70
Populär Culture Review
Conceptual Framework
References to erotic activities involving bondage, discipline, dominance,
and Submission can be found in ancient Egypt (Weinberg, Williams, & Moser,
1984). Evidence of the practice also exists in fifteenth Century European literature
(Moser & Levitt, 1987). In the eighteenth Century, Marquis de Sade simultaneously
shocked and enthralled with writings such as Philosophy in the Boudoir (2000) that
depicted graphic scenes mixing pain with sex. Düring the 1800’s, Sacher-Masoch
penned Venus in Fürs (2010) which portrayed complete sexual and mental
Submission of one to another with that Submission involving pain.
The influence of both is seen in their names serving as the bases for the “S
& M” in BDSM (Sade and Sado, and Masoch and Masochist). BDSM is the
“collection of overlapping initials intended to identify three components of erotic
power play.” Bondage and discipline (BD) is “combining the restraint of movement
with the punishment and/or control of the partner.” Dominance and Submission (DS)
is the “umbrella term for the exchange of erotic power or control of one partner of
another” and “does not require physical pain.” Sadomasochism (SM) is “the
consensual giving and receiving of intense erotic Sensation” (Henkin & Holiday
1996, pp. 61 & 72). BDSM, as a sociological process, is a consensual role-play that
follows a “script” in which the themes of power and control are prevalent
(Weinberg, Colin, & Moser, 1984; Weinberg, 1987). The scenes are typically erotic
in nature and may involve fetishes or pain. What occurs in a scene is consensual and
negotiated among the participants and a scene can be stopped at any time by the use
of a “safe-word” (see Miller & Devon, 1995; Moser & Madeson, 1998; Midori,
2005; Weiss, 2011, and Wiseman, 1998 for thorough discussions of BDSM
ideologies and lifestyle). Generally, as compared to the larger population, those
involved in BDSM are well-educated, affluent, and emotionally and psychologically
well-adjusted (Moser & Levitt, 1987; Weinberg et al., 1987; Sandnabba, et al., 2002;
Richters, et al., 2008; Stiles & Clark, 2011). BDSM is increasingly becoming
integrated into populär culture. Fetish gear and dominatrix-inspired clothing have
appeared on fashion runways (Moore, 2007). In addition, mainstream pop singers
Rhiannon and Lady Gaga have incorporated, to various degrees, BDSM activities
and fetish fashions into their Videos and performances. The BDSM themed book
Fifty Shades o f Grey tops the New York Times bestseller lists in E-Book and
paperback trade fiction (New York Times, 2012). Currently, the eyeglass Company
Pearle Vision is running a commercial featuring a “naughty librarian” who says in a
sultry voice, “You have a lot of late fees mister, maybe someone should teach you to
retum your library books on time” (the subtext being the delinquent borrower is
going to be punished). Although not yet mainstream, BDSM is on the cusp of
acceptance as an erotic activity and is certainly on the minds of many.
Freud (1961) argued that the locus of a fetish lies in the male’s unresolved
belief in the mother’s (missing) penis and castration anxiety over losing his own.
The fetish serves as a substitute for the woman’s penis, thus reducing the anxiety.
Objects not phallic in nature that are associated with the mother can serve as the
fetish. Common items are lingerie and shoes. Unlike Freud’s focus on the unresolved
crises over the sexualized phallic mother and castration anxiety as the impetus for an