Gorean subculture

From Infogalactic: the planetary knowledge core
Jump to: navigation, search

Gorean subculture is a fandom based on the philosophy espoused in John Norman's long-running science fiction novel series Chronicles of Counter-Earth.[1][2] Although Norman's philosophy is basically concerned with the "order of nature" in a universal context of power and subordination, the Gorean subculture particularly focusses on the master-and-slave dynamic in sexual relationships and associated female submission portrayed in the novels.

Relation to BDSM

The majority of Goreans who pursue a "lifestyle" approach often do not consider what they do to be BDSM. However, they are generally considered part of the "kinky" subculture. In that context, they reject the idea of isolated "scenes". Instead, their practices may be described as 24/7, dominance & submission, and/or Total Power Exchange relationships. BDSM concepts of servitude and slavery typically play a key role in Gorean dynamics.

Norman's non-fictional sex manual Imaginative Sex presents a series of elaborate fantasy scenarios to be acted out in isolated scenes. He also recommends the use of symbolic substitutes, such as the sound of claps as a substitute for whippings and other physical punishments. Pat Califia asserts that Norman was critical of the psychological and physical harm that non-stop BDSM slavery and corporal punishment might inflict.[3]

Internet popularity

Starting from the 1990s, Gorean subculture has become attractive to a number of male teenagers through role-playing in chat rooms. The teenage role-playing Goreans who concealed many of their personal aspects such as age or lack of experience thanks to anonymity managed to appeal to a considerable number or married and middle-aged women as kajirae in role playing contexts. Such notoriety caused by the profile and practices of the Gorean virtual community succeeded in creating disdain among both feminists and the BDSM community.[4]

References

  1. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. "No Fantasy, Please, We're Americans: A Foreword by a Feminist", introduction by Pat Califia to 1997 edition of Imaginative Sex
  4. Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links