04 January 2011

Power Exchange versus Authority Exchange

Mr. Rubel makes a distinction between Power Exchange and authority exchange. I have never seen this spelled out quite as well as he did it.

Essentially, power exchange is when the Dominant accepts power given to him by the submissive, and the submissive gives up his power to the Dominant. When the submissive is away from the Dominant, he is free to resume control of his personal world. This is very different than authority exchange, which he defines as the basis of an M/s relationship. The slave permanently (or at least during the contracted period) gives up authority over himself to the Master. This authority covers willful decisions. The Master and slave can negotiate exceptions (for example, if the slave has a career and must make decisions without time to consult the Master), but overall, the slave no longer controls many decisions in his life as a point of reference.

This is different than I'm used to, as I don't think I've really ever lived in a way that I could do this. (Example: one would need to live alone, or with the Master for that to work). But I don't think I agree totally with his D/s dynamic issues. There is a person in my life I often think "What would he want me to do..." before I make a willful decision. Granted, I rarely ask him as to not bother him, and because I am not in a position where I can give to him what he deserves. But the thoughts are still there. I never really thought of it as "When the Dom is away, the subbies will play" kind of thing. Again, it all comes down to contracts though, and negotiating what each individual wants out of a situation. I just thought it was interesting.

No comments:

Post a Comment