Mesichim
Coldness and Cruelty
Gilles Deleuze
Venus in Furs
Leopold von Sacher-Masochincising
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Contents
Coupxss avo Cnurery
Fonenond 9
The Languoge of Sade ond Mach 15
The RoleofDessiptons 25
re Sade and Mash Complnentay? 37
The The Women in Mech 47
Fuhr ond Meher 57
TheArof Mowe 68
Humor ony and he Law 91
From Consett 9
Pachamabsit and he Probl of Merch 103
The Desh In 122
Sedu Speegoand MaschicFgo 123
Venus tn Furs
Compe fet 143,
Append
4 Cldtood Memory and Rfecton onthe New) 273
Tho Coma af Mach 277
The Adena with Ladi 203syndromes and symptoms, a symptom being the specif sign of
an llnes, and a syndrome the mecting-plice or eossng point
‘of manifestations issuing rom very diferent origins and arising
Within variable contexts, We would like to suggest that sade
‘masochism sa syndrome that ought tobe spi wp into ireduc-
ble causa chains. It has been stated so often that sadism and
‘masochism ae found in the same person that we hare come to
believe it. We need 0 go back tothe beginning and read Sule
and Masoch Because the judgment ofthe clinician is prejudiced,
wwe must take an entirely different approach, the hear pera,
since is rom Hteratue that stem the original definitions fe
Jam and masochism. es no aeiden that the names of two writ
ers ere used as Iabes for these wo perversions. The crite! (in
the teary sense) and the linia (in the medical tense) may be
destined to enter nto 8 new relationship of mutual learning.
Spmpeomatoogy I always question of athe clini specifier.
‘sof salism and masochism are not separable fromthe literary
values peculiar to Sade and Masoch In place ofa dilcte which
all coo realy perceives the ink betwesn opposite, we should
2im fora critical and cial appraisal able to revel the tly di
ferential mechanismsas wel asthe attic orginaitles,
Cuarren 1
The Language of Sade and Masoch
toe Te a one
‘What are the uses of literature? The ames of Sade and Masoch
hve been used to denote eno basic perversions anda ich they
se oustanding examples of the eficieney of literature lesce
"ue sometimes named after typical patients, but more ofc i is
‘he doctor's name thr i given tothe dscae (Roger disease,
Parkinson’ disease, et.) The principles being this labeling
Alesere closer analysis. The doctor dos not invent the ines,
he dissociates symptoms that were previously grouped together,
sd lnks up others ha were dissociated. In short he builds up «
rofundly orginal clinical pctare, The history of meine can
therefore be reguded under at least wo aspects, The first the
iscoryoflineses, which may dsapear, become ls frequent,
reappear or alter thle frm according co the sate of the society
ad the development of therapeutic methods Intrewined with
this sony sche history of symptomatology, which sometimes
recedes and sometimes follows changes in therapy orn the
"are of diseases: symptoms are named reamed ad regrouped
Jn various ways. Progress from this point of vew generally meanstendency tard greater speeiity, and Indicates a refinement
‘of symptomatology (Thus te plague and leprosy were mote com
mon in the past not only for historical and socal reasons but
because one tended to group under these headings various types
of diseases now eased separately) Grest clinicians are the
rete doctors: when a doctor gives his name oan illness tis
‘sa mor linguistic and semiologial step Inasmuch asa proper
name is Hinked to «given group of signs that so proper nome i
made conn gs
Should we therefore cls Sade and Matoch among the great
clinician? I i difficul to teat sadism and masochism om seve
‘with the plague leprosy and Parkinson disease: the word disease
‘clearly inappropriate. Nevrtheles, Sade and Masoch present
‘unparalled configurations of symptoms and signs. In coining the
term masachiem,Kraf-Ebing was giving Masoch eed for hi
ing redefined a clinical entity not merely i erm of the link
‘between pin and seal pleasure, but ia tennsef something more
fadamentl connected with bondage and humiliation (there ae
Tinting cases of masochism without algolgnia and even algolag-
tla without matochism).! Another question we should ask I
‘whether Maroch doesnot present a symptomatology that is more
tefined than Sade’ in tht i enables us to discriminate between
Alsturbances which were prescusly regarded 38 dence. In any
‘ate whether Sade and Maroch are “patients” or elinicans or
‘oth, they are alo great anthropologists, ofthe type whose work
succeeds in embracing a whole conception of man, culture and
naar; they are slo gest aries nha hey discovered new forms
of expression, new ways of thing and feling and an entirely
original language.
