Introduction

Along with a brief chapter-by-chapter survey of the book, this introduction surveys the scholarship on BDSM and fits this book within the larger scholarship on the history of sexuality and LGBTQ+ history. It explains the changing definitions of BDSM and other terminology important to the book, differentiating between the sexual practices of members of the BDSM community and their sexual identities. For example, gay and lesbian sadomasochists often identify as part of a larger “leather” community and its cultural practices, but many “leatherfolk” do not engage in bondage, flagellation or other BDSM activities. Similarly, few heterosexual sadomasochists adopt the trappings and mannerism of leather culture.