Coming to Power is a collective book containing excerpts of multiple individual’s thoughts, experiences, or fantasies of Lesbian S/M. The book started out with an introduction that laid out what was to be expected of the book as a whole and the tremendous struggle that each of the publishers had on deciding what the book should contain. Lesbian S/M is a very controversial topic in the feminist movement. The introduction states, “In the public arena of the lesbian, feminist, and gay press, positive feelings about S/M experiences have been met for the most part with swift negative reaction and authoritative reprimands.” It goes on to explain the difficulty that individuals face with S/M because of the power dynamic instilled within the act that is reflective of the patriarchy and abuse toward women.
The first entry titled “Reasons” depicts a very vivid scene of two women partaking in S/M sex. The writer, Barabara Rose, describes the scene as erotic and enjoyable. She makes it known that every act being performed is consensual and encouraged. She paints S/M how she views it—an erotic exploration that is performed for the pleasure of each partner. The next entry entitled “Taking The Sting out of S/M” talks about the controversy around the act and the ways in which it should be defined. The writer, Kitt, states “there is a full spectrum in the diversity of S/M practices, such as tying with silk scarves, slapping, bondage, or whipping. All of it involves playing with the issues of power and control. And I mean playing in the full sense of the word.” She goes on to explain that S/M is an uncomfortable topic, just as the topic of lesbians had been, but with time it will progress to be more comfortable. She also included safety tips for performing S/M which I very much enjoyed because unlike a lot of theoretical feminist pieces, as we have discussed, this provides some answers as to what to do next. The final entry entitled “Report of a Conference on Feminism, Sexuality and Power: The Elect Clash with the Perverse” explains the conflicting thoughts on S/M in the women’s movement that was displayed during a conference at Mount Holyoke College. The topic overtook the conference with viewpoints from anti-S/M groups, who believed it perpetuated violence against women as well as patriarchal problems, pro-sex groups, who believed S/M was just sexual freedom meant to be expressed, and those who were unenthusiastic about the topic, which included the writer of the piece. As a neutral listener to the debate, writer Margaret Hunt was able to take in both sides of the topic and form her own views. At the very end of the piece, it was clear where she stood on the issue. She responds to speaker Sheila Jeffery’s remark: “personal freedom is not the sort of concept that would fit into my view of what we can do around sexuality,” by saying “this is not my revolution.”
This reading was very interesting to me because it tackled a topic that is not discussed very often. Like Margaret Hunt, I had no strong opinions for or against S/M. I was dragged back and forth throughout the readings as to where I stand with the issue. On one hand, I can see where anti-S/M groups are coming from. The act of S/M can be portrayed as violent or abusive and reinforce power dynamics that women work hard at depleting. However, on the other hand, I believe in sexual freedom and exploration as long as there is full consent from each individual. Like Hunt, I lean more toward pro-S/M and I believe that as long as each individual is respected and has given full consent, then there is little room for outside constrictions.