Jean Baudrillard-Seduction-New World Perspectives (1990)

8/9/2019 Jean Baudrillard-Seduction-New World Perspectives (1990)

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Cul tureText s

r t hur n Mar i l oui se Kr oker Gener al Edi t ors

Cul t ur eText s i s a ser i es of creat i ve expl or at i ons i n theory p o l i t i c sandcul t ur e t t he f i n de ml l eni um Themat i cal l y f ocussed around keyt heor et i cal debat es i n t he postmodern condi t i on t he Cul t ur eText ss er i eschal l enges r ecei ved di scour ses i n r t soci al and p o l i t i c ltheory

f em ni s m psychoanal ysi s val ue i nqui r ysci enceand t echnol ogy t he

body and cr i t i c l aest het i cs Taken i ndi vi dual l y cont r i but i ons t oCul t ur eText s represent t he f or war dbreaki ng edge of postmodern theoryand pract i ce

Ti t l es

Seduct i onJ ean Baudr i l l ar d

Pani c Encycl opedi aArthur Kroker Mar i l oui seKr oker and avi d Cook

L i f eAfter Post moderni sm Essays on Val ue and Cul t ur eedi t ed and i nt r oduced by ohn Feket e

Body I nvadersedi t ed and i nt r oduced by Ar t hur and Mar i l oui seKr oker

The Post modern Scene Excr ement al Cul t ur e n Hyper Aes t het i csAr t hur Kr oker / Davi dCook


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SEDUCTI ON

J E N UDR LL RD

t r ansl at ed r i a n i nger

New Worl d Perspect i ves ul tureText s er i es

ont real


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First published as De la seduction by Editions Galilee, 1979.9, rue Linne, Paris 5e.© Editions GalileeEnglish language copyright New World Perspectives, 1990 .

ISBN 0-920393-25-XCanadian Cataloguing in Publication DataBaudrillard, JeanSeduction(CultureTexts series)

Translation of: De la seduction.ISBN 0-920393-25-X1. Seduction-Psychological aspects.(Psychology). 3 . Sex (Psychology) 4.1 . Title. II . Series .BF637.S36133813 19902 . Femininity

Postmodernism.z


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V

ONTENTS

I I I THE POLI TI C L ESTI NY OF SE U TI ON

I NTRO U TI ON

I THE ECLI PTI C OF SEX

The E c l i p t i cof Sex 3The Et er nal I r ony of t he Communi ty 2St er eo- Por no 8Seduct i on Pr oduct i on 37

I I SUPERFI CI L YSSES

The Sacr ed Hor i zon of Appear ances 53Trompe l o e i lor Enchant ed Si mul at i on 6I l lBe Your M r r or 67Deat h i n Samarkand 72The Secr et and The Chal l enge 79The E f f i g yof t he Seduct r ess 85

The I r oni c St r at egy of t he Seducer 98The Fear of Bei ng Seduced 119

The Passi on f or Rul es 131The Dual t he Pol ar and t he D i g i t a l 154

The Ludi c and Col d Seduct i on 157Seduct i on as Dest i ny 179


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I NTRODUCTI ON

i xed desti ny wei ghs on seducti on For rel i gi on seducti onwas a strategy of the devi l whet her i n the gui se of wtchcraf tor l ove t i s al ways the seduct i on of evi l - or of the wor l d ti s the very a r t i f i c e of t he wor l d I t s mal edi cti on has been un-

changed i n et hi cs and phi l osophy, and t oday t i s mai ntai nedi n psychoanal ysi s and the ` l i bera t i on of desi re G ven thepresent -day pr omot i on of sex evi l and perversi on, al ong wththe cel ebrat i on of the of t t i mes programmat i c resurrect i on of l l t hat was once accursed, t mght seem paradoxi cal t hat seduc-ti on has r emai ned i n the shadows - and even returned theretopermanent l y

he ei ghteenth century s t i l l spoke of seduct i on t was, wth

val ourand

honour , a cent ral preoccupat i on of the ar i s tocrat i cspheres he bourgeoi s Revol ut i on put an end t o t hi s preoccu-pat i on and the others the l at er revol uti ons ended t i rrevoca-b y - every revol ut i on, i n i t s begi nni ngs, seeks t o end theseduct i on of appearances he bourgeoi s era dedi cated i t s e l ft o nature and producti on, thi ngs qui te f orei gn and even express-l y f t l t o seducti on nd si nce sexual i t y ari ses as Foucaul t not esf r om a process of producti on of di scourse speech or desi rei t i s not at l l surpri si ng t hat seducti on has been l l the mor ecovered over W l i v e t oday the pr omot i on of nature be i t thegood nature of the soul of yest er year or the good materi a na-ture of t hi ngs or even the psychi c nature of desi re Nature pur-sues i t s real i zat i on t hrough l l the met amorphosi s of therepressed, and t hrough the l i bera t i on of l l energ es, be they


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SE U TI ON

psychi c soci al or mat eri al

Seduct i on however never bel ongs t o t he order of nat ur ebut that of a r t i f i c e never t o t he order of energy but that ofsi gns and r i t u a l s Thi s why al l t he great sys t ems of product i o n and i nt erpret at i on have not ceased t o excl ude seduct i on t o i t sgood fortune f rom he i r concept ual f i e l d For seduct i o n cont i nues t o haunt them from w t hout and f romdeep wt h i n i t s forsaken s t a t e t hr eat eni ng them w t h col l apse awai t st he dest ruct i onof every godl y o r d e r i ncl udi ngthose of produc

t i o nand desi re Seduct i oncont i nues t o appear t o al l or t hodoxi esas mal ef i ce and a r t i f i c e a bl ack magi c f or t he devi at i on of al lt r u t h s an exal t at i onof t he mal i ci oususe of s i gns a conspi r acyof si gns Ever y di scour se threatened w t h t h i ssudden revers i b i l i t yabsorbed i n to t own si gns w t hout a t race of meani ng Thi s why al l d i s c i p l i n e swh ch have as an axi om t hecoherence and f i n a l i t yof t hei r di scourse must t r y t o exorci ze t Thi s where seduct i on and f e m n i n i t yar e conf ounded i ndeed conf used Mascul i ni t y hasal ways been haunted by t h i ssudden r e v e r s i b i l i t yw t h i n t he f em ni ne Seduct i on and f e mni ni t y ar e i nel uctabl e as t he reverse si de of sex : meani ng andpower

Today t he exorc i smi s mor e vi ol ent and syst emat i c W ar eent er i ng t he er a of f i n a lsol ut i ons f or exampl e that of t he sexual r evol ut i on of t he pr oduct i onand management of al l l i mnal and subl i m nal pl easures t he m cro processi ng of de si r ew t h t he woman who produces her sel f as woman and as sexbei ng t he l a s t avat ar Endi ng seduct i on

Or e l s et he t r i umph of a s o f tseduct i on a whi t e di f f usef em nizat i on and erot i ci zat i onof al l rel at i ons i n an ener vat ed soci aluni vers e

Or e l s enone of t he above For not hi ng can be great er thanseduct i on i t s e l f not even t he order t h a t destroys t


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TH LI PTI O S X


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Not hi ng s

l e s scertain today than sex behi nd t he l i ber at i onof i t s di scour se nd not hi ng t oday s l e s s certain than des i r ebehi nd t he pr ol i f er at i on of t s i mages

I n mat t er s of sex t he pr ol i f er at i on i s appr oachi ng t o t a l l o s s ere l i e s t he secret of t he ever i ncr easi ng pr oduct i on of sex

and i t s s i gns and the hyper r eal i smof sexual pl easure, par t i cu-l a r l yf em ni ne pl easur e The pr i nci pl eof uncer t ai nt y has extend-ed to sexual r eason, as wel l as p o l i t i c a land economc r eason

The s t a t eof sex sl i ber at i on s a l s o t ha tof i t s i ndeter m na-t i on No more want , no more prohi bi t i ons, and no more l i m t s t s t he l o s sof every r e f er e nt i a lpr i nci pl e Economc r eason i s

sust ai ned onl y by penury t s put i nto quest i on wi t h t he r e a l i -zati on of i t s obj ecti ve, t he abol i t i on of t he spectre of penur y Desi r e t oo i s sust ai ned onl y by want Wen desi r e i s enti r el yon t he si de of demand when t soper ati onal i zed wi t hout r e s -t r i c t i o n s t l oses i t s i magi nar y and, therefor e, i t s r e a l i t y t ap-pears ever ywher e, but i ngener al i zed si mul at i on t i s t he ghostof desi r e t h a t haunt s t he def unct r e a l i t yof sex ex i s ever y-wher e, except i n sexual i ty Bar thes

I n sexual myt hol ogy, t he tr ansi ti on t owar ds t he f emni ne i scontemporaneous wi t h t he passage from deter m nati on t ogener al i ndeter m nati on The f em ni ne i snot substi t ut ed f or t he


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SE U TI ON

mascul i ne as one sex f or anot her accor di ng t o some structural

i nver si on I t i ssubst i t ut ed as t he end of t he det er m nat er epr esent at i on of sex as t he f lo ta t ion of t he l aw~t hat r egul at est he di f f er ence between t he sexes The ascent of t he f em ni necor r esponds t o both t he apogee of sexual pl easur e and a c a t a s -trophe r e l a t i v et o sex s r e a l i t ypr i nci pl e

