The Power of BDSM

Book excerpt: "Pleasure, Power, and Pain: Understanding BDSM Practices, Identities, and Communities features cutting-edge empirical research by scholars working from a wide range of disciplinary approaches and in diverse national contexts, along with personal reflections from community educators, activists, and practitioners. Designed to be of interest to scholars working in sexuality studies and related fields, teachers of graduate courses focused on sexualities, identities, communities, inequalities, and a broader, non-specialist audience interested in sexualities, society, and identity, Pleasure, Power, and Pain engages persistent questions about the relationships among sexualities, identities, and communities: What role do communities play in shaping BDSM identities? How are BDSM communities similar to and different from other kinds of sexuality and identity-based communities? What are the ethics involved in researching marginalized and stigmatized communities? How do cultural representations shape lived experiences? What are the relationships between structural and personal power?"--