Topping From The Bottom

By Darcy Midnight

BDSM has existed in various forms since the ancient times. It was not until around 1969 that terms B/D, D/S, and S/M were put together to form the common acronym we know today. Many writers have - at various times explored domination, submission, sadism, masochism and other play over the millennium. Thanks in part to the 50 Shades of Grey trilogy and of course, the Internet, BDSM has become more common, moved out of the sexual closet. Much is misunderstood about BDSM; some consider it perverse, slavery cloaked, or a very painful lifestyle. These ideas are false.

In Topping from the Bottom, I attempt to provide readers with a non-graphic encyclopedia of terminology and activities. Yes, there are illustrations or pictures of gags, bondage, and dungeon equipment, but only to visually display the term. This book is not an erotic read, though the contents are not appropriate for younger eyes.

If the reader is interested in a reference guide, pictures of DIY home dungeons, and different types of nipple clamps, this is the book for you. Do you the difference between a cleave gag and a bit or ball gag? If not, this book defines those and many other terms. Do you know the difference between consent and consensual non-consent? Between punishment and abuse? In 20,000 or so words, I attempt to dispel myths and educate the interested reader on a current hot topic that has existed for thousands of years: BDSM

• Language: English
• Publisher: Darcy Midnight
• Release date: Jan 26, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311675279

Darcy Midnight

I write about my own (and friends) personal erotic experiences, with details changed to protect others involved. I've had poetry published and do a little fictional short story writing too. I love to write. :)Any feedback and comments are always appreciated.

Book preview

Topping from the Bottom

A BDSM Encyclopaedia

By

Darcy Midnight

SMASHWORDS EDITION

* * * * *

PUBLISHED BY:

Darcy Midnight on SMASHWORDS

Copyright 2014 by Darcy Midnight

SmashWords Edition License Notes

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Table of Contents

The 50 Shades Effect

BDSM

Myths

Content

Glossary of Terms

About the Author

D/s is not about inferiority and superiority—it’s about the voluntary polarization of power roles, not a difference in quality between two human beings.

Andrea Zenin, 10 principles for healthy 24/7 D/s and M/si

The 50 Shades Effect

Author E.L. James and the 50 Shades trilogy have created a worldwide buzz about acts, actions, and devices related to BDSM. Anastasia or Ana, the female protagonist, is young, naive, and inexperienced in most things sexual, and hardly knowledgeable about BD and SM. By random fortune, she meets Christian Grey, a 27-year old self-made billionaire, and dominant sexual male. Both experience an immediate spark and connection, though for differing reasons. Grey finds Ana attractive in a sexual way and considers her as a potential conquest and submissive to his dominant predilections. Ana, by contrast, views Christian as a talented, handsome, and extraordinary man, though unapproachable and certainly unattainable.

As the plot unfolds, Grey proceeds to seduce Ana and ultimately offers her a unique agreement: contractual BDSM sex with Grey as the Dominant and Ana as the submissive. Unbeknownst to Christian, Ana is a virgin and has no understanding of safe words, hard limits, soft limits, pain for pleasure and most other sexual terminology. In turn, Ana is shocked to learn that this man of world, known for his business acumen and charitable works, has a deeply hidden and kinky sexual past. The contract contains rules from obedience to punishment, and hard limits to include electro-play, animals, and blood. All acts in the contract are considered to be between consenting adults and failure to comply by the submissive will result in immediate punishment as directed by the Dominant. Ana is overwhelmed by the terms, a non-disclosure agreement, and of course, by the Red Room, a sexual dungeon in Grey’s Seattle residence. The Red Room is replete with an X-shaped cross, chains, shackles, canes, and myriad other implements.

The 50 Shades trilogy is a romance, made spicy by assorted erotic and sexual acts, many of which stretch the boundaries of normal coital relations. As of this writing, 50 Shades of Grey – the first in the trilogy – has sold over 90 million copies world-wide, translated into 52 languages, performed on stage, and a movie is scheduled for release in February, 2015. Clearly this genre of sexual kink is sought and embraced in many cultures. BDSM is certainly not new, however, or at least the sexual acts associated with Bondage, Domination, Sadism, and Masochism. The ancient Indian handbook – the Kama Sutra – has numerous references to S & M. Pain and pleasure, dominance and submission are certainly not limited to Homo sapiens; most mammals have a Dominant or alpha male and submissive males or females. Paintings and writings over the millennium either openly display flogging or whipping, or are suggestive of dominance by one person or persons over another. Whether for punishment or pleasure, spanking and other forms of force administered are common throughout recorded human history.

BDSM

Mention that you are into BDSM and people get a look of incredulity or shrink away in fear. When asked what BDSM is, the common answer is kinky, perverted, and painful sexual practices. Some believe that it's a form of abuse; others believe it's just perversion, but that couldn't be further from the truth.

Practices of BDSM survive from some of the oldest textual records in the world, associated with rituals to the Goddess Inanna (Ishtar in Akkadian). Academic historian and archaeologist Anne O Nomis has undertaken research revealing cuneiform texts dedicated to Inanna which incorporate domination rituals.ii Nomis points out writings that describe cross-dressing and rituals filled with pain and ecstasy resulting in altered states of consciousness: punishment, moaning, pleasure, and song.

BDSM was not categorized as a social construct until much more recently. The leatherman culture preceded BDSM and started some years after World War 2, more commonly in the homosexual community. Leather was followed by assignment of terms: B&D (bondage and domination), D&S (domination and submission), and S&M (sadism and masochism), the last of which is attributed to Dr. Alfred Kinsey. These three terms were subsequently merged into one term – BDSM – Bondage, Domination, Sadism, and Masochism somewhere around 1969iii.

The words sadism and masochism were coined in the 19th century by Austro-German psychiatrist Richard Freiherr von Krafft-Ebing. The names were derived from the Marquis de Sade (1740-1814) and Leopold