The Library of Spanking Fiction: Wellred Weekly


Wellred Weekly
Volume 2, Number 1 : March 21, 2013
 
Articles
Items of interest regarding all things spanking

The Nun in Spanking Literature (cont.)
by Garth Toyntanen


I digress, I know, but with such a formidable - and even less agreeable, in expert hands - alternative arsenal available, would it be any wonder if the patient should prove able to be persuaded to opt for certain less conventional ramifications to their ill-behavior; consequences that might easily include the judicious application of the strap and the cane. And if such an approach happened to be ratified by an institution for therapeutic purposes, perhaps under the guise of 'harassment therapy' (and yes, such a regimen does exist - and within the contemporary world, too!), perhaps further vouchsafed by some manner of signed legal waiver or the sure and certain knowledge of the 'unreliability' tagged by the legal profession on the testimony of those saddled with a diagnosis of mental incompetence - and if managerial oversight happened to less than totally diligent? Well, under such a set of circumstances would it not be only human nature if those left in control were to seek to dominate more and more thoroughly their hapless charges? Would not carte-blanch unbridled power lead to the desire to taste still greater power, wield still greater control? Would not petty rules and restrictions proliferate, inventive minds turn their creativity to devising ever more crushing forms of humiliation and corporal punishment - perhaps hitherto reserved for the most heinous of contraventions of hospital rules - become instead the order of the day, a few strokes of the cane handed out for the most minor of infractions? Was that not the conclusion drawn at the conclusion of that most infamous of social psychology studies, the notorious 'Stanford Experiment' (from which my first novel, Institutionalised Volume 1, drew its subtitle?

Put briefly; that latter classic 1971 experiment in which an analogue of a prison environment was set up in a university basement demonstrated that placing very ordinary people (people like you and I) in control of others, rendered essentially powerless, created a situation which was in essence a recipe for abuse, leading to ever more severe treatment of those placed under control and ever more inventive means being devised for heaping humiliation and suffering on the unfortunate inmates. Such an outcome is likely to come about even more rapidly in a situation within which the imposition of a strict disciplinary regime enforced by corporal punishment is viewed as part of a healing process of some kind; and officially sanctioned to boot!. In such an environment stern measures may easily be intellectualized as justified in some manner, thus freeing the perpetrator from fear of self-recrimination.


Artwork by Léon Roze

As I said; I digress. But I would argue that certain of the same considerations apply to the world of the nun as depicted in spanking literature, both fictional and 'factual', including to some extent the concept or principle of 'socially conditioned compliance'. Amongst other things, this latter term refers to the sociological process by which one becomes trained to respond to those perceived to be in a position of authority in a manner "generally approved by the society in general and peer groups within society" - to paraphrase the Wikipedia entry - or put another way; why we tend to obey police, members of the armed forces placed in situations of control and doctors in their white coats etc, often figures traditionally identified by some sort of uniform. The latter probably also goes a long way to explain the manner in which one might be tempted to treat the uniformed maid or servant (and partly the reason for having them in uniform in the first place - the uniform keeps the subservient firmly in the mindset of that role, as much as other uniforms inspire an air of authority to surround the wearer).

To what extent this argument extends to the figure of the nun - or the Rev Father in his cassock and surplus or dog collar, come to that - probably depends to some extent on the strength of the supplicant's religious belief or the exposure of the supplicant to the indoctrination of the church. So in terms of those who might tend towards a natural or instinctive submission to the authority of the nun, good starting material (i.e. those already steeped within the relevant doctrine) seems essential - and such was the mindset usually to be found within those consigned to the gentle care of the Sisters of Mercy running the Magdalene Laundries in Ireland; which goes a long way to explain the lack of evidence of any substantial acts of rebellion among that system's downtrodden inmates. Parallels can probable be drawn with those exposed to the indoctrination of certain cults demanding total compliance and obedience - and in that manner, in the right hands and given the right institution, that required mindset can always be developed at a later date, belief in the required doctrine instilled or developed further, always with the need for submission to authority and the requirement for acceptance of the righteous correction metered out by the cane or the strap kept foremost in the teaching; but that is a subject for another time.

