Bound or free?

In any human activity there are questions, important questions, you could say even transcendental questions. Much of the activity’s meaning will depend on your individual answer to those questions.

BDSM is no exception, and we will try to make some comments on one of those important questions, so you can make your choice with fundament.

The question is: should the floggings be given with the sub bound, or with the sub free to move? (What did you expect? We are a site on spanking, not on metaphysics or religion)

And remember that you should change the “she”s for “he”s according to your gender preferences.

For OTK punishments, even if the subject is not usually bound, she is not actually free; she is in a position that restricts her movements and her possibilities for defense. These spankings are usually given with the sub unbound, even when if she is too strong, she could have her hands bound at the back and her ankles bound, just for practical reasons. This is not what we are talking about.

The question is for punishments in which the sub must stand, bend or lie by her, as for a caning or a flogging.

The school punishments and most parental floggings of this kind were given with the subject free.

Why would a child stand “six of the best” without moving? One reason was they didn’t dare to disobey an order form a figure in authority, as they were trained that way. If one of their parents or some adult from the school staff ordered them to bend over they had to, there was no choice, no way out. And if told to stay there, they were going to do their best for staying in position. There was also fear, because they knew that if they moved, they were disobeying an order, and that was cause for further punishments.

If the punishment was public, for instance, in the classroom, bending over the teacher’s desk in front of all their classmates, there was another reason, especially for the boys, pride. They would stay there, desperately trying not to move and not to cry, for not appearing as cowards in front of their classmates. Enduring the punishment “as a man” and taking it without undue crying or struggling was a badge of courage that got them the respect of their schoolmates.

But we are adults playing. Why would a sub stand a flogging without moving?

The first reason is showing the proper submission. If the wish of the Master is that his sub has to accept the punishment, she should accept it for proving that she is ready to submit, for pleasing her dom. Secondarily, as with the children, there is fear, because there is always the possibility of extra punishment if they don’t show submission, but it is not the most important reason.

Another reason is that by submitting voluntarily to the punishment, the sub is accepting that she misbehaved and that she deserves the punishments. It’s a way of showing remorse.

But there is another way for looking at it, if you are into hard punishments (and it was also true on some school thrashings). You could consider the punishment as a confrontation of wills. The punisher is going to do his best to make the punished move. The punished is going to do her best for not giving him that satisfaction. If she stands the punishment, she won, and she will by rewarded by stopping the punishment. If she moves, the master won, and his prize is the possibility giving her extra lashes. Is a way of showing that “it didn’t hurt” (even if it did). Of course, you should not let the sub win if what is intended is punishing her. A winning sub is less prone to obey.

And what about being bound? For me, at least, being bound is a way of feeling actually defenseless. I can do nothing to stop the punishment, not even moving for getting a respite. No matter how much the last lash hurt, I can only wait for another. I am in the dom’s hands, and I will get as much as she cares for. I have no choice. And if I am gagged, and I cannot even try to talk my way out, the feeling of defenseless is total. And as a dom, I enjoy the feeling of power I get for knowing she is at my mercy (even when, of course, I know I can’t actually hurt her).

Another reason for having the sub bound is that way she can enjoy the feeling of the lash without worries. No need to concentrate on keeping the balance, on fighting the pain for not moving, no distractions, no choice. She has the freedom for wiggling, struggling, and reacting fully to the chastisement without concern. Just the pain from the last stroke and the anticipation of more pain from the next.

It is also good tying up the sub if you will punish hard, for instance with a caning or a flogging on the back, for keeping her from moving, so you have a stationary target. The less the sub moves, the less possibilities are for hitting in the wrong places.

So, if you want her fixed, or allow her fully enjoying the experience, tie her up. If you look for submission, obedience and regret, make the sub stand the punishment free. And of course, there is always time to tie her for additional punishment if she can’t stand it.
 

Published: 07/12/06