Feminist views on BDSM

The examples and perspective in this article deal primarily with the English-speaking world and do not represent a worldwide view of the subject. You may improve this article, discuss the issue on the talk page, or create a new article, as appropriate. (December 2022) (Learn how and when to remove this template message)

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Feminist views on BDSM vary widely from acceptance to rejection. BDSM refers to bondage and discipline, dominance and submission, and Sado-Masochism. In order to evaluate its perception, two polarizing frameworks are compared. Some feminists, such as Gayle Rubin and Patrick Califia, perceive BDSM as a valid form of expression of female sexuality,^[1] while other feminists, such as Andrea Dworkin and Susan Griffin, have stated that they regard BDSM as a form of woman-hating violence.^[2][3] Some lesbian feminists practice BDSM and regard it as part of their sexual identity.^[4]

The historical relationship between feminists and BDSM practitioners has been controversial.

In the 1970s, many different divisions of the feminist movement emerged. As Andrew McBride writes, "During the 1970s, much of the discourse in the feminist movement was dominated by discussions of lesbian feminism. Toward the end of the decade, however, the conversations within feminism began to focus on a new topic: sexuality. This included sexuality of all types, not just lesbian sexuality. Included in the discussions and debates were heterosexuality, pornography, sadomasochism, butch/femme roles, and sex work."^[6] The Lavender Menace and their concept of the woman identified woman and the Women Against Violence in Pornography and Media both came out strongly believing that engaging in BDSM play was contradictory to being a feminist.^{[citation needed]} Samois, a San Francisco-based lesbian BDSM group, maintained that feminists could engage in BDSM without being hypocritical.^{[citation needed]}

1980s

During the 1980s, this sex war continued and reached the attention of several academics who attempted to dissect why such a division had occurred. Ardill and O'Sullivan explained the history using the conflict in the London Lesbian and Gay Center as an example.^[7] Similar conflicts were continuations of the issues in the 1970s. The

In the 1990s feminist scholars continued to research and apply different feminist academic frameworks to the questions of sexuality and BDSM in an effort to find a way to bridge the gap between the two groups. Hopkins, in 1994 applied critical analysis to the feminist viewpoints against Sadomasochistic acts.^[9] She takes each argument put forth against BDSM practice by women and answers it from within a feminist framework. In the end, she points out that the issue is not as concrete as feminists may try and paint it and that they may need to examine the concepts in more detail. In 1995, Teresa Hornsby also applied feminist frameworks to the subject of BDSM and came down on the side that the two were not contradictory.^[10] Hornsby went further to examine whether or not violence itself was only a masculine activity.

2000s

After 2000, advances in technology were opening up the world to more people and BDSM started coming out more and more in popular culture. Maneesha Deckha applied a

Current^[when?] feminist viewpoints on BDSM practices continue to be controversial and at odds with one another. Some feminists view SM as an ideal feminist expression of sexual freedom while other feminists say that BDSM, and more particularly SM, reinforce patriarchy and that these practices are contradictory to feminism. Feminists who view BDSM as contradictory to feminism also often believe that women who engage in BDSM practices, and specifically those who play a submissive role in them, have been led by sexist power structures to believe that they enjoy these acts. This feminist viewpoint argues that the individuals who enjoy playing a submissive role in the bedroom only enjoy it because they have been led to believe that it is what is expected of them and that they should enjoy it. This viewpoint argues that if these individuals, particularly women, were able to explore their sexual desires without the influence of a sexist power structure that they would come to very different conclusions about what they enjoy.^[13]Female submission in BDSM has come under fire by some feminist groups who believe the act oppresses women. However, female subs believe that those who condemn female submission do not understand that it is simply a sexual preference that is far removed from violence against women and patriarchal dominance.^[14]

Perspectives on lesbian BDSM

Lesbian SM (Sadism, Submission, Masochism) has been problematic in the analysis of feminist viewpoints on BDSM, especially with regards to whether or not lesbians are recreating patriarchal structures. Many academic critics do not even tackle the idea of lesbian BDSM. Maneesha Deckha in her article, "Pain, pleasure, and consenting women: Exploring feminist responses to S/M and its legal regulation in Canada through Jelinek's The Piano Teacher" admitted that covering lesbian BDSM made her theories too convoluted to see.^[15] Such lesbian erasure has been fairly common in second and third wave feminism as lesbian identity has frequently been subsumed in feminist identity. This concept is explained by Calhoun in "The Gender Closet: Lesbian disappearance under the sign 'woman'"^[16] Some, such as Deckha, believe that although lesbians do practice BDSM, they are doing so in an effort to merely recreate the patriarchal power structure in the rest of society. Be it through domination and submission exchange of power, or the butch/femme dynamic, lesbians who interact in this way are convincing themselves that they are outside of patriarchy, when in reality they are reinforcing it because their sexuality is trapped within the patriarchal structure, true consent cannot occur.^[17]

Others, such as Hornsby, believe that lesbians can in fact practice BDSM without recreating patriarchal systems because they have already declared themselves to be outside of those systems.^[18]

BDSM practitioners

Feminist writer Clarisse Thorn released a book in 2012 called The S&M Feminist,^[19] in which she often discusses her own experiences. The high-profile feminist anthology Yes Means Yes, published in 2008, also featured an essay about BDSM and feminism by Stacey May Fowles.

Jessica Wakeman wrote of her own experience with SM activities in a follow-up interview after her article First Time For Everything: Getting Spanked was published in 2009. At the time of the interview in October 2010, Wakeman had been writing about feminist issues, including feminism and media criticism, feminism and politics, and feminism and sex for about eight years and considered herself to be a rather active feminist.^[20]

Wakeman discussed how she is able to enjoy spanking play and being dominated and still be a feminist. She discussed how spanking play is a fetish and is no different from other fetishes that individuals have, even though it does involve being hit by one's partner. She also commented that it is important to remember that when an individual is involved with BDSM play, such as spanking, if it is true BDSM play it has been discussed by both partners and either of them can stop the play at any time with a safe word, phrase or action. Furthermore, a real physically or emotionally abusive relationship is not safe and consensual like BDSM play is. There is a difference between what happens in the bedroom and what happens in real life. Wakeman wrote that she is able to enjoy things in the context of sex or flirting that she would not want to happen in her day-to-day life.^[20]

Like other feminist BDSM practitioners, Wakeman rejects the argument that women are taught what they enjoy and led to be submissive by a dominant sexist power structure. Within BDSM communities, it is often said that submissive practitioners are the real dominants because they have the ultimate control over the situation with a safe word.^[20]

Major figures

Some feminists practice BDSM and regard it as part of their sexual identity.^[4]

Patrick Califia

Patrick Califia perceives BDSM as a valid form of expression of female sexuality.^[1]

Andrea Dworkin

Andrea Dworkin has written on the topic and regards BDSM as a form of misogynist violence.^[3]

Susan Griffin

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Like Dworkin, Susan Griffin is against BDSM.^[2]

Gayle Rubin

Gayle Rubin is an American

Rubin's 1984 essay "Thinking Sex" is widely regarded as a founding text of

• Feminist views on sexuality
• Feminist sex wars
• Lesbian Sex Mafia
• List of universities with BDSM clubs
• Samois

References