system now known or to be invented, without written permission of the publisher. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data In the company of men : male dominance and sexual harassment / edited by James E. Gruber and Phoebe Morgan. p. cm. — (The Northeastern series on gender, crime, and law) --- (cl : alk. paper)— --- (pa : alk. paper) .