In principle, violence is something that does not speak, of
speaks but litle, whe sexuality somelng char see spoken
shout, Sexual modesty cannot he related to biologie er th
‘rise It would not be formalated as i “Iam les fad of|
boeing touched and even of being seen than of being put into
words.” What is the meaning of dhe meeting of violence and sex.
ality in such excessive and abundant langue s that of Sade and
Masoch? How ae we to sezoun forthe violent language linked
with eroticism? na text that ought to insaldate all theories relt-
{ng Sade to Nazism, Georges Bataille explains thatthe language
of Soe is pradosiesl becouse cat of @ ve. Only
the victim ean deserbe torture the torturer necessarily uses the
hypocritical language of established order and power. “Asa pew
‘ral le the torturer does not ase the language of the violence
‘exerted by hm in the name ofan established authority; he uses
the language ofthe authority... The valent man is willing to
‘esp quiet and connves at cheating... Thus Sade’ atte i -
‘metrically opposed to that ofthe torturer. When Side writes he
refuses to cheat, bu he ateibutes hi own titude to people who
in real fe could only have been sllent and uses them to make
selfcontadictory statements to other people”?
‘Ought we co conclude thatthe language of Masoch is equally
paradoxical In this instance because the victim speaks the
_gge ofthe torturer he eto himsel, with ll the hypoctsy of
he roreuet?
What is known as pornographic literature isa literature re
duced to fe roperatives (do thi, do that followed by obscene
descriptions. Violence and eroticism do mee, but ina idimen-
‘ary fihion. Imperatives abound inthe work of Sade and Masochs
‘hey are isued by the cruel lbertne of by despotic woman.
Descriptions also abound (although the function of the descrip
tonsa wel asthe nature of their obscenity te sting ifr
fet inthe tw author) Ie would appear that both for Sade and
for Masoch language teaches its ll significance when it acts
Airey on the senses. Sade The One Handed and von Day ef
”Sadom hinges on tales told tothe libertines by “women cho:
icles" and in priciple dhe heroes may not take any initiative
in atieiption ofthese tales. Words ae at their most poser
when they compel the body to repent the movements they sug:
est and “the sensations communicate by the er ae the mest
aswell
enjoyable and have the keenest impact.” In Nasoc’ i
2 in his ftion, love alae ae always sat in motion by anon
‘mous leters, by the use of pseudonyms or by adverssement in
newspapers. They must be regulated by contracts tha formalie
and verbalize the behavior of the partner. Everything must be
seated, promised, announced and carey described before being
accomplished. However, the work of Sade and Masoch cannot
bbe regarded as pomograpy: fe merits the more exalted title of
“pomology” because its erotic language canner be reduced 9 the
clementry funetions of ordering and describing.
‘With Sade we witness an atonishing development of the
deronstatve use of language. Demonstration a higher Fone:
‘ion of language makes its appearance between sequences of
ce tf aint i praeynacue. Ths i the clue co the
meaning of repettvenes in Side’ writing and ofthe monotony
fads. In practice, however, the litertne is confined oils:
‘eating his total demonstration with partial inductive process
borrowed from secondary natu. He cannot do more than accel
«rateand condense the motions of partial violence He achieves,
‘he accelcation by multiplying the numberof his vietims and
ir salvings. The condensation on the other hand implies that
silence mus not be sitet onder thes of hopes o
impale or ven be govermed by the pears it miht ard,
see hoe pers woudl bind hit secondary nature,
bot mt Be ened cld lod a condense hey
coldnesth cone of demo mae eon ene he wel
knoe pty the erie the elicool fthe pomesogi
with ch Sse cnt he deplonble“enthsam of ie por
owap Erchosn preci wha edits a Rt ed
hol ih ay (se soy dd when thing we pb
Ilya hea et ad ot dep ea pan or ge bu
bape Thi apathy des of coune produce mens lene
tre, ut lime is tpl oan oe pep
inscondary nate een cringe ppt nari
ind ar) btn the conry he pli of eating ate
inthe go and oud the gy nd wegung be ee el
Wisin sho th plano demons eo,
Ie inerrant tar condcting
Wis denonton, spe at the demote
ornate he dex fnetton sceleates and cond
ita conled mane ba ane yan mea pense wih
ry and gu
‘uel nd mt ear on ores: crcl con ad ging
‘ction, both of which afr th ai ood libertine equa
sarc flea Inthe nr th merken in ane
"Youve been axed by two Ieplies you have noted
ins you ate okie at ome of our companion soa be
1 faetion b>
it The deeripions mst be precise bthpletantly stimulated by matters commonly held to be fetid or
Impure, and you are similarly surprised that ou volupsuous fae
ules can be powerfully excited by actions which, in your view,
bear none but the emblem of ferocity..." In both eases iti
through the intermediay of description and the accelerating and
condensing effec of repetition that che demonstrative function
achieves ts strongest impact, Hence t would appear thatthe
‘obscenity of the descriptions in Sade i roundel in hls whole
conception ofthe negative and of negation.