And so t i s f emni ni t y t h a t i s gr i ppi ng i n t he pr esent andf a t a l si t uat i on of sex s hyper r eal i xy as i t was yest er day but i ndi r ect contrast i n i r ony and seduct i on

Freud was r i ght there i s but one s exua l i t yone l ib ido andi t i smascul i ne Sexual i t y has a st r ong di scr i mnat i ve st r uct ur ecent er ed on t he pha l l us c a s t r a t i o nt he Name- of - t he F a t h e r andr epr essi on There i s none ot her There i s no use dreamng ofsome non- phal l i c unl ocked unmarked sexual i t y There i s nouse seeki ng from wi t hi n t h i s structure t o have t he f em ni ne

pass t hr ough t o t he ot her s i d e or t o cr oss t er ms

Ei t her t he s t r u c -ture r emai ns t he same wi t h t he f emal e bei ng ent i r el y absor bedby t he mal e or e l s e i t col l apses and there i s no l onger ei t herf emal e or mal e t he degr ee zero of t he structure Thi s i s ver ymuch what i s happeni ng t oday erotic pol yval ence t he i n f i n i t epot ent i al i t y of d es i r e d i f f e r e n tconnect i ons d i f f r a c t i o n sl i b i d i -nal i n t e n s i t i e s al l mul t i pl e var i ant s of a l i ber at or y al t er nat i vecomng from t he frontiers of a psychoanal ysi s f r e e of Fr eudor from t he f r ont i er s of desi r e f r e eof psychoanal ysi s ehi ndt he ef f er vescence of t he par adi gm of sex ever yt hi ng i s con-ver gi ng t owar ds t he non- di f f er ent i at i on of t he structure and i t spot ent i al neut r al i zat i on

The danger of t he sexual r evol ut i on f or t he f emal e i st hat shewi l lbe encl osed wi t hi n a structure t h a t condemns her t o ei t herdi scr i mnat i on when t he structure i s st r ong or a der i sor y t r iumph wi t hi n a weakened structure

The f emni ne however i s and has al ways been somewheree l s e That i s t he secr et of i t s st r engt h J ust as t i s s a i dt hat somet hi ng l a s t sbecause i t s exi st ence i s not adequat e t o i t s essencei t must be sai d t hat t he f em ni ne seduces because i t i s neverwhere i t t hi nks i t i s or where i t t hi nks i t s e l f The f em ni ne i snot f ound i n t he his tory of suf f er i ng and oppr essi on i mputed


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TH ECLI PTI C OF SEX 7

t o i t women s h i s t o r i c a lt r i bul at i ons t hough by gui l e con-

c eal si t s e l ft her ei n) t s u f f e r ssuch ser vi t udeonl ywhen assi gnedt o and repressed w t hi n t h i s s t ruc tu re t o whi ch t he sexualr evol ut i onassi gnsand represses al l t he more dr amat i cal l y Butby what aberrant compl i ci t y compl i ci t w t h what ? i f no t , pre-c i s e l y,t he mal e) woul d one have us bel i evet hat t h i s i s t he f e-mal e s hi st or y? Repr essi on i s al r eady her e i n f u l l f o r c e , i n t henar r at i veof women s sexual and p o l i t i c a lmsery, t o t he excl u-s i on of ever y ot her t ype of strength and sover ei gnt y

There i s an al t ernat i ve t o sex and t o power , one t hat psy-choanal ysi scannot know because i t s axi omat i cs ar e sexual . Andyes , t hi sal t er nat i ve i s undoubt edl yof t he or der of t he f e m -ni ne , understoodout s i det he oppos i t i onmascul i ne/ f em ni ne,t ha t oppos i t i onbei nge s s e n t i a l l ymascul i ne, sexuali n i nt ent i on,and i ncapabl e of bei ng overturned w t hout ceasi ng t o ex i s t

Thi s strength of t he f em ni ne i s t h a t of seduct i on

One may catch a gl i mpse of anot her , p a r a l l e luni ver se t hetwo never meet ) w t h t he decl i neof psychoanal ysi s and sexu-a l i t yas s t rong structures, and t h e i rcl eans i ngw t hi n a psy andmol ecul ar uni ver se t ha t of t h e i r f i n a ll i ber a t i on) uni ver set ha t can no l onger be i nt er pr et ed i n t er ms of ps ychi c or psy-chol ogi cal r e l a t i o n s ,nor those of r epr ess i on and t he uncons-ci ous, but must be i nt er pr et edi n t he t er ms of pl a y,chal l enges,duel s, t he strategy of appear ances t h a t i s t he t er ms of seduc-t i o n A uni ver se t hat can no l onger be i nt er pr et edi n t er ms ofstructures and d i a c r i t i c a lopposi t i ons, but i mpl i es a seduct i ver e v e r s i b i l i t y a uni ver se where t he f em ni ne i s not what op-poses t he mascul i ne, but what seduces t he mascul i ne

I n seduct i on t he f em ni ne i s nei t her a mar ked nor an un-mar ked t e r m t does not mask t he aut onomy of des i r e,pl ea s -ur e or t he body, or of a speech or wr i t i ngt h a t i t has s upposedl yl o s t ? Nor does l ayc l a i mt o some t r u t h of i t sown t seduces

To be su re , one c a l l st he sover ei gnt yof seduct i on f em ni neby convent i on, t he same convent i on t ha t cl ai ms sexual i t y t obe f undament al l ymascul i ne But t he i mpor t ant poi nt i st h a t t h i sform of sover ei gnt y has al ways exi s t ed del i neat i ng, f r o madi s t a nc e,t he f em ni neas s omet hi ngt h a t i snot hi ng, t ha t i s never


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8 SEDUCTI ON

produced, i s never where i t i s produced (and cert ai nl y can-

not t her ef or e be f ound i n any f emni st demand And thi snot from t he perspecti ve of a psychi c or bi ol ogi cal bi - sexual i t ybut t hat of t he t rans sexual i ty of seduct i on whi ch t he ent i reorgani zat i on of sex t ends t o r ej ect - as does psychoanal ysi s i naccordance w t h t he axi om t hat t here i s no ot her structure t hant hat of sexual i t y (whi ch renders t i ncapab e, by def i ni t i on ofspeaki ng about anyt hi ng el se

What does t he women s movement oppose t o t he phal l ocr at i cstructure? Aut onomy, di f f er ence a speci f i ci ty of desi re and pl eas-ure a di f f erent rel at i on t o t he femal e body, a speech, a wri t i ng- but never seducti on They are ashamed of seduct i on, as i mpl yi ng an art i f i ci al presentat i on of t he body, or a l i f of vassal ageand prost i t ut i on They do not underst and t hat seducti onrepresents mast ery over t he symbol i c uni ver se whi l e powerrepresents onl y mast ery of t he real uni ver se The soverei gnt yof seduct i on i s i ncommensurabl e w t h t he possessi on of pol i t -i cal or sexual power

There i s a st r ange f i er ce compl i ci t y between t he femni stmovement and t he order of truth For seduct i on i s resi s ted andrej ect ed as a msappropri at i on of women s true bei ng, a t rutht hat i n t he l ast i nst ance i s t o be f ound i nscri bed i n t hei r bodi esand desi res I n one st roke t he i mmense pri vi l ege of t he fem-ni ne i s effaced t he pri vi l ege of havi ng never acceded t o t ruth

or meani ng, and of havi ng remai ned absol ute mast er of the real mof appearances The capaci t y i mmanent to seduct i on t o denyt hi ngs thei r truth and t urn i t i nt o a game, t he pure pl ay of ap-pearances, and t hereby f o i l l l syst ems of power and meani ngw t h a mer e t urn of t he hand The abi l i t y t o t urn appearancesi n on t hemel ves, t o pl ay on t hebody s appearances, r at her t hanw t h t he dept hs of desi r e Now l l appearances are reversi bl e onl y at t he l evel of appearances are syst ems f ragi l e and vul ner-

abl e

meani ng s vul nerab e onl y t o enchant ment

One mustbe i ncredi b y bl i nd t o deny t he sol e force t hat i s equal and superi or to l l others si nce w t h a si mpl e pl ay of t he strategy ofappearances, i t t urns them upsi de down


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TH ECLI PTI C O S X 9

Anatomyi s

des t i ny Freud sai d

One mght be sur pr i sed t ha tt he f em ni s t movement s rej ec t i onof t h i s def i ni t i on, phal l i cbydef i ni t i on, and seal ed w t h t he stamp of anat omy, opens ontoan al ternat i ve that r emai ns f undament al l y bi ol ogi cal and ana-tomcal

I ndeed, woman s pl easur e does not have t o choosebetween c l i t o r a la c t i v i t yand vagi nal pas s i vi t yf orexampl e The pl easur e of t he vagi nal caress doesnot have t o be subst i t ut ed f or t hat of t he c l i t o r a lcaress They each cont r i but e, i r r epl ac eabl yt owoman s pl easur e Among other caresses Fon-dl i ngt he b r e a s t s t ouchi ng t he vul va, spr eadi ng t hel i p s s t r oki ng t he post er i or wal l of t he vagi na,br ushi ng agai nst t he mouth of t he uterus, and soon To evoke onl y a f ew of t he most s p e c i f i c a l l yf emal e pl easur es

