|
ElanSubdued -> RE: Feminism and the Strap-on (philosophical) (9/11/2008 2:57:52 PM)
|
Untouched1282,
Precursor: it's nice to see a pervy OP that is (despite self-confessed motivation from the "spirits") sincere, thick, long, juicy, and well thought out. :-)
With the precursor out of the way, I'll address your post in a line-by-line fashion... just 'cause that's my mood.
quote:
I guess I’m having a difficult time wrapping my mind around the use of the strap-on and the socio-philosophical derivatives of its use.
Socio what? Derivatives? Right away, let's simplify this equation by factoring out psychological and mathematical implications. You're talking about strap-ons, but really this same advice applies to those born with cocks too. It goes like this. Bodies have various "holes" that are fun to stick things into. Truly, you'll have to trust me on this one. Some people use cocks to fill these holes. Some people use strap-ons to fill these holes. And indeed, there are other "hole filling" tools so some people use these as well. That's about all there is to it. You can leave out feminism, gender, dominance, submission, and even BDSM. Round holes endear and invite those possessing round pegs (regardless of whether the pegs are biological or synthetic). Actually, it works the other way around too. Those possessing round pegs often go looking for round holes to put them in.
quote:
I guess the majority of my issues/questions derive from the fact that the strap-on (dildo) is a literal replacement for the penis, or something "granted" specifically to men.
A strap-on is *not* a replacement for a penis. It is a tool used to fill round holes - nothing more and nothing less. Should penetrator and penetratee get off on the "round hole invites round peg" equation, presto, fireworks shall ensue.
quote:
With this being the case, how does a feminist view the role of the strap-on?
A strap-on is a sex toy. A cock is a cock. Honestly, I don't think either has anything to do with feminism.
Side note to ShaktiSama: wanna' back me up here? :-)
quote:
In one hand, the strap-on is a tool for dominance; it suggests the superiority of a woman, her ability to control a sub, his/her sexual pleasure, by dominating them sexually in their most vulnerable areas. This seems to assert that the only difference between a male and a female is the penis. Such thinking seems to be pro-feminist in nature. It suggests that the person-made, synthetic phallus is able to undermine the primary natural inequity between males and females. The strap-on becomes the Great (or at least pinky-sized) Equalizer. This type of thinking coexists with many feminists who view male and female as being inherently equal.
See my note from above: a strap-on is a sex toy, an object. It has nothing to do with dominance. If a Domme chooses to enjoy herself by using a sex toy on her partner, the toy doesn't imbue her dominance, she does. As for superiority of women... bah. Women are people, just as are men. Some "people" are superior, in certain respects, to others, but I don't think this has anything to do with gender (unless you're dealing with metrics like physical strength, and even then there are quite a few surprising gender juxtapositions). More and more, as the world evolves and our attitudes evolve along with it, humankind demonstrates that there are no natural inequities between men and women. Thus, possessing a cock seems like a rather moot feature. True enough, cocks distinguish one model of human from another, but they don't intrinsically make a model better or worse.
quote:
On the other hand, however, the use of a strap-on could inadvertently validate the natural dominance of males over females. Fair or unfair, having a penis affords a man natural superiority, at least in the bedroom, over females. In using the dildo, the woman/Domme, is attempting to become/act more like a male. In effect, these "act"ions suggest, intentionally or not, a continual longing by certain females to become male-like. This line of thinking, at least to me, would undermine any possibility for a “true” Female supremacy and/or actual FemDom. (This doesn't even take into account the physical side of strap-on sex, and the oft-one-sided dispersal of pleasure).
Heh. :-) Well, I've already expressed my view on female superiority (read: debunked it as myth) so that addresses this aspect of your thoughts. I don't believe that having a penis (real or synthetic) affords the owner superiority in the bedroom. Likewise, I don't believe that a woman who chooses to use a strap-on is necessarily doing so because she wants to become more male-like. Were I a Domme, I'd probably describe the phenomena thusly: "round holes of those I'm attracted to attract my attention... it's fun to fuck the people I love". Now there are a myriad reasons why people fuck one another. I'm not going to pretend that the simplistic motivation I've given here is the only one. Likewise, there are usually many simultaneous factors that contribute to why one person fucks another and I don't think Dommes are exempted in this regard. Just to throw out a few things that might motivate a Domme to use a strap-on: feelings of closeness, objectification play, humiliation play, gender bending, imprinting on her charge, it feels good, marking her charge. Some or none of these may come into play. Each woman, in my experience, is unique in her motivations and preferences.
quote:
I'm not trying to get into the cultural IDs of man and woman or socially-created gender norms/roles, or anything along those lines. I'm just curious.
Actually, whether intended or not, I think you did base your thinking on socially-created gender norms and roles. Still, I'm glad you posted. It's nice to read and reply to something that makes me think as opposed to the one-line, wank fodder threads that trolls frequently post (ex: "how do you take your sub with a strap-on").
So, to sum this all up, people fuck for many reasons. While it's true that some Dommes may use strap-ons as a statement about gender roles, I think it's impossible to make any generalization about why someone chooses to wear a strap-on and/or to penetrate their partner. The only generalization I'm willing to make in regard to Dommes is that most do what they do because they want to.
Elan.
|
|
|
|