The strict and domineering nun of popular spanking fiction, then - as a potential authority figure - is quite different to the nurse or governess or even the school teacher. The stern-faced, self-righteous nun seems as at home in the classroom of some strict private boarding or finishing school for young ladies as she is within the high walls and barred windows of the convent or abbey or indeed as she seems within the equally secure surrounds of the reformatory, church-run charity home for 'wayward young women', strict seminary, parochial industrial school or one of the much-dreaded and maligned Magdalene Laundries of legend. To those steeped within the relevant belief system the principle of socially conditioned compliance is as much at work as in the relationship of the general public with the uniformed police officer when it comes to bolstering her standing as an authority figure - perhaps more so, since it is possible to view her as an agent of God and in that way endowed with the ultimate authority.


Artwork by Milo Manara (left) and unknown artist (right)

And as for the nun's side of the equation: She is only human, and so as vulnerable as anyone else to the forces unveiled in the outcome of the aforementioned 'Stanford Experiment'. Again, perhaps the situation is even more acute with her than with most of us if handed power over another individual, this being so because her actions are so easily self-justifiable within the context of her beliefs and the doctrine of the institution she stands for. Handed cart blanche, vouchsafed behind the high walls of some isolated church-run charity home and beyond the supervision of the conventional authorities, she is filled to brimming with evangelical fervor. Duty-bound to rid her charges of sin, cleanse the soul and chase out the devil, is it any wonder she punishes her charges with the implacable conviction she does? After all; in her view it isn't the taut-skinned, plump, puppy-fatted teenage bottom her eyes perceive upturned over her lap she is laying the heavy leather strap she favors into, rather it is the demonic presence the eye doesn't see that is undergoing mortification.

Add to this the vows she has taken; in particular the vow of chastity. Then add in the well documented propensity of the female to form same-sex crushes, infatuations, attractions - call them what you may; even full-blown relationships - within enclosed all-female residential institutions; now add in to this heady mix a plethora of prettily flowering nubile young things, all of them at her beck and call, perhaps lined up under her supervision, bare from the soles of their feet to the pudding-bowl haircuts gracing their heads, precociously full breasts and pert bottoms jiggling enticingly as they bounce on their toes in a futile attempt to stay warm, hands on heads each waiting for her two minutes timed visit under the ice-clod shower. Now stir in the self recrimination, fear and filthy guilt experienced by our young yet determined nun as the hormonal urges of biology, perhaps warped by an overly restrictive bible-quoting upbringing or some unfortunate formative experience, join battle with the god-fearing fire and brimstone doctrine of her faith, and the bitterness of sexual repression puckers her lips like wine turned to vinegar. Or perhaps that bitterness has other origins. Perhaps she is not so young; perhaps with increasing age - a lifetime spent behind convent walls - she has come to begrudge the young their spirited fun-loving vivacity, is jealous of their attractiveness, their blatant sexuality; she wishes now only to curb that spirit, chasten that flesh which, by the undoubted hand of Beelzebub himself, inflames her still.

By the time we stir together these ingredients - comprising a doctrine that perceives the expression of any kind of sexuality beyond that directly linked with procreation as a mortal sin, rampant sexual repression combined with the frustration of practically being perpetually submerged in sinisterly fragrant temptation and the corruption and moral distortion sure to arise in one given unquestionable power over that which she secretly desires most (and yet denies to an even greater extent) - once we add together these ingredients we have the recipe for the creation of a most formidable and spiteful disciplinarian.




 
15 comments:
SNM said...
Very well thought-out. You make a strong case for the plausibility of the nun as a spanker in a variety of situations. Your article will also force me to think twice before even considering writing a story of that kind (and reminds me of the suspension of moral disbelief common to many genres of spanking fiction), which isn't a bad thing.
21 March 2013 20:22
snooz said...
I think you describe in your usual detailed way many of the delicious potential scenarios that could be (and in some cases actually were) created behind the cloistered walls of a religious sect. You have certainly provided a wealth of detailed observations that could be a rich source of spanking ideas for many a storyteller.
22 March 2013 02:04
PinkAngel said...
An interesting read. I liked your analogy with the Stamford Prison Experiment. I always think that shows just how easily led people are and how there is a lot more latent violence in 'normal' people than you would imagine. Take also the Milgram experiment, some people were prepared to give potentially fatal shocks to someone else, merely on the insistence of a stranger - in authority - telling them they must do so. I can see how this sort of behaviour can be easily be present where people are in a situation of control where they give corporal punishment.
22 March 2013 19:54
@toyntanen said...
First of all, thank you for the kind comments.

