Role of Eros in Contemporary BDSM Flashcards
What does BDSM refer to?
Bondage and Discipline, Dominance and Submission and Sadism and Masochism
What does the term BDSM encapsulate?
Eroticism, sexual expression and structured authority imbalance
What percent of the population has at least experimented with BDSM and Kink
11-45%
What is central to the definition of BDSM and kink?
Consent and negotiation
What does history tell us about the use of pain, suffering and degradation as a source of pleasure?
- Pain, suffering and degradation have always been used a source for pleasurable experiences
- Practices of pain and suffering have been used as a conduit for religious and ecstatic experiences
- In 1700 Jean Jacques Rosseau wrote about the erotic pleasure he experienced when being spanked by his female caretaker
- At the end of the 17th century and beginning of the 18th century we also see Sade’s scandalous fiction come out making it clear that he was not isolated in getting pleasure from pain
What are The Villa of the Mysteries of Pompeii?
The Villa of Mysteries in Pompeii is located outside the walls of Pompeii.
This villa is well known for a series of frescos located in the triclinium, paintings showing the initiation of a bride into a Greco-Roman mystery cult.
What are the frescoes in the Villa of Mysteries?
The frescoes at the Villa of the Mysteries are notable for their bright red backgrounds; they are colored using a mineral pigment derived from cinnabar.
When were the frescoes in the Villa of Mysteries designed?
The frescoes were made around 50 BC, hidden from history in 79 AD, and rediscovered in 1909.
What do the frescoes in the Villa of Mysteries depict?
The frescoes depict an elaborate Dionysiac ritual. An initiatory ritual for a bride into a Greco-roman mystery cult
When is the 17th and 18th century?
1601-1700 and 1701-1800
Who is Dionysus?
In Ancient Greek religion, Dionysus was the God of wine, fertility, theatre and ecstasy
What was Dionysus known for?
Dionysus was known for his association with frenzied celebrations and ritual madness
Ecstatic rituals are held in his honour
Who and when was Venus in Furs published?
1870 by Leopold Maosch
Who coined the term Masochism
Richard von ebbing in his encyclopedia of sexual disorder (Psychopathia Sexualis (1866))
What preceded the modern BDSM movement in the United States?
Records in 1930’s show that sadomasochistic actives were occurring In gay communities before the end of World War II
How does the beginning of the modern BDSM movement coincide with the end of World War II?
Soilders began experiencing same sex attractions during war; forming close bonds with comrades.
When returning back to US, no inclination to rejoin mainstream culture
Formed fringe communities with radical rough sexuality, enjoying sexual explorations and a hierarchal structure from military past
Many of them started joining gay motorcycle clubs in major centres in US
Where does gay leather culture evolve from?
Gay leather culture evolved out of motorcycle culture
When did leather bars emerge and what scene were they a part of?
Leathers bars emerged out of gay leather culture and emerged in the 50’s and 60’s
What was happening at the same time of leather bars forming in the 50’s and 60’s?
Heterosexual aficionados of BDSM were forming their own network of relationships through classified ADs and speciality publications
Who are the Samois and when were they formed?
What did they counteract?
First all female BDSM organization and they were formed in 1978. They counteracted the belief that BDSM was a reflection of western patriarchal ideals
What did we see happen in the BDSM community during the 1980’s-90s
These were the worst years of the AIDs pandemic and the term SSC was adopted to show the importance and commitment to personal responsibility
What was notable about the 1987 march on Washington?
The 1987 march on Washington for LGBTQ right was notable as this was the first that allowed for a BDSM contingent to join.
For years tension had existed between the mainstream queer community and BDSM and leather communities on the fringe
What wer Jung’s thoughts on the Middle Ages?
He regarded the Middle Ages as a historical period whose extreme psychological attitudes and practices had fallen into the unoconcious of our modern era
When was the medieval period in Europe?
Roughly spans from the 5th to the 15th century and is characterized by
1. The decline of the Roman Empire
2. The rise of feudalism,
3.The Crusades
4. The Black Death, ultimately transitioning into the Renaissance.
