"O is For..."
Written as both a love letter and a response to the dare that women are incapable of writing erotica, it has been suggested the Story of O is merely a glorified book of abused women. June Reich suggests that, for example, in relation to a series of arguments around feminine ‘masquerade’ (Doane 1990)2: Heterosexual masquerade theories stabilise the feminine=passive/ masculine=activeequation in biological terms, so that ‘women’ are only able to assume an active position by taking on a male perspective ... This has proven to be problematic for feminist theorists, who have been forced to argue ... that active pleasure can only be taken by men, or women acting like men. (1992, 119) I considered this a layered statement and relating it to the Story of O, while she is forbidden to touch herself and all of her pleasure (and pain) is dished out by the men at the Chateau, even the feminist view suggests that whether “topped” by a man or a woman, the act is still connected to that of a man, which is non-existence in regards to lesbian scenes in the novel. There is equality in the powerplay when taken into consideration Reage’s own bisexuality. Using contemporary artists as a comparison to modern views on sexuality, Reba Maybury’s work challenges this and actively revolves around redressing this imbalance and restructuring these labour dynamics. Along with this, women’s pleasure and what it means to be free as a woman, become a central part of her exploration of the role of sex in society.4 She mentioned in an interview that “I am fascinated in the facades of power-play between myself and these corporate men under the guise of domming and the destruction that causes due to the ambivalence that so many men have over their patriarchal behaviour amidst this game.”5 My self as a female artist feels this confidence, making my work for my entertainment regardless of who views it. I do not feel that my femaleness has ever stopped me from doing anything, nor do I think it will in the future, although in the case of fine art and contemporary artists it is an important factor in how my art is read. For example, if O had been written by a man, then perhaps the view on its violence would be seen differently.
Years after the book was published, Aury herself offered insight into her protagonist’s apparent façade of passive acceptance. “I think that submissiveness can [be] and is a formidable weapon, which women will use as long as it isn’t taken from them,” she said. “Is O used by René and Sir Stephen, or does she, in fact, use them, and…all those irons and chains and obligatory debauchery, to fulfil her own dream—that is, her own destruction and death? And, in some surreptitious way, isn’t she in charge of them? Doesn’t she bend them to her will?”3 Her surrender is also only sexually, financially she has her own money as a photographer and therefore it can be argued has her own life outside of the life of the House (even after the fact of her branding and piercings). A common misconception is that submission is taken, when in fact it is given, leading to the idea of trust that O has with René and ultimately Sir Stephen. Its also important to note that, while O doesn't necessarily say no to things, since the novel was read as a love letter there would be no reason for Pauline/ O to say "no" since they are describing their fantasies - perhaps to keep her love interested in her, yet as a fantasy, there is no reason to write what she wouldn't enjoy. Although this is speculation as I myself write mini-stories or fanfictions with my own characters, and just because I write certain scenes doesn't mean I condone them or what to participate, though I write for entertainment and not sexual desire.
Additionally, consent is a cornerstone of contemporary feminist pornography activism and is discussed at length in the chapter on performance, as well as in my work both as a female artist and an artist that looks at taboo in society, much of which includes that of kink and sexuality. That being said, if consent is excluded from the debate, then any depiction of extreme or heavily physical sex acts is wrong because it is violent, and of course, violence equals not okay. As a general rule this is 100% true, although as explored in another erotic novel “The Siren”, Tiffany Reisz’s character Nora explains that “Hurt is a bruise on the outside. [...] Harm is a bruise on the inside.” 6 making a defined difference between violence and consensual mark making. A frequently cited definition of violence comes from Elizabeth Stanko: “any form of behaviour by an individual that intentionally threatens to or does cause physical, sexual or psychological harm to others or themselves” (Stanko2001, 316).1 Although to argue against this I feel that O represents much more than mere objectification which is where “O is For” comes in.
Using clips from the 1975 film version of the Story of O the 2minuet 17 seconds topped with a female monotone google voice reading out words that start with the letter o. The aim is to create a juxtaposition with the emotional visual scenes of O's love and pain along with the scientific academic-sounding of the words. In a way, the audience has to fill in the gaps and determine what word fills in O's character. There is realism with words such as "obey", "orgy", "orgasm", and "objectification" but also more comedic words like "oesophagus", "otter" and "office".
Showing this video, I intend to fill the space, not only as a mark to female empowerment and the important roles O covers but also to envelop the audience. With consent, they would enter O's world and walk around the world of words with the silent video in front of them. The floor and ceiling would be covered in o words as well, filling the space like a dictionary. I feel the logic and understanding and mechanical understanding of an academic book plays against the illogical, incomprehension and individuality of love and relationships as shown in O. There is no one way to understand O and her choices and unless one practises a similar lifestyle there will always be a misunderstanding in absent knowledge. and within that unknown, there will be fear, taboo and ultimately demonized for its oddness. I practised this by cutting out a phone shaped hole into some cardboard (representing a studio wall) and illustrated it, as seen below. All in all, it was successful when thinking about curation on a larger scale and expanding outside of my sketchbook and letting the work breathe for itself in an active space.
- Pornography: Structures, agency and performance - Alan McKee, Rebecca Sullivan- 2015 https://www.academia.edu/40781911/Pornography_Structures_agency_and_performance?email_work_card=view-paper
- Doane, M A, 1990, ‘Film and the masquerade: theorizing the female spectator’, in Issues in Feminist Film Criticism, ed P Erens, Indiana University Press, Bloomington, 41-57
- https://www.guernicamag.com/ciuraru_6_15_11/
- https://www.museomacro.it/rehearsal/reba-maybury-faster-than-an-erection/
- http://arcadiamissa.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/ArcadiaMissa_RebaMaybury_Press.pdf
- https://www.goodreads.com/author/quotes/4480131.Tiffany_Reisz
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