A man is bound, gagged, and laid across train tracks as a young woman holding her finger to her lips scampers away from him.
This photograph depicts the classic damsel-in-distress scenario, complete with (hopefully satirical) sorry bondage, only with its traditional gender roles reversed. Rather than the woman playing the role of helpless victim and the man being shown as the violent aggressor, it’s the male model who looks down the length of train tracks helplessly while the woman acts like the mischievous villain. The image reminds me of the countless similar scenarios I witnessed on TV and in Hollywood movies, but this time, finally, I don’t have to flip the genders around in my head to relate to it like I have to do with most porn.
Outlets for such role reversal are actually more common than most people think. This past weekend was Halloween, which I often view with scornful cynicism, but which also might provide a rare opportunity for people to experiment with otherwise socially taboo feelings. When I can push past the frustrations I have with constantly seeing women’s costumes sold as slut-wear and men’s intentionally ridiculous cross-dressing (I’m not “cross-dressing” when I do this) I can understand that, for some, Halloween can be the perfect cover to use to explore gender variance safely in public.
-maymay
derekisme:
a fantasy of more than a few girls I’m sure … and I’ve got a former boyfriend who I could happily do the same (not really!)