Luce I r i gar a y

Par ol e de f emme? ut i t i s al ways an anat om cal speech, al -ways that of t he body What i s speci f i c t o women l i e s i n t hedi f f r act i onof t he er ogenous zones, i n a decent er ed erot i ci smt he di f f usepol yval enceof sexual pl easur e and t he t ransf i gura-t i o n of t he ent i re body by desi re t h i s i s t he theme song t ha truns through t he ent i re f emal e, sexual r evol ut i on, but al sothrough our ent i re cul t ure

oft he

body, from t he Anagrammesof Bel l mer t o Del euze s mechani zed connect i ons t i s al waysa quest i on of t he body, i f not t he anat om cal , then t he organi c,er ogenous body, t he f unct i onal body t h a t even i n f r agment edand met aphor i cal f or m woul d have pl easur e as i t s obj ect anddesi re as i t s natural mani f est at i on ut then ei t her t he body i shere onl y a metaphor and i t h i s i s t he c a s e what i s t he sexualr evol ut i on, and our ent i rt c ul t ur e havi ng become a body c ul -t u r e t al ki ng about ?) , or el s e w t h t h i sbody speech, t h i swoman speech, we have, very def i ni t e l yentered i nt o an anat om caldes t i ny i nt oanatomy as dest i ny There i s not hi ng here r a di c al -l y opposed t o Freud s maxi m

Nowhere i s i ta quest i on of s educt i on, t he body worked bya r t i f i c e and not by des i r e t he body seduced, t he body t o be


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TH LI PTI O S X 1

l ut e c r i t er i af or pronounci ng t he t r u th The mascul i ne i s c e rt a i n t he f em ni ne i nsol ubl e

ow sur pr i si ngl y t h i spr oposi t i on t h a t i n t he f em ni ne t hevery di st i nct i on between aut hent i ci t y and a r t i f i c ei s w t houtf oundat i on a l s odef i nes t he space of si mul at i on Here t oo onecannot di st i ngui sh between r e a l i t yand i t smodel s there bei ngno other r e a l i t yt han t h a t secreted by t he si mul at i ve model sj u s t as there no other f emni ni ty t han t h a t of appear ances Si mul at i on t oo i s i nsol ubl e

Thi s st r ange coi nci dence poi nt s t o t he ambi gui t y of t he femni ne t si mul t aneousl y pr ovi des r adi cal evi dence of si mul at i onand t he onl y poss ib i l i tyof i t sovercomng i n seduct i on preci sel y


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THE ETERN L I RONY OF

THE OMMUN TY

Thi s f em ni ni ty t he et er nal i ronyof t he communi ty

Hegel

Fem ni ni t y as a pri nci pl e of uncer t ai nt y t causes t he sexual pol es t o w ver t i snot t he pol e opposed

t o mascul i ni t y but what abol i shes t he di f f er ent i alopposi t i onand t hus sexual i ty i t s e l f as i ncarnat ed h i s t o r i c a l l yi n t he mas

cul i ne phal l ocr acy as m ght be i ncarnat ed i n t he future i n f emal e phal l ocracy f f emni ni ty i s a pri nci pl e of uncer t ai nt y i s where i t i si t

s e l f uncer t ai n t hat t h i suncer t ai nt y wi l l e great est i n the pl ayof f emni ni ty

Tr ansvest i sm Nei t her homosexu l s nor t ransexual s transvest i t e sl i ke t opl ay wi t h t he i ndi sti nctness of t he sexes he spel lt hey c a s t over t hemsel ves as wel l as others i s orn of sexualvaci l l ati on and not as i s cust omary t he at t racti on of one sexf or t he ot her hey do not r e a l l yl i k em l e men or f emal e women nor those who def i ne t hemsel ves r edundant l y as di st i nctsexual bei ngs I n order f or sex to exi s t si gns must r edupl i cat ebi ol ogi cal bei ng Her e t he si gns are separated from bi ol ogy andconsequent l y t he sexes no l onger exi s tpr oper l y speaki ng What


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t r ansves t i t esl ove i s t h i s game of s i gns what exci t es them s t oseduce t he s i gns themsel ves Wt h t hem everyt hi ngi s makeupt h e a t e r and seduct i on They appear obsessed w t h games ofsex but they ar e obsessed f i r s tof a l l w t h pl ay i t s e l f and i ft h e i r l i v e sappear more sexual l yendowed than our own i t i sbecause t hey make s ex i n t o a t o t a l ges t ur a l sensual and r i t u a lgame an exal t ed but i r o n i c i nvocat i on

Ni co seemed so beaut i f ul onl y because her f emni ni t yap-pear ed so compl et el y put on She emanated somethi ng more

than beaut y somethi ng more subl i me a di f f er ent seduct i on nd there was decept i on: s he was a f a l s edrag queen a rea lwoman i n f a c t pl ayi ng t he queen t i seasi er f or a non-f emal e/ f emal e than f or a rea l woman al r eady l egi t i mat ed byher sex t o move amongst t he si gns and take seduct i on t o t hel i m t Onl y t he non- f emal e/ f emal e canexer ci se an unt ai nt edf asci nat i on because s /he i s more seduct i ve than sexual Thef asci nat i oni sl o s twhen t he rea l s ex shows t hr ough t o be s u r e

some ot her desi r e may f i n d s omet hi ng here but pr ec i sel ynol onger i n t h a t per f ect i on t h a t bel ongs t o a r t i f i c eal one Seduct i on i s al ways more si ngul ar and s ubl i me than sex and

i t commands t he hi gher pr i ce One must not seek t o ground t r ansves t i smi n bi sexual i t y For

t he sexes and sexual di sposi t i ons whether mxed or ambi va-l ent i ndef i ni t eor i nver t ed ar e s t i l lr e a l and s t i l lbear w t nes st o t he psychi c r e a l i t yof s ex Her e however i t i s t h i sve ry d e f in i t i o nof t he sexual t h a t i s ecl i psed Not that t h i s

gamei s

per-verse What i s perverse i swhat perverts t he or der of t he t e r m but here there ar e no l onger any t e r m t o pervert onl y si gnst o seduce

Nor shoul d one seek t o ground t r ansves t i smi n t he uncons-ci ous or i n l at ent homosexual i t y The ol d casui s t r yof l at ency i s i t s e l fa pr oduc t of t he sexual i magi nar y of surfaces anddept hs and al ways i mpl i es a di agnosi s of symptom and pr og-nos i s f or t h e i rcor r ect i on But here nothi ng l at ent ever yt hi ngc a l l si n t oques t i on t he very i dea of a s e c r e t determnate i nst anceof sex t he i dea t hat t he deep pl ay of phant asi es cont r ol s t hesuper f i ci al pl ay of si gns On t he contrary ever yt hi ngi s pl ayedout i n t he ver t i goof t h i si nver si on t h i s t r ans s ubs t ant i at i onofsex i n t o s i gns t hat i s t he secret of al l seducti on


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14 SEDU TI ON

Per haps t he t r ans ves t i t e sabi l i t y t oseduce comes s t r a i ghtfromparody aparody of sex by i t sover- si gni f i cat i on The prost i -t ut i on of t r a ns ves t i t eswoul d t hen have a d i f f e r e n tmeani ng fromt he more common prosti t ut i on of women I t woul d be cl osert o t he sacred prost i t ut i on pr act i ced by t he Anci ent s ( or t hesacred s t a t u s of t he her maphr odi t e) . I t woul d be cont i guousw t h t he t h e a t e r ,or w t h makeup t he r i t u a land bur l esque os-t ent at i on of a sex whose own pl easur e i s absent

The seduct i on i t s e l fi s coupl ed w t h a parody i n whi ch an

i mpl acabl e h o s t i l i t yt o t he f emni ne shows t hr ough, and whi chmght be i nter pr et ed as a mal e appr opr i at i on of t he panopl yof f emal e al l ur ement s The t r a n s v e s t i t ewoul d t hen reproducet he si t uat i on of t he f i r s twar r i or he al one was seduct i ve t hewoman bei ng nul ( consi der f asci sm and i t s a f f i n i t yf or t r a n s -v e s t i t e s But rat her t han t he addi t i on of t he sexes i s not t h i sthei r i nval i dat i on? And doesn t t he mascul i ne, i n t h i smocker yof f emni ni t y, r esci nd i t s s t a t u s and pr er ogr at i ves i n order t o

become a cont r apunt al el ement i n a r i t u a lgame?I n any c a s e , t h i sparody of f em ni ni t y i s not qui t e as acer bi cas one mght t hi nk, si nce i t i s t he parody of f em ni ni t y as meni magi ne and stage i t as wel l as phant asi ze i t em ni ni t y ex-agger ated, degr aded, par odi ed ( dr ag queens i n Bar cel ona keept hei r moust aches and expose t h e i rhai ry c h e s t s ,t he cl ai m i st h a t i n t h i ssoci et y f emni ni ty i snaught but t he si gns w t h whi chmen r i gi t up To over - si mul at e f emni ni ty i s t o suggest t h a t wom

an i s but a mascul i ne model of si mul at i on

Her e i s a chal l enget o t he f emal e model by way of a f emal e game, a chal l enge t ot he f emal e/ woman by way of t he f emal e/ si gn And i t i s possi -bl e t h a t t h i s l i v i n g ,f ei gned denunci at i on, whi ch pl ays on t hef ur t hermost bounds of a r t i f i c e ,and si mul t aneousl y pl ays w t ht he mechani sm of f emni ni ty t o t he poi nt of perf ect i on, i smorel uci d and radi cal t han al l t he i dea- pol i t i cal cl ai ms of a f emni n-i t y al i enat ed i n i t s bei ng. Here f emni ni ty i s s a i dt o have nobei ng ( no nat ure, wri t i ng, si ngul ar pl easures or , as Freud s a i d,part i cul ari zed l i bi do) Contrary t o every search f or an aut hen-t i c f emni ni t y, f or a woman s speech, etc . t he cl ai mhere i s t h a tt he f emal e i s not hi ng, and t h a t t h i s i s her strength