SMM raises a valid point in questioning the morality. Certainly within the harsh reality of the real world such behavior would be (is) abhorrent to most sane people, not withstanding the findings of the study quoted by PinkAngel, later,. Within the fictional world I am not at sure issues of morality necessarily hold sway - and that is fine so long as the reader can separate fact from fiction - and then the plausibility engendered by the distasteful reality may add for some (and I am unashamedly one of them) a certain piquancy..

The fact of the matter, as Snooz implies in his comment,s above, is that any kind of semi-autonomous cloistered community hidden away from the prying critical eyes of the world is (or should be) fertile ground indeed for the budding spanking / discipline orientated author. Within this category of setting I would certainly not restrict my vision to religious communities, either past or present, but would definitely advocate exploring such environments as the Victorian mental asylum system, within which many establishments were privately run and funded, the workhouse system and not forgetting those delightfully unethical social psychology experiments of the 1930s, 50s and 60s.

The Milgram study alluded to by PinkAngle, above, investigated the phenomenon of ''the principle of socially-conditioned compliance". The point about the subjects obeying "[those] in authority" is the most instructive here, both in understanding the behavior of the characters in a certain one of my tales and of the subjects involved in the Stanford Prison Experiment to some degree. At a certain level the Milgram experiment is about the way in which the structure of society governs and affects how we view others, the symbolism of 'authority' if you will. For example a member of the police force in uniform is automatically placed in authority in a given situation by our expectations learned through our upbringing. Thus the point is made in the Milgram experiment that the researcher or researchers issuing the orders to initiate the electric shock wore a whit coat (symbolic of a doctor - an individual automatically in authority or looked up to as one possesing greater knowlege). This 'principle of socially-conditioned compliance' would have played a part and been a confounding variable within the Stanford Prison Experiment wherein those chosen as 'prison guards' were purposely dressed as such, right down to intimidating dark glasses (which would have aided their confidence) thus affecting the expectations of the prisoners who themselves were clothed in a demeaning, dehumanizing manner. This development of image would primarily have affected the 'prisoner's' responses to the orders given by the 'guards' - a la the Milgram experiment - while the propensity to cruelty would have then been brought out by the 'prisoner's' cowering submissive behavior.

Well, that's how I see it - in reality things are lot more complex than that, I dare say! Just don't take it all too seriously!
24 March 2013 11:06
blimp said...
You only have to look at the history of the last century to see how supposedly ordinary people will obey authority without question however cruel and tyrannical that authority may be. I am often struck how certain sorts of jobs appeal to certain personality types. If you can imagine a totalitarian regime existing in this country where all freedoms were curtailed and a climate of fear existed perhaps you can also imagine the sort of people that would find no problems in supplying that regime with information.

When you think about it, a desire to conform is a worrying trait in ones friends. When I was young I detested monitors and prefects because you knew they would report you and have no conscience about it. At the age of seven, when I was at a small pre-preparatory school I remember marveling at how a small boy who had been made classroom monitor could live with himself after writing the names of all those who talked on the blackboard. He knew what the punishment would be but still he wrote the names down! When the schoolmistress returned every boy whose name appeared on the blackboard had to stand out in front of the class and have the back of his legs slapped so hard they would have bruises in the shape of her fingers for days afterwards. Excellent and thought provoking article.
24 March 2013 23:00
bendover said...
When I first saw the Magdalene Sisters movie I was truly shocked that such a place existed. One has to wonder how many nuns took advantage of their position as did many priests with their charges.

For me, I hated my first school, which was parochial. I disliked every one of the nuns who taught. By the time I reached the third grade my mother and the nuns bumped heads so many times she was told I was no long welcome. Fourth grade started my public schooling.

This article says it all. It's truly an eye opener. There must be so many stories of public humiliation of children at the hands of those who took 'spare the rod, spoil the child' too literally.
26 March 2013 18:17
islandcarol said...
I read this article yesterday and your words brought back so many horrifying memories, I needed to give myself 24 hours before I commented.

Looking back on my 12 years of catholic school education, I can count on just a few fingers the number of nuns who treated me thoughtfully and kindly. They, the nuns, were, generally easy to rile and quick to punish, seem to chose favorites who were quiet with naturally curly hair and believed no one could challenge their right and "duty" to punish as they saw fit. It seemed like I was always in trouble, yes, I was a tad ADD, but I was smart, interested in learning and spiritually fervent. I also had the only headful of orangey red hair; in a sea of blue plaid uniforms and brunettes, I stood out like a red beacon at midnight. I took all those mortal stains on my soul for which that I was beaten, seriously, to heart.

