sadism
- Key People:
- Marquis de Sade
- Ilse Koch
- Peter Kürten
- Bruno Lüdke
- Related Topics:
- sadomasochism
- masochism
- paraphilic disorder
- dark tetrad
sadism, a habit or practice of deriving sexual gratification from the infliction of pain or suffering on another person. The term was coined by the late 19th-century German psychologist Richard von Krafft-Ebing in reference to the Marquis de Sade, an 18th-century French nobleman who chronicled his own sadistic practices. Sadism is often linked to masochism, in which sexual arousal results from receiving pain, and many individuals respond in either role (see sadomasochism). However, a sadist may also seek a victim who is not a masochist, as some sadistic sexual excitement derives from the victim’s apparent unwillingness.
The level and extent of sadistic violence may vary considerably. Physical discomfort may be inflicted in otherwise harmless love play—by tickling, hair pulling, and orgasm denial, for example—or in more extreme activities such as slapping, whipping, flogging, or piercing the skin with knives or needles. Sadism occasionally involves extreme brutality, sometimes leading to serious injury or death. The satisfaction of the sadist may also result not from inflicting actual physical pain but rather from the mental suffering of the victim. Sexual urges may limit the level of violence, but in some cases the aggressive impulse becomes predominant, leading sadists to more extreme expressions of their violent tendencies.
The term sadism is also used outside sexual contexts to describe individuals who are purposely cruel or who seem to derive pleasure from humiliating and dominating others in social situations. In this context, some milder forms of sadism are relatively more acceptable, such as the use of humiliating sarcasm as a conversational tool.