Her e i sa more subt l e response t han f emni sms out r i ght deni alof t he l awof castr at i on For t he l a t t e rencount er s symbol i c, not


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TH ECLI PTI C O S X

anat om cal f a t e one t h a t wei ghs on l lpossi bl e sexual i t y Theover t urni ng of t hi s l awt h e r e f o r ecan onl y r e s u l tf r o mi t sparodi c r esol ut i on, from t he ex- cent ri ci t y of t he si gns of f emni ni ty,t he r edupl i cat i on of si gns t h a t puts an end t o every i nsol ubl ebi ol ogy, or met aphysi cs of t he sexes Makeup i s not hi ng e l s e a t r i umphant par ody, a sol ut i on by excess, t he surface hyper -si mul at i on of t h i si n- dept h si mul at i on t hat i si t s e l ft he symbol -i c l aw of castr at i on a transsexual game of seduct i on

The i r ony of a r t i f i c i a lpr acti ces t he pecul i ar a b i l i t yof t he

pai nt ed woman or prost i t ut e t o exaggerat e her f e a t u r e st o turnthem nto more t han a s i gn and by t h i s usage of not t he f a l s eas opposed t o t he t r u e but t he more f a l s et han f a l s e t o i ncar -nat e t he peaks of sexual i t y whi l e si mul t aneousl y bei ng absor bedi n t h e i rsi mul at i on The i r onypr oper t o t he const i t ut i on of woman as i dol or sex obj ect i n her cl osed per f ect i on, she puts anend t o sex pl ay and r e f e r sman, t he l or d and mast er of sexualreal i ty, t o hi s t r anspar ency as an i magi nary subj ect The i r on-

i c power of t he obj ect , t hen, whi ch she l oses when promotedt o t he s t a t u sof a subj ect Al l mascul i ne power i s a power t o produce Al l t h a t i s

pr oduced, be t he pr oduct i on of woman as f emal e, f a l l sw -t hi n t he r e g i s t e rof mascul i ne power The onl y, and i r r e s i s t i b l epower of f em ni ni ty i st he i nver se power of seduct i on I n i t s e l fi t i snul , seduct i on has no power of i t s own onl y t h a t of an-nul i ng t he power of pr oduct i on But i t al ways annul s t he l a t t e r

Has t h e r e mor eover , ever been a phal l i c power? Thi s ent i rehi st or y of pa t r i a r c ha ldom nat i on, of phal l ocracy, t he i mmemorial mal e p r i v i l e g ei s per haps onl y a story Begi nni ng w t h t heexchange of women i n p r i m t i v e s o c i e t i e sst upi dl y i nt er pr et -ed as t he f i r s tst age of woman- as- obj ect Al l t h a t we have beenasked t o bel i eve t he uni ver sal di scourse on t he i nequal i t y oft he sexes, t he theme song of an egal i t ar i an and r evol ut i onar ymoderni ty r ei nf or ced, t hese days, w t h al l t he ener gi es of af ai l ed r evol ut i on i s per haps one gi gant i c m sunder st andi ng The opposi t e hypot hesi s i s j u s t a spl ausi bl e and, f r o ma cer t ai nper spect i ve, more i nt er est i ng t h a t i s t h a t t he f em ni ne hasnever been dom nat ed, but has al ways been dom nant The fem-ni ne consi der ed not as a s e x but as t he form t r ansver sal t o ev-er y s e x as wel l as t o ever y power , as t he s e c r e t vi r ul ent form


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SE U TI ON

of i n- sexual i t y The f em ni ne as a chal l enge whose devast at i oncan be experi enced t oday t hr oughout t he ent i re expanse of sexu a l i t y And hasn t t h i s chal l enge, whi ch i s a l s o t h a t of seduc-t i o n al ways been t r i umphant ?

I n t h i s sense, t he mascul i ne hasal ways been but a r e s i dua lsecondary and f r a g i l ef or mat i on, one t h a t must be def endedby r et r enchment s , i n s t i t u t i o n sand a r t i f i c e s The phal l i c f o rt r e s soffers al l t he si gns of a f o r t r e s s t hat i s t o say of weakness I t can def end i t s e l fonl y from t he r ampar t s of a mani f est sexu-

a l i t y of a f i n a l i t yof sex t hat exhaust s i t s e l fi n r epr oduct i on, ori n t he orgasm

One can hypot hesi ze t hat t he f em ni ne i s t he onl y sex, andt hat t he mascul i ne onl y e x i s t sby a superhuman e f f o r tt o l eavei t A moment s di s t r ac t i onand one f a l l sback i n t ot he f em ni ne The f em ni ne woul d have a deci si veadvant age, t he mascul i nea def i ni t e handi cap One sees how r i di cul ous i t i s t o want t o l i berat e t he one i n order t h a t accede t o t he f r a g i l i t yof t he

ot her s power , t o t he ec c ent r i cparadoxi cal , paranoi d and t i r esome mascul i ne s t a t e The phal l i c f a b l ereversed where woman i s created f r omman

by subt ract i on, here i t i sman created from woman by excep-t i on A f a b l ee a s i l yst r engt hened by Bet t l ehei msa nal ys i si nSymbol i cWounds where men ar e s a i dt o have erect ed t h e i rpower sand i ns t i tut i ons i n order t o t hwar t t he or i gi nal l yf ar superi orpowers of women The dr i vi ngforce i s not pe ni s envy, but on

t he contrary, man s j eal ousyof woman s power off e r t i l i z a t i o n

Thi s f emal e advant age coul dnot be at oned ; a di f f er ent orderhad t o be b u i l tat al l c o s t s a mascul i ne s o c i a l p o l i t i c a land eco-nomc order, wherei n t h i s advant age coul d be reduced Thust he r i t u a lpract i ces whereby t he si gns of t he opposi t e sex ar eappr opr i at ed ar e l argel y mascul i ne scari f i cat i ons; mut i l at i ons,a r t i f i c i a lvagi ni zat i ons, couvades, et c

Al l t h i s i s as convi nci ngas a paradoxi cal hypot hesi s can be(and i t i s al ways more i nt er es t i ng t han t he recei ved w s dom) ,but i n t he end onl y reverses t he t e rm, and so turns t he f e m -ni ne i n t o an ori gi nal subst ance, a sort of ant hropol ogi cal i nfrastructure t reverses t he anat om cal det erm nat i on, but l e t si t subsi st as dest i ny and once agai n t he i r ony of f em ni ni t yi s l o s t


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TH ECLI PTI C OF S X

The i r ony i s l o s twhen t he f em ni ne i si n s t i t u t e das a sex , evenand above al l when i t i si n or der t o denounce i t s oppr essi on I t i s t he eternal i l l u s i o nof enl i ght enment humani sm whi chaspi r es t o l i b e r a t et he servi l e sex, race or c l a s si n t he very t er msof i t sser vi t ude That t he f em ni ne becomes a sex i n i t s ownr i g h t An a bs u r d i t y,i fposed i nnei t her t he t er ms of sex nor power

The f em ni ne knows nei t her equi val ence nor val ue t i s t h e r e -f o r e ,not sol ubl e i n power I t i snot even subversi ve, i t i s rever-s i b l e Power , on t he ot her hand, i s sol ubl e i n t he r e v e r s i b i l i t yof t he f em ni ne I f t he facts cannot deci de whether i t wast he mascul i ne or f em ni ne t h a t was domnant t hr oughout t heages once agai n, t he t h e s i sof women s oppr essi on i sbased ona car i catural phal l ocrat i c myt h) , by contrast, t r emai ns cl eart h a t i n mat t ers of s exual i t y ,t he r ever si bl e form pr e vai l sovert he l i near form The excl uded form pr e vai l s ,s ec r et l y,over t hedomnant form The seduct i ve form pr evai l s over t he pr oduc-t i v eform

Fem ni ni t y i n t h i s sense i s on t he same si de as madness I ti s because madness secret l y pr evai l s t h a t i t must be nor mal i zed t hanks t o, amongst ot her t h i n g s ,t he hypot hesi s of t he uncons-ci ous) I t i s because f em ni ni t y secret l y prevai l s t h a t t must ber ecycl ed and nor mal i zed i n sexual l i berat i on i n part i cul ar)

