German dominatrices’ choices of working names as reflections of self-constructed social identity

Abstract

Professional dominatrices tend to practice under pseudonyms. On the assumption that generalizable patterns in their pseudonym choices may reflect the self-constructed identity and emphases of professional domination and submission, this paper undertakes a detailed linguistic analysis of the working names chosen by 141 dominatrices based in Germany. The most typical form of name chosen involves a title and a personal first name without an accompanying surname (e.g. Lady Barbara), suggesting an ambiguous position on the continuum between distance and intimacy. Foreign-language titles (e.g. Lady) are also found to be preferred to German-language ones (e.g. Herrin), pointing to the role of language symbolism in creating a sense of sophistication and internationalism. The most preferred title choices also largely avoid direct references to power. In terms of name choice, although direct references to aspects of sadomasochism are not unrepresented, the predominant choices seem to identify a group of women who construct themselves as cultured, educated, classy, and feminine. Elements of mysticism and mythology are also present, which seem to support psychoanalytic—and especially Kleinian—theories of fetishism and sadomasochism. Further research should aim at replicating the analysis with dominatrices based in countries other than Germany.