Sadism is a perversion that is based on obtaining pleasure from causing pain to another person or an animal.
Sadism is a word derived from Donatien Alphonse François de Sade , better known as Marquis de Sade . He is a writer and philosopher who was born in 1740 and died in 1814 and who remained in history for narrating various paraphilias and vices .
The notion of sadism, in this way, is used to name the perversion that consists of obtaining pleasure from exercising cruelty on another living being . The sadist , therefore, enjoys causing pain to his neighbor.
Sadism in sexuality
The usual thing is to associate sadism with sexuality : the sadist gets excited and obtains pleasure from humiliating the other or causing some type of damage. Arousal is produced by humiliation and harm, and not by sexual practice itself.
Binding the couple with handcuffs, whipping them or locking them up are some of the behaviors typical of sadism. The sadist may also resort to raping his victim.
The application of torture methods is often linked to sadism.
Some features
In addition to everything stated above, we cannot ignore other important aspects related to sadism, such as these:
-It becomes a negative paraphilia insofar as it causes damage to third parties.
-According to the studies carried out in this regard, it has been shown that, after studying the brains of sadists, they have a very high sensitivity regarding the pain of others. Specifically, this conclusion was reached after verifying how the amygdala, which processes reactions to emotions, was activated in the brains of these individuals when they saw images of suffering and violence.
-There are many people who practice sadism with their partners, because both parties agree to it and accept it. However, it is important that they adopt certain precautions and impose certain limits since there are some actions that can directly be very dangerous and cause serious damage to one of the two or even death. We are referring to actions such as beating, carrying out rape, applying electric shocks, performing torture, trying to strangle...
-It is considered that there are a series of disorders that are frequently associated with sadism. We are referring to depressive disorder, antisocial disorder, narcissistic personality disorder... In some cases, we can establish that, in addition to all of the above, it can also be associated with the consumption of psychoactive substances.
Sadism as cruelty
Beyond sexuality, sadism is understood as any act of cruelty that a person carries out for their delight. A man who mistreats a dog for fun will be committing sadism: his action generates enjoyment from the animal's suffering.
He who kidnaps a child , locks him in a room without light or ventilation, denies him food and only enters the room to hit his victim, will also be developing a behavior of great sadism, since he does not seek anything other than to feel pleasure for the abuse he inflicts.