The Dominatrix is one of the most recognisable icons of the BDSM world. But where did these take-charge women come from? Writer Leo Larkin takes a look at the history of the Dominatrix.
What does a Dominatrix look like to you?
Leather-clad, whip-wielding and not prepared to take any of your crap, the Dominatrix has become a cultural icon. But how long have these formidable women been punishing their inferiors? It isn't always easy to tell. Historical records are often very quiet on sexual subjects. Still, the role seems to be as old as modern society – and perhaps the history of the Dominatrix goes even further back than that.
The idea of punishing and being punished for sexual pleasure turns up in the earliest civilisations. For instance, the ancient Etruscan 'Tomb of the Flogging' shows a woman being whipped during a threesome. Dominatrix-like figures also turn up in ancient art. For example, the 'Villa of the Mysteries' in Pompeii features an image of a whip-wielding goddess. Some archaeologists believe that whipping, sensory deprivation and stress positions may have been part of religious initiations. These sensations created an altered state of consciousness that opened the mind to divine presences.
Are mythological figures like this the conceptual ancestors of modern Dominatrices? According to the leading historian of the Dominatrix, the enigmatic Anne O. Nomis, absolutely. In her book 'The History and Arts of the Dominatrix', Nomis explores the connection in detail - from physical punishment to acts of worship and gender play, there are many similarities.
The history of the Dominatrix
Of course, there's a lot we don't know about sex in the ancient world. Indeed, we're forced to make educated guesses about people's sexual beliefs and practices for much of history. As we get closer to the modern-day, we're on slightly better ground. In the centuries after the printing press, a whole genre of erotic literature springs up. And if there's one thing we can conclude from this proto-porn, it's that our ancestors were very into Dominant women.
Take 'Fashionable Lectures', for example. First printed in 18th-century England, this text is all about whipping, specifically whipping by authoritative women. It praises "beautiful ladies" who take on the role of "mother, step-mother, governess, lady's maid, kept-mistress and house-keeper." Among these ladies are 'Mother Birch,' which we may assume is an alias, and 'Sally Harris,' which would be quite a dull alias. No offence to any Sally Harrises out there, of course.
Indeed, the whole of 18th and 19th century England seems to be awash with people who wanted to be Dominated and flogged by women. (This may be one of the reasons they call it 'le vice Anglais'). John Cleland's 1748 novel 'Fanny Hill' includes several famous flogging scenes. Not only does Fanny flog clients, we specifically see her dominating them, albeit inexpertly.
“Stooping then to untie his garters, he gave them to me for the use of tying him down … a circumstance no farther necessary than, as I suppose, it made part of the humour of the thing, since he prescribed it to himself, amongst the rest of the ceremonial. … I led him then to the bench, and according to my cue, played at forcing him to lie down: which, after some little show of reluctance, for form's sake, he submitted to ...”
This type of flogging by sex workers who weren't only, or even mainly, Dominant, seems to have been common. If it wasn't, contemporary artists and authors at least tended to portray it that way. Take a look at plate III of Hogarth's 'A Harlot's Progress', and you'll see a cane hanging on the wall. Moll isn't particularly meant to be some flogging specialist, either – it's just understood to be part of sex.
Looking for an expert flogger?
There were flogging specialists, though, and some were very well-known figures in the 19th century. One of the most famous was Theresa Berkley (or Berkeley), inventor (or at least namer) of the 'Berkley Horse.' This enterprising businesswoman ran one of London's most famous brothels and was said to own a vast range of flogging implements. Not only did she play a switch with the best of them, she apparently was one. Clients who paid enough could not only have Mrs Berkley flog them but could flog her as well.
The history of the dominatrix - our ancestors loved a good whipping. Image: Biblioteca Rector Machado y Nuñez via Flickr.com CC BY 2.0 license
Respectable women get kinky too
When we read about the history of the Dominatrix in early modern historical sources, we're usually reading about sex workers. But that shouldn't lead us to believe that no women of the era were whipping their partners just for pleasure. Erotic literature features sex workers to a great extent – indeed, "pornography" literally means "writing about prostitutes." Respectable women weren't supposed to get up to that kind of thing, let alone enjoy it.
But what respectable women are supposed to do and what they actually do aren't necessarily related. The problem is that writing – published writing, anyway – about intimate lives is rare. Literary conventions like the sexy flogging brothel may reflect fantasy more than reality. Nonetheless, we still know more about them than about what women enjoyed in their personal lives. To a large extent, the bedroom door remains closed to us in many eras.
These historical women are also ancestors of today's Dominatrices, even if they might not have thought of themselves that way. Much of modern BDSM culture comes out of the post-war sexual revolution. But some of it has older roots, not least because those pioneers of the community looked back at the history of the Dominatrix for inspiration. And after all, who doesn't like to think that what gets them off is based on some of humankind's oldest spiritual beliefs?
Leo Larkin writes about history and the humorous side of sex. Despite the fact that Leo is a pen name, he is a real person.
Cover image: Shutterstock.com
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