KittenWithaTwist
Posts: 490
Joined: 8/3/2005 Status: offline
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quote:
Degradation is, without question, destructive to the submissive. Its consequences are unhealthy and potentially disastrous to the relationship. As a tool to achieve dominance it is a weak form and unreliable, leaving the submissive more susceptible to outside influences that can destabilize the relationship. Humiliation as a tool can be useful in altering the submissives attitude without destroying their self esteem. It can be useful in establishing and reinforcing roles within the relationship. Combined with other positive methods, it can help produce a submissive that is happy in their relationship and their role and thus less susceptible to other influences, helping to make the relationship more stable. With an understanding of how to use humiliation as a tool, and the destructive nature of degradation, a dominant can work towards creating a better relationship and a more responsive submissive. Judging by the flow of your essay, I'd say that your opinion on the topic is not in regards to play or scening so much as a tool in the training of a submissive by a dominant. Personally, I would not use humiliation OR degradation as a tool to train a submissive, nor would I accept it as a training tool if I were the submissive in that scenario. However, on a scening basis, I don't consider degradation to be particularly harmful on a long-term basis. After all, most people who engage in this particular kink enjoy the effects and consent to be a part of them. Personally, I can't take a LOT of degradation, but I can stand a little to get me into a particular frame of mind. For instance, if I'm about to do a rape play scene, I enjoy a bit of degradation to get me into the right headspace. I get off on being told that I'm good for nothing or that I'm only useful as a glory hole. I like being forced to say these things about myself, and being "punished" if I can't admit them. It's humiliating and degrading, but it's only a scene and I can stop it if I need to, or my top will stop it if he feels the need to do so. When I consider the way that I play with humiliation, degradation, and objectification, I wouldn't incorporate any of those techniques into a long-term based relationship dynamic. For me, it would lead to low self-esteem and a lot of pain. So, while I don't think degradation is destructive on a scening or play-time basis, I do agree partially that it could be during a relationship dynamic.
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"Time travel: It's a cornocopia of disturbing concepts." ~Ron Stoppable
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