And i n t he orgasmThe despoi l ment of t he or gasm t he absence of sexual pl eas-

ure, i s often advanced as c h a r a c t e r i s t i cof women s oppr essi on l agr ant i nj us t i cewhose i mmedi at e r e c t i f i c a t i o never yone must

pur sue i n accord wi t h t he i nj uncti onsof a sort of l ong- di st ancerace or sex r a l l ySexual pl easur e has become a r equi si t e anda f undament al r i ght The most r ecent of t he r i g h t sof man, i t

has acceded t o t he di gni t y of a categor i cal i mper at i ve

I t i s i mmoral t o ac t ot her wi se But t h i si mper at i ve does not even havet he Kant i ancharm of endl ess f i n a l i t i e s s t he management andsel f - management of des i r e, i t s i mposi t i on does n o t , no morethan t h a t of t he l aw, al l owi gnor ance as a def ense

But t h i si st o r emai n unaware t h a t sexual pl easur e t oo i sr e v e r -


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SEDU TI ON

s i bl e t hat i s to say that i n the absence or den al of t he orgasm

superi or i ntensi ty i s possi b e I t i s here where the end of sexbecomes al eatory agai n t hat somethi ng ar i ses t hat can be cal l ed

seduct i on or del i ght Or agai n sexual pl easure can be j ust a pretext

f or another, more exci t i ng more passi onate game Thi s i s what

occurred i n The Empi re of the Senses where the ai m was t o push

sexual pl easure to i t s l i m t and beyond - a chal l enge t hat prevai l s

over the worki ngs of desi re because i t i s much more di zzyi ng,

because i t i nvol ves the passi ons whi l e the other i mpl i es on y a dri ve

But thi s vert i go can be equal l y present i n the r ej ect i on of sex-ual pl easure o knows i f women f ar f rom bei ng despoi l ed,

have not f rom t i me i mmemori al , been pl ayi ng a game of t hei r

own by t ri umphant l y assert i ng a r i ght to sexual ret i cence? I f

t hey have not f rom the depths of t hei r sexual i mpassi bi l i ty beent hrowng down a chal l enge, chal l engi ng men s pl easure to be

but the pl easure of men al one? No one knows to what dest ruc-

t i ve dept hs such provocat i on can go nor what omni pot ence

i t i mpl i es Men, reduced t o s ol i t ar y pl easures and enmeshedwthi n the di rect i ves of del i ght and conquest , never di d f i nd

a way out o won t hi s game wt h i t s di f f erent st rat egi es? Men, ap-

par ent l y a l l down the l i ne But i t i s by no means cer t ai n t hat they

di d not l os e themel ves i n t hi s t e r r ai n and become bogged down

as i n that of the se i zure of power ) consequent t o a sort of f orward

f l i ght t hat coul d nei ther assure t hem of saf ety nor r el i eve t hem

of thei r secret despai r a t what had escaped them - what everthei r gai ns or cal cul at i ons Thi s had t o end i t was i mperat i ve

that women have orgasm Measures had to be t aken t o l i ber -ate t hem and make t hem cl i max t hereby endi ng t hi s unbeara-b e chal l enge t hat ul t i matel y nul l i f i es sexual pl easure i n a

possi b e strategy of non-pl easure For sexual pl easure knows

no strategy i t i s onl y energy seeki ng an out l et I t i s t heref ore qui te

i nf er i or t o any strategy t hat uses i t as i t s mat eri al and uses desi re

i t s e l f as a t act i cal el ement Thi si s

the cent ral t heme of the l i ber -t i ne sexual i ty of the ei ghteenth century f rom Lacl os t o Casanovaand Sade ( i ncl udi ng Ki erkegaard i n Dary of the Seducer) , f or

whom sexual i ty s t i l l re tai ns i t s ceremoni al , ri tual and s t rategi c

character bef ore si nki ng wt h the Ri ghts of Man and psychol -ogy i nto the reveal ed t ruth of sex


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TH ECLI PTI C O S X

Here then i s t he er a of t he p i l l when sexual pl easur e i sdecr eed The end of t he r i ght t o sexual r et i cence Women mustr eal i z ethat they are bei ng di spossessed of somethi ng essent i alf or them t o put up so much r esi st ance a l l those ghos t s of mssed a c t s t o t he rat i onal adopt i on of t he p i l l The samer esi st ance as t h a t of e n t i r egener at i ons t o school , medi ci ne, secu-r i t yand work The same prof ound i ntui t i onabout t he r avagesof an unf et t er ed l i b e r t yspeech or pl easur e Def i ance, t he other sdef i ance, i sno l onger possi bl e a l lsymbol i c l o g i chas been e l i m -nat ed t o t he advant age of a permanent er ect i on and i t s bl ack-mai l ( w t hout count i ng t he t endenci ous l ower i ng of t he r a t eof sexual pl easur e i t s e l f

The t radi t i onal woman s sexual i t y was nei t her repressednor f or bi dden W t hi n her r o l eshe was ent i r e l yher sel f ; she was

i n no way def eat ed, nor p as s i venor di d she dream of her f u-ture l i berat i on I t i s t he beaut i f ul soul s who r et r ospect i vel y,see women as al i enat ed from t i me i mmemor i al , and then l i b e r -ated And there i s a prof ound di sdai n i n t h i s vi si on, t he samedi sdai n as t h a t shown t owar ds t he al i enat ed masses supposedl yi ncapabl e of bei ng anyt hi ng but myst i f i ed sheep

I t i seasy t o pai nt a pi ct ur e of woman al i enat ed through t heages and then open t he doors of desi r e f or her under t he

auspi ces of t he revol ut i on and psychoanal ysi s I t i sal l so si mp l e so obscene i n i t ssi mpl i ci t y wor se, i t i mpl i es t he very es -sence of sexi smand raci sm comm ser at i on

Fort unat el y, t he f emal e has never f i tt h i s i mage She has al -ways had her own s t r a t e g y t he unr emt t i ng, w nni ng strategyof chal l enge ( one of whose maj or f or ms i s seduct i on) Therei s no need t o l ament t he wrongs she suf f er ed, nor t o want t orect i f y them No need t o pl ay t he l over of j ust i ce f or t he weak-

er sex

No need t o mor t gage ever yt hi ng f or some l i berat i on ordesi r e whose secret had t o wai t t i l lt he t went i et h century t obe r eveal ed At each moment of t he story t he game was pl ayedwi t h a f u l ldeck, wi t h al l t he car ds, i ncl udi ng t he t r umps Andmen di d not w n, not at al l On t he contrary, i t i s women whoare now about t o l os e pr eci sel y under t he si gn of sexual pl eas-


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2 SEDU TI ON

ur e but t h i s i s anot her story

I t i s t he story of t he f em ni ne i n t he pr esent t e n s e i n a c u l -ture t h a t pr oduces ever ythi ng, snakes ever ythi ng speak, ever y-t hi ng babbl e, ever ythi ng cl i max The pr omot i on of t he f emal eas a sex i n i t s own r i ght ( equal r i g h t s equal pl easures) , of t hef emal e as val ue at t he expense of t he f emal e as a pr i nci pl e

of uncer t ai nt y Al l sexual l i ber ati on l i e si n t h i sstrategy t he i mposi t i on of t he r i g h t s s t a t u sand pl easure of womn The over -exposi ng and st agi ng of t he f emal e as sex and of t he orgasmas t he repeated pr oof of sex

Pornography s t at es t hi scl earl y t r i l ogy of spread, sensual -i sm and s i g n i f i c a t i o npornography promotes f emal e sexualpl easur e i n so exagger at ed a manner , onl y i n or der to bet t erbury t he uncer t ai nt y t hat hover s over the bl ack cont i nent

No mor e of t hat eternal i r ony of t he commn ty of whi chHegel spoke Hencef or t h women wi l l cl i max, and wi l lknowwhy Al lf emni ni ty wi l lbe mde v i s i b l e womn as embl emat i cof or gasm and orgasm as embl emat i c of sexual i t y No mor e un-c er t ai nt yno mor e secrets Thi s i s t he r adi cal obsceni t y t hat i sbegi nni ng

P a s o l i n i sSal o or a 12 Days a ver i t abl e twi l i ght of seduc-t i on Al l r e v e r s i b i l i t yhas been abol i shed i n accor dance wi t han i mpl acabl e l ogi c Ever yt hi ng i s i rr eversi bl y mascul i ne anddead Even t he compl i ci t y, t he pr om scui t y bet ween execut i on-er s and vi ct i ms has di sappear ed i nani mat e t o r t u r e perpetrat-ed wi t hout emot i on, a col d machi nat i on ( Her e one per cei vest hat sexual gr ati f i cati on i s t r u ly t he i ndust r i al usuf r uct of t hebody, and t he opposi t e of al l seduct i on i t i s a pr oduct of ex-t r act i on, a t echnol ogi cal pr oduct of a mchi nery of bodi es, al o g i s t i c sof pl easur e whi ch goes st r ai ght t o i t s obj ect i ve, onl yt o f ind i t s obj ect dead)

The f i l mi l l u s t r a t e st he t ruth t h a t i n a domnant mascul i nesystem and i n every domnant system( whi ch thereby becoms