In gon she Pare Pcl Freud ditnguthed between the
ie instincts and the death instincts, Eros and Tharatos. But in
‘order to understand thie distinction we must make further and
‘more profound distinction between the death or destructive
Instincts and the Death Iniine. The former are actly given
or enhbited nthe unconieious, but always in combination with
the life instincts; this combination of the death instinct with
Eros is asi were the precondition of the “presentation” of
‘Thanos. So tit dstrocton nd the negative at workin destruc:
ton, always manifests itself as the other face of constuction and
unification as govemed by the plete principle. Tit the sense
in which Freud is able vo state cat we donot find No (pure
negation in the unconscious, since all opposites coincide there
By conerat when we speak ofthe Desth Instinct, we refer to
‘Thanatos, the absolute negation, Thanatos as such cannot be
amen in psychic Ife, exen In the unconscious It, 8 Fred
pointed out in his admirable tex, estentily silent, And yet we
rust speak off fori determinable principle, the founds
tion and even more of psychic life. Everything depends on it
though a Freud point vt, we can ony speak of en specula
te or mychial erm
“The diincion between the death or destructive fnstints and
‘the Death Instinct seems in fct to conespond ¢o Sade dstine-
tion between the two natures or the two elements. The site
her appears to kav et imwel the kof chinking out he Death
Instinct (pre negation) ina demonstative form, ani only able
to achieve this by muldplying and condensing the atvtes of
component negative or destructive instincts, But the question
ow arses whether there is no et anther “method” besides the
speculative saistic one.
Trea has analyzed forms of resistance which in various ways
imply a process of diavowal (Herning, lewefng Hrengang
[Lacan has shown the significance ofeach of these ferns). eight
Seem that diavowal is, generally speaking, much more super
al than a negation or even a partial destruction. ut this not
‘, fori represents an entirely diferent operition, Disarowal
should perkaps be understood a the pont of departure ofan ope
ation tht consists neither in negating nor even destroying, but
rather in radially contesting the validity ofthat whichis i sus
pends belief in and neutralizes the given in such away that anew
horizon opes up beyond the gven and in place of it.The clearest,
example given by Freud is feishisms the fetish isthe image or
substiuce ofthe female phallus, chat the means by which we
eny that the woman lacks a penis The ftshit's choice ofa et
ish is determined by the lst object he saw asa chil! before
becoming aware ofthe msing pen (a shoe, for example nthe
case ofa glance directed from the fect upward). The constant
return to this object, this point of departure enables him to val
‘ate the existence ofthe organ that is in espe, The fetish i
‘therefore not symbol ata, ut ae were ronen ete, o>
Simensional image photograph ro which one returns repeatedly
to exorcise the dangerous consequences of movement, the harm:
ful discoveries tht resule fom exploration; i represents the last
Poin at which ic was sil posible to believe... Thus it appears
‘hat feishiam sist ofall disvowal (No, the woman doesnotTac pis); econ it ia defensive neutron (ince, con
aay to whas happens with negation, the knowledge ofthe site
sion aft s penis, but ina suspended, neutralized form; in
the third place it ia protective and iealzing neutralization
(lore belie infernal phallus i self experienced ata pro-
testofthe ea gains the real remains suspended or neutral
ined in the ideal, the better to shield itself agunst the painful
assarenes of rity)
Fetishism, as defined by the process of dkavoval and suspen
sion of belief belongs essentially co masochism. Whether it also
hha a place in sadism is very complex question. There is no