變異的性行為

長期以來，施虐癖曾經被人簡單地與殘忍畫上了等號，被人定義為“得自施加痛苦的快樂”。相反地，受虐癖被人定義為“得自感到痛苦的快樂”，因此，精神病的舊術語“受虐狂（algolagnia，希臘語algos：痛苦；lagneia：渴望）”的意思是享受痛苦。這種看法是鼠目寸光的，不過，肯定是能夠被人理解的。數個世紀以來，鞭撻懲罰一直是教育的常規特徵，在家裏和教室裏都是這樣。許多成人曾經記得他們的這種經歷，也記得那些鞭撻他們的人的殘忍的樂趣。似乎只有合乎邏輯地假定，致人痛苦者已經從傷害他們的小學生中得到了某種頹廢的快樂。因而，（這個）新興術語“施虐癖”似乎完全合適他們的行為。另一方面，同樣是數個世紀以來，人們已經見識了一些虔誠的個人和團體的宗教狂熱，他們為了精神救贖而殘害自己的肉體。他們似乎喜歡自虐，因而（這個）新興術語“受虐癖”似乎也適用於他們這種情況。最後，受過良好教育的男女們開始意識到了打屁股和性興奮之間的直接聯繫。讓-雅各·盧梭的自傳體小說《懺悔錄》（Confessions）出版於其逝世後，已經揭露了他個人的興趣秘密：在他8歲時，由於他經常被他的30歲的女監護人打屁股，就從被打屁股中得到了性快樂，而且打那兒以後，在他的餘生中，他一直保持著對這種懲罰的渴望。術語“受虐癖”似乎太適合於描述他的這種愛好了。

不過，正如我們會明白的那樣，痛楚只是施虐受虐癖的一種可能的條件，但決不是本質性的條件。

教育和宗教裏的鞭撻懲罰 （左） 打屁股。數個世紀以來，鞭撻懲罰兒童在西方國家裏曾經被認為是一種主要的教育方式。父母和教師用扁木（竹）質條、藤條、白樺條、鞭子、皮帶或索帶等工具管教青年一代。俗話說“棍棒裏面出孝子！（Spare the rod and spoil the child!）”高度地概括了這種教育哲學理念。只有到了18世紀，“啟蒙運動的”教育家們才開始質疑這種習俗的有效性。這很大程度上要歸功於盧梭的作品影響。另外，盧梭的個人生活事例也證明了一個令人警醒的道理，在兒童時期被打屁股具有負面效應。（文藝復興時期的繪畫） （右） 自我鞭撻。鞭撻懲罰自己作為懺悔的方式在許多宗教裏有悠久的傳統。在基督教國家裏，中世紀達到了高峰，那時，大批所謂的苦行者從一地到另一地修行，在公眾場合鞭撻自己直到鮮血淋漓，以顯示對宗教的摯愛。可能至少對一些修行者來說，這種行為具有性的內涵（木刻，紐倫堡編年史）

Two Examples: 2. Sadomasochism

Historical Background 2: Educational and Religious Traditions

For a long time, sadism was simply equated with cruelty and defined as “pleasure derived from inflicting pain”. Conversely, masochism was defined as “pleasure derived from feeling pain”, hence the old psychiatric term “algolagnia”: enjoyment of pain (gr. algos: pain and lagneia: lust). This view was shortsighted, but it was certainly understandable. For centuries, beatings had been a regular feature of education, both in the home and in the classroom. Many adults remembered these beatings and the cruel joy of their tormentors. It seemed only logical to assume that they had derived some depraved pleasure from hurting their helpless pupils. Thus, the new term “sadism” seemed to fit their behavior perfectly. On the other hand, also for centuries, people had observed the religious ecstasy of certain devout individuals and groups who castigated their bodies for the sake of their souls. They seemed to enjoy their self-inflicted pain, and thus the new term “masochism” seemed to fit their case as well. Finally, well-educated women and men became aware of a direct connection between beatings and sexual excitement. Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s autobiographical Confessions, published after his death, had revealed an interesting personal secret: At the age of 8, he had derived erotic pleasure from being spanked by his 30-year old female guardian, and from that moment on, he kept craving this kind of punishment for the rest of his life. The term “masochism” seemed only too apt for this predilection.
However, as we will see, pain is only one possible aspect of sadomasochism, and it is by no means an essential one.