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mascul i ne , i t i s f em ni ni t y t h a t i ncar nat es r e v e r s i b i l i t y ,t he pos-s i b i l i t yof pl ay and symbol i c i nvol vement Sal o i s a uni ver secompl et el y sani t i zed of t ha t mni mum of seduct i on t ha t pro-vi des t he stakes not j u s tof s e x , but of ever y r e l at i on,i ncl udi ngdeat h and t he exchange of death t h i si s expr essed i n Sal o, asi nSade, by t he predomnance of sodom I t i s here t hat i t be-coms appar ent t ha t t he f em ni ne i s not a sex opposed t o t heother , but what counters t he sex t h a t al one has f u l lri ght s andt he f u l lexer ci se of these r i ght s ,t he sex t h a t hol ds a mnopol yon sex t he mascul i ne, i t s e l fhaunt ed by t he f e a r of somethi ngother, of whi ch sex i s but t he di senchanted form seduct i on The l a t t e r i s a game, sex i s a f unct i on Seduct i on supposes ar i t ualorder, sex and desi r e a natural order I t i s these two f un-dament al f or ms t ha t conf r ont each ot her i n t he mal e and f e -mal e, and not som bi ol ogi cal di f f er enceor som nai ve r i val ryof power

TH E LI PTI O S X 1

The f em ni ne i snot j u s tseduct i on i t a l s osuggest s a chal l enget o t he mal e t o be t he s e x , t o monopol i ze sex and sexual pl eas-ure , a chal l enge t o go t o t he l i m t sof i t s hegemny and exer -c i s ei t unt o death Today phal l ocr acy i s col l apsi ng under t hepressure of t h i schal l enge pr esent t hr oughout our c ul t u r e ss e x -ual hi s t o r y ) ,and i t s i n a b i l i t yt o meet i t Our ent i re concept i on

of sexual i t y may be col l apsi ngbecause constructed around t hephal l i c f unct i on and t he posi t i ve def i ni t i on ofsex Ever yposi -t i ve f ormcan accommdat e i t s e l ft o i t snegat i ve f o r m but un-der st ands t he chal l enge of t he r ever s i bl e form as mor t al Ever ystructure can adapt t o i t s subver si on or i nver si on, but not t ot he r ever s i on of i t s t er ms Seduct i on i s t h i s r ever si bl e form

Not t he seduct i on t o whi ch women have been h i s t o r i c a l l yconsi gned t he cul t ur e of t he gynaeceum of r ouge and l ac e,a seduct i on reworked by t he

m r r o r stage and t he f emal e i magi nar y, t he ter r ai n of sex gams and ruses t hough here l i e st he onl y bodi l y r i t ualof west er n cul t ur e l f t al l t he others havi ngdi sappear ed, i nc l udi ngpol i t eness But seduct i on as an i r oni c ,al t er nat i ve f o r m one t h a t br eaks t he r e f e r e n t i a l i t yof sex andpr ovi des a space, not of des i r e ,but of pl ay and def i ance


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2 SE U TI ON

Thi s i s what occurs i n t he most banal games of seduct i on : shy away i t i snot you who wi l lgi ve me pl easure, i t i s whowi l l make you pl a y and thereby rob you of your pl easur e Agame i n cont i nuous movement one cannot assume t h a t sex-ual st r at egi es al one are i nvol ved There i s above a l l a strategyof di spl acement seducer e : t o take a s i de to di ver t f rom one spath) that i mpl i es a di stort i on of sex st ruth To pl ay i s not t otake pl easur e Seduct i on, as a passi on and as a game at t he l e v -el of t he s i gn acqui r es a cer t ai n sover ei gnt y ; i t i sseduct i on t h a tprevai l s i n t he l ong te rm because i t i mpl i es a r e ver s i bl ei ndet er -mnate or der

The gl amour of seduct i on i s qui t e super i or t o ;t he Chr i sti anconsol at i on of t he pl easures of t he f l esh One wants us t o consi der t he l a t t e r a natural f i n a l i t y - - -and many are dr i ven mad f orf a i l i n gt o a t t a i ni t ut l ove has not hi ng t o do w t h sex dr i ves,i f not i n t he l i b i d i n a ll ook of our contemporary cul t ur e Lovei s a chal l enge and a pr i ze: a chal l enge t o t he ot her t o returnt he l ove And t o be seduced i s t o chal l enge t he ot her t o beseduced i n turn there i s no f i n e rar gument than t o accuse a

woman of bei ng i ncapabl e of bei ng seduced) Per ver si on, fromt h i s per specti ve takes on a somewhat di f f erent meani ng i t i st opretend t o be seduced w t hout bei ng seduced, w t hout be-i ngcapabl e of bei ng seduced

The l aw of seducti on t a k e st he form of an uni nt er r upted r i t u a lexchange where seducer and seduced const ant l y r a i s et he stakes

i n a game that never ends And cannot end si nce t he di vi di ngl i n e that def i nes t he vi ctory of t he one and t he def eat of t heother, i si l l e g i b l e And because there i sno l i m tt o t he chal l enget o l ove more than one i s l oved, or t o be al ways more seduced- i f not deat h Sex, on t he ot her hand, has a qui ck, banal endt he orgasm t he i mmedi ate f orm of des i r e sreal i zati on

I n a na l y si s one can see the extreme danger that

may be i ncur r ed by a manwho

begi ns t o l i s t ent o a woman s demand f or sexual pl easur e I fthrough her des i r e a woman a l t e r s t he unal t er a-b i l i t yw t h i n whi ch a man cannot hel p but encl oseher i f she her sel f becomes an i mmedi at e andl i m t l e s sdemand i fshe no l onger r emai ns w t h i n


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TH ECLI PTI C OF S X 23

t h i sencl osur e and sno l onger hel d by t t he mnf i nds hi msel f cas t i nt oa subsui ci dal s t a t e demndthat t o l e r a t e sno del ay,no excuse, that s l i m t l e s sw t h regard t o i nt ensi t y and dur at i on, shatters t heabsol ut e r epr esent ed by womn by f em ni ne sex-u a l i t y,and even by f em ni ne pl easur e . Fem ni nesexual pl easur e can al ways be r ender ed di vi neagai n, and t hus cont r ol l ed, reduced t o t he cool -ness of mar bl e b r e a s t s ,whereas t he demnd f orenj oyment mde by a womn t o t he mn who i sbound t o her w t hout bei ng abl e t o f l e e , causeshi m o l o s e hi s bear i ngs and t he f eel i ng of purecont i ngency Wen al l desi r e schannel l ed i ntot he demnd f or enj oyment , t he worl d turns up-si de down and bursts asunder Thi s s doubt l esswhy our cul t ur e has t aught women t o demndnot hi ng i n order t o i nduce them t o desi r enot hi ng

And t hi s des i r e,al l of whi ch schannel l ed i nto t he demndf or enj oyment ? Does t s t l lconcern womn s desi r e ? I s n tt h i saform of madness, whi ch has but l t t l t o do w t h l i ber a-t i on ? Wat s t h i snew f em ni ne f i gure of unl i m t ed sexual de-mnd an unl i m t ed c l a i mt o sexual g r a t i f i c a t i o n ?Thi s ,i n e f f e c t , s t he end poi nt t o whi ch our cul t ur e i s r ushi ng and Roust ang s r i g h t , t conceal s a form of subsui ci dal col l ect i ve vi ol ence And not j u s t f or men but f or women too , and f or sexual i t y i ngeneral

W say no t o t hose who l ove onl y womn t hosewho l ove onl y mn those who l ove onl y chi l dr en there ar e al so t he e l d e r l y,sados, machos, dogs,c a t s ) The new m l i t a n t ,w t h hi s ref i ned egocen-t r i c i s m,cl ai ms a r i ghtt o hi ssexual raci sm But wesay no t o al l sect ar i ani sm I f one mst becom am sogyni st t o be a peder ast , an androphobe t o be

1 Frani ; oi sRoust ang, D re Mast er y Bal t i mor e J ohns Hopki ns Press, 1982) , pp 104- 5


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24 SE U TI ON

a l es bi an, . i fone must r ej ect t he pl easur es of t heni ght chance encount er s and pi ck- ups i n or dert o def end onesel f agai nst rape , then i n t he nameof a st r uggl e agai nst cer t ai npr ohi bi t i ons one hasre turned t o ot her t aboos mor al i sms nor msbl i nker s W t hi n our body we exper i encenot one sex nott wo but a mul t i t ude of sexes W do not seea manor woman but a human bei ng anthropomorph

i c ( ) Our bodi es ar e t i r e dof al l t he stereotypedc u l t u r a lb a r r i e r s ,al l t he physi ol ogi calsegr egat i on We ar e mal e and f emal e adul t s and chi l dr en f a i r i e s ,dykes and gays, f uckers and f ucked bugger s andbuggered W do not accept t he r educt i on of al lour sexual r i chness t o a s i n g l e sex Our sapphi smi s onl y one f a c e tof our sexual i t y We r e f us e t ol i m tour sel ves t o what soc i et y demands of us , t hat s

t hat we be ei t her hetero l esbi an gay t he whol egamut of pr omot i onal pr oduct s W ar e unr easona-bl e i n al l our desi r es

J udi t h Bel l adonnaBar bar a Pent onL i bd,J u l y 1978

The f renzy of unl i m t ed sex, an exacer bat ed vent i l at i onofdesi r e onto demand and gr at i f i cat i on doesn t t h i s const i t ut ea r eve r sa l

ofwhat Roust angdescr i bed i f u n t i lnowwomen wer e

t aught t o demand not hi ng i n or der t h a t they des i r ed not hi ngar e they not now be i ng t aught t o demand ever yt hi ng i n or dert o desi r e not hi ng?The ent i r e bl ack cont i nent decoded by sex-ual g r a t i f i c a t i o n ?

