Dimensions
110 x 172 x 13mm
Is sado-masochism yet another perversion? In this challenging and thought-provoking book Estela Weldon dares the reader to think again.
From her extensive clinical experience spanning four decades she explores the psychodynamic aspects of these relationships from the lives and writings of Marquis de Sade and Leopold von Sacher-Masoch to the contemporary underground club scene.
Contrary to expectations that S&M is only concerned with the bizarre, Weldon illuminates the intricacies of everyday family life within the dynamics of power and control, especially when it involves domestic violence. This investigation escalates to include the 'malignant bonding' operating couples in cases such as Myra Hindley / Ian Bradley and the West family.
Is sado-masochism invariably present in the victim-perpetrators cycle? Is sado-masochism a learned behaviour or an innate one? Are sadism and masochism the complete opposite or do they complement one another? Are they specifically related to the genders?
