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BDSM Dictionary : Masochism: history
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This entry is part of the BDSM Dictionary hosted by Informed Consent.
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The English dictionary definition
It should be noted that many members of the BDSM community seek out pain
principally since it enhances their sexual experience. However, for many
masochists the pain/suffering/humiliation is a
form of gratification within itself.A common sexual perspective
Masochism is the counterpart to sadism, the sexual pleasure or gratification of having pain or suffering inflicted upon the self, often consisting of sexual fantasies or urges for being beaten, humiliated, bound, tortured, or otherwise made to suffer, either as an enhancement to or a substitute for sexual pleasure. The name is derived from the name of the 19th century author Leopold von Sacher-Masoch, known for his novel Venus in Furs that dealt with highly masochistic themes.
A masochist does not in general take pleasure in any arbitary form of pain, only in pain received under the pretext of enforcing authority, and typically only that of a sexual nature. Likewise, a sadist usually only takes pleasure in pain that is inflicted for reasons of punishment and control, and most often for the indirect pleasure of the masochist. Many sadomasochistic activities involve only mild pain or discomfort. Often they are focused primarily on roleplay.
The term BDSM has been created to describe the quite
common activities between consenting adults that contain sadistic and
masochistic elements. Many behaviors such as erotic
spanking and love-bites that many people think
of only as "rough" sex also contain elements of sado-masochism.See Also
(This entry in the BDSM Dictionary incorporates text from the Masochism article in Wipipedia.)
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