Mascul i ni t ywoul d be cl oser t o t he Law f em ni ni t ycl oser t osexual pl easur e But i s not such pl easur e t he axi omat i cs of adecoded sexual uni ver se t he f em ni ne and l i ber at i ngr e f e r -ence producedby t he gr adual enf eebl ement of t he Law t he Lawbecomng an i nj unc t i ont o pl easur e a f t e rhavi ng been i t s i n t e r -di c t i on kn effect of s i mul at i on i nver t ed t i s when pl easur eseeks openl y t o be autonomous t hat t i s t r u l y a pr oduc t oft he Law Or e l s e t he Law col l apses and wher e t he Law di sap-pear s pl easur e i s i naugur at edas a new contract What does t


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TH ECLI PTI C OF S X 2 5

mat t er not hi ng has changed, and t he i nver si on of si gns i s but

a consequence of strategy Thi s i st he si gni f i cance of t he pr esentt ur nar ound, and of t he t wi n pr i vi l egi ng of t he f em ni ne andpl easur e over t he mascul i ne and pr ohi bi t i on t ha t once dom -nat ed sexual r eason The exal t at i on of t he f em ni ne i s a per f ecti nst r ument f or t he unpr ecedent ed gener al i zat i on and cont r ol l edext ensi on of sexual Reason

An unexpect ed f a t e , one t h a t cut s shor t al l t he i l l u s i o n sofdesi r e and al l t he r at i onal i zat i ons of l i berat i on Marcuse

What w t hi n a pat r i ar chal system appear s as t hef em ni ne ant i t he s i sof mascul i ne val ues woul d t hent r ul y const i t ut e a repressed soci al and hi s t o r i calal t er nat i ve t he s o c i a l i s tal t er nat i ve To do awaywi t h pat r i ar chal soci et y i st o deny al l t he par t i cu-l ar qual i t i e sat t r i but ed t o womn as womn andt hus t o ext end t hese qual i t i e st o al l sectors of so-

c i all i f

t o work and l ei sure a l i k e

Wmn s l i b e r -at i on woul d t hen be , si mul t aneousl y, t he l i ber at i onof men

Act uel s, Gal i l de ,p 33

Suppose t he f em ni ne l i ber at ed and pl aced at t he ser vi ce ofa new col l e ct i veEros t he same mdus operandi as f or the deat hdr i ve t he sam d i a l e c t i cal i gned wi t h t he new soci al Eros) But what happens i f t he f em ni ne, f ar f rom

bei ng a set of s p e c i f i cq u a l i t i e s whi ch i t my have been when repressed, but onl yt h e n ) ,proves, once l i be r at e d,t o be t he expr essi on of an erot i ci ndet er m nat i on, and of t he l o s s of any speci f i c q u a l i t i e s ,asmch i n t he soci al as t he sexual spher e?

The si t uat i on of t he f em ni ne was qui t e i r oni c i n seduct i on,and i s j u s tas i roni c t oday i n i t s i ndet er m nat i on and equi voca-t ion ; f or i t spromti on as subj ect i saccomani ed by i t s returnas obj ect , t ha t i s t o say, as gener al i zed pornography st r angecoi nci dence Wmn s l i berat i on woul d very mch l i k et o c a s tt he deci di ng vot e agai nst t h i s obj ect i f i cat i on But t he cause i shopel ess, f or t he si gni f i cance of t he l i berat i on of t he f em ni nel i e si n i t s r adi cal ambi gui t y Even Roust ang s t e x t , whi ch t endst o suppor t t he f l ood of f emal e demands cannot but have a


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26 SEDU TI ON

present i ment of t he catastrophe tha t t he channel l i ng of l l d e s i r e

i nto t he demand f or g r a t i f i c a t i o nconst i t ut es Unl ess one con-si der s t he subsui ci dal s t a t e of men provoked by t h i s demandas a deci si vear gument , there i s not hi ng tha t l e t sone di sti ngui sht he monst r osi t y of t h i s demand f or f emal e grat i f i cat i on fromt he monst r os i t y of i t s t o t a l i nterdi ct i on i n years past

s i m l a r ambi gui t y canbe f ound i n t he mal e and hi s weakness The pani c men fee l when f aced w t h t he ` , ` l i b e r a t e df e-mal e subj ect i s equal l ed onl y by t h e i r f r a g i l i t ybef ore t he

por nogr aphi c chasm f t he al i enated f emal e sex, t he f emal esex obj ect Whether a woman demands sexual s a t i s f a c t i o n bybecomng consci ous of t he rat i onal i ty of her d e s i r e , or offersher sel f i n a s t a t eof t o t a l prost i tut i on whether t he f emal e besubj ect or obj ect , l i berated or pr osti t ut ed, her sex i s t o bedevour i ng, a gapi ng voraci t y t i s no acci dent tha t al l por nog-raphy turns around t he f emal e sex Thi s i s because er ect i onsare never cert ai n no scenes of i mpot ence i n pornogr aphy, t hey

ar e averted by t he hal l uci nat i onof unr est r ai ned f em ni ne sup-p l y I n a sexual i t ymade pr obl emat i c by demands t o prove anddemonst r at e i t s e l fw t hout di scont i nui t y, t he marked posi t i on,t he mascul i ne posi t i on, wi l lbe f r a g i l e y contrast, t he f emal esex r emai ns equal t o i t s e l fi n i t s a v a i l a b i l i t y,i n i t s chasm i t sdegree zero The cont i nui t y of f emal e s exual i t y,as opposed t omal e i nt erm t t ency, i s enough t o ensure i t s super i ori t y at t hel ev el of t he organi c r epr esent at i on of sexual pl easure, t her epr esent at i on of endl ess sex that has come t o dom nat e ourf ant asi es

Sexual l i berati on, l i k etha t of t he pr oduct i ve f o r c e s ,i s pot en-t i a l l yl i m t l e s s I t demands a pr of us i on come t r u e , a sexual l yaf f l uent soci et y I t can no mre t o l er a t ea scarci ty of sexualgoods, t han of mat er i al goods Now t h i s ut opi an cont i nui t yand a v a i l a b i l i t ycan onl y be i ncarnat ed by t he f emal e sex Thi si s why i n t h i ssoci et y ever yt hi ng obj ect s, goods, servi ces, r e-l at i ons of al l t ypes wi l lbe f er ni ni zed, sexual i zed i n a fem-ni ne f ashi on I n adver t i si ng i t i snot so much a mat t er of addi ngsex t o washi ng machi nes whi ch i s absurd) as conf er r i ng on ob-j e c t st he i magi nar y, f emal e qual i t y of bei ng avai l abl eat wi l l ,ofnever bei ng r e t r a c t i l eor al eat or y

I n pornography sexual i t y i s l u l l e d by t h i s yawni ng mnoto


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TH E LI PTI O SEX 2

ny where f l a c c i dor e r e c t i l emn pl ay onl y a nomnal r o l e Hardcore has changed not hi ng t he mal e no l onger i nter esti ng be-cause t oo det er m ned, t oo mrked the phal l us as canoni cals i g n i f i e r and t hus t oo f r a g i l e Fasci nat i onmves t owar ds t heneuter , t owar ds an i ndet er mnate chasm a mobi l e, di f f usesexu a l i t y The f emni ne s h i s t o r i c a lr evenge a f t e rso mny centu-r i e s of r epr essi on and f r i g i d i t y ?Per haps, but mre l i k e l y t heexhausti on of s e x u a l i t ywhether i t be t he mascul i ne sexual i tyt h a t once nour i shed al l t he schems of e r e c t i l i t yv e r t i c a l i t y

ascendancy, gr owt h, pr oduct i on, etc and i s at pr esent l os t i nt he obsessi ve si mul ati on of al l these themes or a f emni nes exua l i t y a si ncar natedfrom t i me i mmemor i al i n seduct i on To-day behi nd t he mechani cal obj ec t i f i cat i onof t he si gns of sex,i t i s t he mascul i ne as f r a g i l e and t he f emni ne as degr ee zerowhi ch have t he upper hand

W ar e i ndeed i n an or i gi nal si t uat i onas regards sexual v i ol ence vi ol ence done t o t he subsui ci dal mal e by unbr i dl ed,f emal e sensual i sm But t not a mat t er of a r e v e r s a lof t he h i s t o ri c a l vi ol ence done t o women by mal e sexual f o r c e The v i ol ence i nvol vedher e i s r e l a t i v et o t he neutr al i zati on, depr essi onand col l apse of t he mrked t e rm bef or e t he i r r upt i onof t henon mrked t e r m I t not a r e a l gener i c vi ol ence, but a v i ol ence of di ssuasi on, t he vi ol ence of t he neuter , t he vi ol ence oft he degr ee zero

So t oo pornography t he vi ol ence of sex neut r al i zed


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ST R O PORNO

Take me t o your room and f uckme There i s somthi ng i ndef i nabl e i nyour vocabu ary somthi ng l e f t; t o be

desi redP h i l i p ckThe Schi zos Bal l

71cr ni ng everythi ng i n to real i ty i mmy C l i f f

The t rompe l oei l removes a di mensi on f rom r ea l space, and

t h i s account s f or i t s seduct i on Pornography by cont r ast addsa di mensi on t o t he space of sex , t mkes t he l a t t e rmore r ea lt han t he r e a l and t h i saccount s f or i t s absence of seduct i on

Ther e sno need t o sear ch f or t he phant asi es t h a t haunt por-nogr aphy ( f et i s hi s ms ,perversi ons, pr i mal scenes, et c , , f or t heyare bar r ed by an excess of r eal i t y Per haps pornography sonl yan al l egor y , t ha ti s t o say, a f orci ng of s i gns , a baroque ent er -pri se of over- si gni f i cat i on t ouchi ng on t he gr ot esque ( l i t e r a l -l y gr ot esque gar den ar t added t o a rocky nat ur e aspornography adds t he vi vi dness ; of anat om cal d e t a i l ).

