True Subs/True Dommes

In Second Life, there are many who play at being either a sub or a dom/domme. They think of themselves as part-timers.

I would argue that you're a sub or you're not. You're a Dom/Domme, or you're not.

I first entered Second Life some months ago, beginning my journey like so many others, thinking the place was just a message board on steroids. Then I began meeting various people and learning how vast and very complex is the world of Second Life (SL).

And I discovered that people were beginning to step outside of their limitations there. So I thought, perhaps, I would also.

One aspect that has always been a secret part of my life is the whole sub-culture of hypno/hypnosis. In college, I experimented with hypnosis for a while as part of my psychology program. I found that hypnotizing others was much easier than I had ever thought it could be. But after college, I left it all behind. At least, I left it mostly behind.

But over all the years from then till now, I still thought about it. It inhabited my fantasies and most secret thoughts. And I did a lot of additional research on the subject; not just of hypno domination, but of domination and submission in general.

One of the most relevant studies on the subject was performed by Stanley Milgram in 1961, just as Adolph Eichmann's trial began in Jerusalem for his acts against Jews in WWII. Eichmann's defense, which mirrored the defense of thousands of others who were part of the Nazi war camps, was simply that he was "following orders."

This defense was so prevalent that Milgram wondered if perhaps submission to authority wasn't a more powerful factor than previously thought. The experiment he crafted at Yale University could never be performed today due to the ethical questions his experiments raised, but what we can learn from this research is enlightening.

Here is a description of the experiment that Milgram ran, in his own words:

The legal and philosophic aspects of obedience are of enormous importance, but they say very little about how most people behave in concrete situations. I set up a simple experiment at Yale University to test how much pain an ordinary citizen would inflict on another person simply because he was ordered to by an experimental scientist. Stark authority was pitted against the subjects' [participants'] strongest moral imperatives against hurting others, and, with the subjects' [participants'] ears ringing with the screams of the victims, authority won more often than not. The extreme willingness of adults to go to almost any lengths on the command of an authority constitutes the chief finding of the study and the fact most urgently demanding explanation.

Ordinary people, simply doing their jobs, and without any particular hostility on their part, can become agents in a terrible destructive process. Moreover, even when the destructive effects of their work become patently clear, and they are asked to carry out actions incompatible with fundamental standards of morality, relatively few people have the resources needed to resist authority.

When you read the details of what went on during the study, you cannot help but be amazed at how subjects behaved. Despite the fact they fully believed they were taking part in a memory experiment using electric shocks with real subjects (the subjects were actually part of the research team and were pretending to feel pain), they continued to deliver mounting levels of electric current as directed by the "authority" figure, played by a researcher in a white lab coat.

Here is a telling quote regarding the results of Milgram's first experiment on authority:

Before conducting the experiment, Milgram polled fourteen Yale University senior-year psychology majors as to what they thought would be the results. All of the poll respondents believed that only a sadistic few (average 1.2%) would be prepared to inflict the maximum voltage. Milgram also informally polled his colleagues and found that they, too, believed very few subjects would progress beyond a very strong shock.

In Milgram's first set of experiments, 65 percent (26 of 40) of experiment participants administered the experiment's final 450-volt shock [emphasis mine], though many were very uncomfortable doing so. At some point, every participant paused and questioned the experiment, some said they would refund the money they were paid for participating in the experiment. No participant steadfastly refused to administer shocks before the 300-volt level.

So, what does this say about us as human beings? It is hard to say. Perhaps it says that many of us respond naturally to authority. Obviously, this can be both good and bad.

When it comes to hypnosis, this tells me that -- while it is true people cannot be made to do things they truly do not wish to do -- people will go much farther than they first believed if they have given another authority over themselves. Ultimately, people will go farther than even they might believe; under the right circumstances at least.

This is a long aside, but one that is very relevant to my discussion on true subs vs. true doms/dommes. After wandering through some of the various highways and byways of SL -- my favorite being Wildefire Walcott's Desperation Isle -- and experimenting both as a domme and a sub, I know that I am a true sub.

I find that, for me, serving my Mistress is pleasure; that her wishes are my desires. I have left behind most of my hypno fantasies because I don't need them any longer. I have a Mistress who adores me and I adore her. I will do things for her that I would not do for any other because I have given her authority over me.

And that is the difference between a true sub and a part-time sub. I do not roleplay while I'm in SL; I do not play games with my Mistress's heart. I love her and she loves me.

I have CHOSEN to submit and she has accepted my submission and my service. And this choice -- freely made and freely accepted -- makes all the difference.

In addition, my Mistress does not play the Domme role, she is a Domme. And so my desire to serve is perfectly matched with her desire to be served, and we both appreciate the gifts we offer each other.

Please don't think this is an unnatural thing. It is very natural, with duties and responsibilities for all involved.

I've made my choice based on the fact that I know my heart's desire. I cannot follow that desire in the real world, but I've found that I can fully express it in SL. And with that I'm very content.

Submissively yours,

Chels Blanco