I vowed never to impose that unforgiving, rigid education on my children. And unlike my parents, the few times I noted a public school teacher treating my child unfairly, I went into that school and that teacher had an uncomfortable meeting with me and the principal. I do not miss those sacred, privileged institutions of the 50s and 60s. Many of them are closing now, after years of abusing children.
Islandcarol
27 March 2013 21:20
TheEnglishMaster said...
An extremely erudite and thought-provoking article. Thank you.
27 March 2013 23:05
tribemen said...
Back in the md 60's a one- time teenage girlfriend attended a catholic school and she once said there wasn't a day that went by where one of the nuns wasn't paddling a female student either in the hall or in an office and not just 3 swats either.
My girlfriend experienced the paddle four times she said from grade 6 until grade 10 when she changed to a public school.

JCP
28 March 2013 12:17
Wheatwine said...
I am reminded of a story told by someone who shall remeain nameless. He told of being placed in a foster home where his foster parents were very religious. One of the things they taught him was, a person would go to hell for being a Catholic. Then the court removed him from that foster home, and placed him in another foster home, where his foster parents were Catholics. They sent his to a Catholic school, where he was taught by nuns. He did not specifically mention corporal punishment by the nuns, but concluded his story by saying, "If you ever have the chance to tell a nun she's going to hell for being a Catholic, don't do it. Because I tried it, and you won't like it."
28 March 2013 12:31
sixofthebest said...
I have always looked at spanking stories about nuns in a different manner. When they would be subjected to corporal punishment.. Yes, be it the Mother Superior, or a novice nun. By a male cleric, be he the pope, cardinal, abbot, monk, friar or priest. Spanking implements used on these bare bottoms of nuns, can be the hand, paddle, hairbrush, birchrod, cane or a whip. I am sure in years past, such goings on did occur. Even those it may have not been made public.
2 April 2013 18:29
barretthunter said...
This discussion is going down an interesting route. I've only once written a spanking story with nuns myself, perhaps reflecting that I'm neither a Catholic nor grew up in an area with strong Catholic influences (the one exception being the series "The Sign of the Broken Cane" which featured a formidable nun in a school setting, but not a staff entirely made up of nuns).

I suspect the appeal and credibility of the spanking nun figure owes something to he belonging to a formidable, disciplined, tightly-organised agency with a tendency to cover up internal abuse of power - so she can assume the support of great power and, if she oversteps the limits, may be more liable to get away with it than, say, a secular schoolteacher. This would suggest a similarity with military spanking stories, which are in a genre of their own: the illustrations of Hans Braun suggest such stories were popular in Germany and in maritime Britain, with the advent of female sailors, punishments on board ship have a following.

Your analysis of the motivation (or excuses) of the spanking nun is truly authoritative.
10 April 2013 17:09
dweebdotcom said...
In the early 70's I went to a Catholic school from 1st thru 8th grade. The only time I was exposed to corporal punishment was in the first grade. First as a witness (there was no spanking at my home) and as a witness I became infatuated with the whole thing. It gave me strange sensations I didn't fully understand untill much later. Our nun favored a yardstick and so heretofore shall be known as Sister Mary Yardstick. Fortunatly a yardstick administered over the thick material of a boys jeans while he is standing up on his toes being held in place by the arm is not very effective. The girls did have it worse since a good portion of the backs of their legs were bare and I remember her lifting the backs of the dresses and spanking over panties. I wouldn't consider these spankings to be scary or painful in the least. Embarassing yes but not at all abusive. I suppose I was lucky.
10 April 2013 22:23
mati said...
Very interesting thoughts about the nun in spanking fiction. My only problem is that what you are describing as fictional ingredients now was very real in orphanages and approved schools during the 50s and 60s in Europe. Knowing that the described humiliation (which may have been worse than the punishments) really happened makes it difficult for me to savour the fiction.
11 April 2013 07:15
galt54 said...
Marqis de Sade specialized in employing s&m stories set in a religious context as a means of ridiculing religion. More of that please! (I.e. more of the ridiculing of religion - I do not approve of de Sade´s criminal way of life).
28 July 2015 02:51

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