A 'Different Economy of Bodies and Pleasures'?: Gender, Power, and Sexuality in BDSM Interactions Pubblico
Simula, Brandy Lin (2012)
Abstract
At the conclusion of History of Sexuality, Volume 1 (1990), Foucault infamously refers to the possibility of a "different economy of bodies and pleasures." In the current economy, bodies and pleasures are regulated through social systems including gender and sexuality. Since elsewhere Foucault describes BDSM as "the real creation of new possibilities of pleasure" (Foucault, 1994: 165), some speculate that he views BDSM as creating one such different economy (Halperin, 1995; Miller, 1993). Many argue in a similar vein that BDSM creates spaces in which traditional gender norms and gender inequality can be resisted (e.g. Califia, 2000; Hale, 2003), while others argue that BDSM reifies gender inequality (e.g. Linden et al., 1982; Williams, 2002). I rely on an interdisciplinary methodological approach that uses data collected from correspondence, diaries, and memoirs available at the Leather Archives and Museum; public discussion boards at a large BDSM community website; and 32 semi-structured in-depth interviews. I draw on the feminist interactionist "doing gender" (West and Zimmerman, 1987; 2009) and social psychological "framing" (Ridgeway, 2011) approaches to gender, which emphasize that gender is something that is done or performed in interactions, rather than a fixed individual characteristic that people bring with them to interactions. I find that a strong majority of BDSM participants perceive gender as less salient for both self and others in BDSM compared with other social settings, with significant implications for how they create and interpret BDSM interactions, including that most participants do not use gender as a criterion in selecting BDSM partners. I also find that participants utilize alternative beliefs about gender and power that enable them to resist normative hegemonic cultural beliefs. Drawing on participants' perceptions of decreased salience of gender for self and others in BDSM contexts as well as their use of alternative beliefs about gender and power, I demonstrate that participants perceive BDSM as a social context in which gender inequality is significantly reduced compared with other social settings in which they interact.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
I. INTRODUCTION.......................................................................... 1
Why Study Gender, Power, and Sexuality?.................................. 2
Why Study BDSM Participants?................................................... 5
Research Questions........................................................................ 7
Organization of the Dissertation.................................................. 10
II. LITERATURE REVIEW............................................................ 13
Defining BDSM........................................................................... 14
The BDSM Population................................................................. 18
Theoretical Approaches to BDSM.............................................. 21
Review of Empirical Literature................................................... 27
Conclusion................................................................................... 44III. CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK................................................. 46
Economies of Bodies and Pleasures............................................ 47
Components of Interactions......................................................... 50
Gender.......................................................................................... 54 Sexuality...................................................................................... 60 Power........................................................................................... 62 Conclusion................................................................................... 68IV. METHODOLOGY....................................................................... 69
Defining the BDSM Population................................................... 71
Drawing on Multiple Data Sources............................................. 72
Methods of Analysis.................................................................. 101
Validity and Limitations............................................................ 105
Ethics and Reflexivity in the Research Process........................ 110
Conclusion................................................................................. 121V. SEX AND THE SEXUAL IN BDSM INTERACTIONS.......... 123
Sex and Sexuality in Previous BDSM Research....................... 124
"It's Sexual but Not Sex": Differentiating and Evaluating Sex and Sexual
BDSM Experiences.................................................................... 128"The Thrill Isn't Sexual": Sexual and Non-Sexual BDSM Experiences.................................................................................................. 156
Conclusion.................................................................................. 167VI. PERCEPTIONS OF GENDER SALIENCE IN BDSM INTERACTIONS....................................................................... 171
Gender as a Primary Frame....................................................... 172
Perceptions of the Salience of Gender in the Construction of Selves......................................................................................... 176
Perceptions of Gender Salience in Choosing and Interacting with BDSM
Partners...................................................................................... 197Perceptions of Gender Salience in BDSM Interactions............ 214
Conclusion................................................................................. 239VII. HEGEMONIC AND ALTERNATIVE CULTURAL BELIEFS ABOUT GENDER AND POWER............................... 247
Patterns in Gender and BDSM Role Identification................... 252
Hegemonic Cultural Beliefs about Gender and Power............. 256
Alternative Cultural Beliefs about Gender and Power.............. 285
Conclusion................................................................................. 304VIII. CONCLUSION.......................................................................... 311
Summary of the Main Findings................................................. 311
Implications for Gender and Sexuality Studies......................... 319
Limitations and Future Directions............................................. 327
IX. APPENDICES............................................................................ 331
A. Recruitment Flyer................................................................ 331
B. Interview Guide................................................................... 332
C. Response to BDSM Community Website Member............. 336
D. Overview of Interview Sample Characteristics................... 338
X. REFERENCES.......................................................................... 339
TABLES AND FIGURESTable 1: Sex Category/ Gender and BDSM Role in the Interview Sample 255
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