![Standing under a spotlight in a corner, a naked man sporting an erection leans against the walls with his hands behind his back.
Sometimes it’s difficult for me to write about images without overt BDSM symbols, like this photograph. Even though I often see submissive masculinity quite clearly, it’s difficult to believe I’ll successfully convey what I see to others. This man’s pose, the placement of his hands, his downcast eyes, and his position in the corner all suggest a submissive inclination to me. However, the photograph’s focus on his turgidly erect penis is what’s most interesting about it; this image is not most people’s Platonic ideal of submissive men. This is not the sort of man, and not the sort of cock, most people think of when they think of a submissive man.
When you think of a circle, you imagine a perfectly round shape. Further, you trust that the majority of people you speak about circles with will also be imagining a perfectly round shape. Indeed, it would be difficult to have a discussion about circles if such a fundamental aspect of a circle’s Form was not widely understood. Sadly, as Tom Allen noted recently, popular understanding of submissive masculinity is all but hijacked by societal unease with the concept:
Sub/bottom males are portrayed in the media as whiney, weak, worthless cross-dressers, and generally it’s done for laughs. [… S]uch negative attitudes affect us, the kinksters. […] Trying to explain what I like or feel to [my wife] gets lost when she does an internet search and the first (and the majority of!) images she sees are Mistress Cruella and her sissified sissy slut. Totally not her—nor her idea of who she wants to be, nor of who she wants me to be. And while things are better between us now, it was very difficult to explain anything to her when the first images that popped into her head were of those groveling “worthless worm” types of men, and the overly dramatic “Crawl, you little bitch!” vinyl clad dommes.
In reality, there is no perfect submissive man just as there is no perfect circle. However, just as the idea of a perfect circle is widely understood, I wish a popular understanding of many mens’ submission were informed by the realities of more submissive men.
-maymay
surabayajim:
porncull:
deltaofvenus:
erotika69:](http://25.media.tumblr.com/ovxRFAgf6gyks9v2ch54wzLdo1_500.jpg)
Standing under a spotlight in a corner, a naked man sporting an erection leans against the walls with his hands behind his back.
Sometimes it’s difficult for me to write about images without overt BDSM symbols, like this photograph. Even though I often see submissive masculinity quite clearly, it’s difficult to believe I’ll successfully convey what I see to others. This man’s pose, the placement of his hands, his downcast eyes, and his position in the corner all suggest a submissive inclination to me. However, the photograph’s focus on his turgidly erect penis is what’s most interesting about it; this image is not most people’s Platonic ideal of submissive men. This is not the sort of man, and not the sort of cock, most people think of when they think of a submissive man.
When you think of a circle, you imagine a perfectly round shape. Further, you trust that the majority of people you speak about circles with will also be imagining a perfectly round shape. Indeed, it would be difficult to have a discussion about circles if such a fundamental aspect of a circle’s Form was not widely understood. Sadly, as Tom Allen noted recently, popular understanding of submissive masculinity is all but hijacked by societal unease with the concept:
Sub/bottom males are portrayed in the media as whiney, weak, worthless cross-dressers, and generally it’s done for laughs. [… S]uch negative attitudes affect us, the kinksters. […] Trying to explain what I like or feel to [my wife] gets lost when she does an internet search and the first (and the majority of!) images she sees are Mistress Cruella and her sissified sissy slut. Totally not her—nor her idea of who she wants to be, nor of who she wants me to be. And while things are better between us now, it was very difficult to explain anything to her when the first images that popped into her head were of those groveling “worthless worm” types of men, and the overly dramatic “Crawl, you little bitch!” vinyl clad dommes.
In reality, there is no perfect submissive man just as there is no perfect circle. However, just as the idea of a perfect circle is widely understood, I wish a popular understanding of many mens’ submission were informed by the realities of more submissive men.