A shirtless man whose hands are tied at the back of the chair he is sitting on slouches carefully as a woman straddling him kisses his neck while pointing a large automatic (paintball) gun at his temple.
Here’s a photograph that, for many, could be very disturbing. I find it amazingly sexy because it’s one of the few images I’ve ever seen that so clearly focuses on a sexualized and extreme power disparity. This isn’t merely an image depicting risk, it’s a picture that actively references the ability of one person to control the life and death of another.
Despite the fact that power is at the center of sexual practices like BDSM, we suffer from a dearth of deep understanding of the topic. One of the nuances of power theory frequently misunderstood is the distinction between intentional power gradations and coercive power imbalances. In the former, people intentionally create circumstances to distribute power unequally. Examples of these situations may include teacher/student, employer/employee, and D/s relationships. In the latter, people unintentionally enter circumstances of unequal power distribution strong enough to hinder their ability to make choices free of negative repercussions. Examples of these situations may include peer pressure, unhealthy parent/child relationships, and rape.
Whenever you discuss a situation that involves power (and they all do…) it’s extremely important to identify which kind of power is at work. Mistaking one for the other is a root cause of abuse in relationships, discriminatory laws, and perpetuating fear.
(via wonderlandcode831)