Research proposal

Sadomasochistic practices and theories

Sadomasochistic practices and theories

Introduction

Since the 18th century, there are, cases interested in sadomasochistic practices. The Marquis de Sade (1785) described scenes of Master and Slave relationships, while Sacher-Masoch's 'Venus in Furs' (1870) also told stories of torture and humiliation at the hands of a dominant female. These momentous novels are important to a subculture of Bondage, Domination, sado masochism practitioners and gets frequently referenced. In contemporary society, BDSM gets viewed negatively and with disdain, reports are often laced with disparaging comments, typically explaining such practices as 'socially destructive violence' (White, 2006) and indicating a level of legalized discrimination (Brown, 2010).

The UK law regarding such practices is sketchy and complex, resulting in sub cultural practitioners going underground for fear of negative consequences and stigma. Hoff (2009) argues that the stigmatization of various forms of sexuality can cause significant difficulties in gaining information from and making observations about people with alternative sexualities. Is there a law, which dictates what happens in your own home? Can you be arrested for consenting to alternative sexual practices? In 1990 in a landmark case, 16 homosexual men got arrested for engaging in BDSM practices, in their own home, even though it was safe, sane and above all consensual.

The main objective of this research is to investigate BDSM subcultural member's experiences and perceptions of the law. In order to obtain relevant information pertaining to this study, a questionnaire got made available for BDSM practitioners to complete. UK law does not incorporate Sadomasochism as an offence, although it does make clear guidelines regarding consent. Do S&M practitioners or those who indulge in alternative sexualities feel engaging in such rituals are illegal?

The Sexual Offences Act, 2003 includes offences such as rape, assault and child sex offences; however, the legal status relating to SM practices remains somewhat ambiguous. The level of ambivalence regarding UK law remains unclear for those who wish to enter in to this lifestyle choice.

The Spanner trust commented that the Act does not go far enough and still leaves the human rights of some adults infringed as far as their sex lives gets concerned (Spanner Trust, 2003) This dissertation will focus on the perceptions and experiences of people within the BDSM subcultures, in relation to the ambiguous nature of UK law.

It will also examine stigmatisation of the law. Whilst there are studies available on BDSM and alternative sexualities, there are few that focus on experiences of existing practitioners. Therefore, this study will endeavour to reflect an idiosyncratic overview of opinions regarding the law and past cases such as The Spanner Trials (1989).

Literature review

Academic literature will have a review, surrounding three main topics that will underpin the main objectives of the overall study. A threefold approach to reviewing literature will make understanding the three main objectives of the study more comprehendible. Firstly, BDSM gets placed in to historical context reviewing classical perspectives of sado-masochism in which BDSM has evolved from novels such as Venus in firs (Sacher-Masoch, 1835-1895) and 100 ...