The obsceni t y i t s e l fbur ns and consums i t s obj ect ne seesfrom up cl ose what one has never seen bef or e ; t o one s goodf o r t u n e ,one has never seen one s geni t a l sf unct i on from so c l o s e ,nor f or t hat mat t er, from so general a per spect i ve I t s al l t oo


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t r u e , t oo near t o be t rue And t i s t h i s that i s f as c i nat i ng,t h i s

excess of r e a l i t y ,t h i s hyper r eal i t y of t hi ngs The onl y phant asyi n por nogr aphy, i there i s one, i s thus not a phant asy of s e x ,but of t he r e a l , and i t s absor pt i on i nto somet hi ng other thant he r e al , t he hyperreal Por nogr aphi c voyeur i sm s not a sexualvoyeur i sm but a voyeur i smof r epr esent at i on and i t sper di t i on,a di zzi ness born of t he l o s sof t he scene and t he i r r upt i on oft he obscene

Consequent t o t he anat omcal zoom t he di mensi on of t he

rea l i s abol i shed, t he di st ance i mpl i ed by t he gaze gi ves wayt o an i nst ant aneous, exacer bat ed r epr esent at i on, that of sex i ni t s pure s t a t e , str i pped not j u s t of al l seduct i on, but of i t s i mage svery pot enti al i ty Sex so cl ose that i t mer ges w t h i t sownr epr esent at i on t he end of per spect i val space, and t h er e f or e , t h atof t he i magi nar y and of phant asy end of t he scene, end ofan i l l u s i o n

Obsceni t y, however , i s not por nogr aphy Tradi t i onal obsceni t y

s t i l lcont ai ns an el ement of t r ansgr essi on, provocat i on, or per-ver si on I t pl ay son r epr essi on, w t h phant asi es of vi ol ence Wt hsexual l i berat i on t h i sobsceni t y di sappear s Mar cuse s repres-s i v edesubl i mat i on goes t h i sr out e ( and even i i t has not passedi nto gener al mor es , t he myt hi cal t r i umph of r el ease t oday, l i k ethat of r epr essi on yesterday, i s t o t a l ) The new obsceni t y, l i k et he new phi l osophy( l anouvel l ephi l osophy)a r i s e son t he bur y-i ng grounds of t he ol d, and has anot her meani ng t does not

pl ay wi t h vi ol ent s e x , sex w t h r ea l s t a k e s ,but w t h sex neu-t r a l i z e dby t ol er ance Sex here i s out r ageousl y r ender ed, buti t i s t he r ender i ng of somethi ng t h a t has been removed Por-nography i s i t s a r t i f i c i a lsynt hesi s, i t s ceremony but not i t scel ebr at i on Somethi ng neo or r et r o, l i kethose green spacest h a t substi t ut e t h ei rchl or ophyl e f f e c t sf or a def unct nature, andf or t h i s reason, partake of t he same obsceni t y as pornography

Modern unreal i t y no l onger i mpl i es t he i magi nary, t engagesmore r ef erence, more t r u t h ,more exacti t ude i t consi sts i nhav-i ng ever yt hi ng pass i nto t he absol ut e evi dence of t he rea l Asi n hyperr eal i st pai nt i ngs ( t h epai nt i ngs of t he magi c r eal i s t s )where one can di scer n t he grai n of t he face ss k i n,an unwonted mcr oscopi cs t hat l acks even t he charm of t he uncannyHyper r eal i smi s not surr eal i sm i t i sa vi s i on that hunts down


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TH ECLI PTI C O S X

saves on one di mensi on, nor mal t hr eedi mensi onal space i s

al r eady debased and i mpover i shed by vi rt ue of an excess of means a l lthat i s r e a l or want s t o be r e a l const i t ut es a debase-ment of t h i s t ype Quadr ophoni cs , hyperstereo, or h i f iconst i t ut e a concl usi ve debasement

Por nogr aphy i s t he quadr ophoni cs of sex I tadds a th i rd andfourth track t o t he sexual act I t i s t he hal l uci nat i on of d e t a i lt h a t r ul es Sci ence has al r eady habi t uat ed us t o t h i sm croscopi cs,t h i sexcess of t he r e a l i n i t s m croscopi c d e t a i l t h i s voyeuri sm

of exact i t ude - a cl ose- up of t he i n v i s i b l estructures of t he c e l l- t o t hi snot i on of an i nexorabl e t ru th t h a t can no l onger bemeasured w t h r ef erence t o t he pl ay of appearances, and thatcan onl y be r eveal ed bya sophi st i cat ed t echni cal apparat us Endof t he secret

What e l s edoes por nogr aphy do, i n i t s sham i s i o n than revealt he i nexorabl e, m croscopi c t r u t hof s e x ?I t i sd i r e c t l ydescendedf roma met aphysi cs t h a t supposes t he phant asy of a hi dden t ruth

and i t s revel at i on, t he phant asy of repressed energy and i t spr oduct i on on t he obscene scene of t he r e a l Thus t he i mpasse of enl i ght ened t hought when asked, shoul d one censurepor nogr aphy and choose a wel l - t empered repressi on? There canbe no def i ni t i ve response i n t he a f f i r ma t i vef or pornographyhas reason on i t s si de i t i s par t of t he devast ati on of t he r e a lof t he i nsane i l l u s i o nof t he r e a l and i t sobj ect i ve l i berat i on One cannot l i b e r a t et he pr oduct i ve f orces w t hout want i ng t o

l i berate sex i n i t s brut e f unct i on they are both equal l y ob-scene The r e a l i s tcorr upt i on of s e x t he product i vi st corrup-t ion of l abour same symptom same combat

The equi val ent of t he conveyor be l t he r e i st he J apanese v aginal cycl orama i t out does any s t r i p t e a s e P r o s t i t u t e st h e i rt hi ghsopen, s i t t i n gon t he edge of a pl at f orm J apanese worker s i nt h e i r s hi r t s l eeves i t i sa popul ar spect acl e , permtted t o shovet hei r noses up t o t hei r eyebal l s w t h i n t he woman s vagi na i norder t o s ee t osee better but what? They cl amber over eachot her i n order t o gai n access, and al l t he whi l e t he prost i t ut esspeak t o them gent l y, or rebuke them shar pl y f or t he sake ofform The r e s t of t he spectacl e, t he f l a g e l l a t i o n st he reci procalmast ur bat i on and t radi t i onal s t r i p t e a s epal es bef or e t h i s mo-ment of absol ute obsceni t y, t h i smoment of vi sual voraci t y that


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3 SEDU TI ON

goes f ar beyond sexual possessi on subl i me pornography i f

they coul d do t t hese guys woul d be swal l owedup whol e wi -thi n t he pr osti t ut e n exal t at i on wi t h death? Per haps, but att he same t i me t hey ar e compari ng and comment i ng on t her espect i ve vagi nas i n mor t al ser i ousness, wi t hout ever sm l i ngor br eaki ng out i n l aught er , and wi t hout ever t r yi ng t o touch except when pl ayi ng by t he r ul es No l ewdness , but an ex-t r emel y ser i ous, i n f a n t i l eact borne of an undi vi ded f asci nat i onwi t h t he m r r or of t he f emal e or gan, l i k eNarci ssus f asci nat i on

wi t h hi s own i mage Beyond t he convent i onal i deal i smof t hes t r i p - t e a s e per haps there mght even be some seduct i on herepornography a t i t smost subl i me r ever ses i t s e l fin to a pur i f i edobsceni t y, an obsceni t y t h a t i s purer, deeper , more vi s cer a l Butwhy stop wi t h nudi t y, or t he geni t a l i a?I f t he obscene s a mat -t er of r epr esent at i on and not of sex, t must expl or e t he veryi n t e r i o rof t he body and t he vi scer a Who knows what pr of oundpl easur e s t o be f ound i n t he vi sual di smemberment of mu

cous membr anes and smooth muscl es? Our pornography s t l lr e t a i nsa r e s t r i c t e ddef i ni t i on Obsceni t y has an unl i mt ed future But take heed, t i s not a mat t er of t he deepeni ng of a dr i ve ;

what i s i nvol ved s an or gy of r eal i sm an or gy of pr oduct i on age per haps al so a dr i ve but one t h a t subst i t ut es i t s e l ff or

al l t he other s ) t o summon ever yt hi ng bef or e the j ur i sdi ct i onof si gns Let ever yt hi ng be r ender ed i n t he l i g h t of t he s i gni n t he l i g h tof a vi si bl e ener gy Let al l speech be l i ber at ed and

pr ocl ai mdesi r e W are revel i ng i n t h i s l i b e r a l i z a t i o nwhi ch,i n f a c t si mpl y marks t he gr owi ng pr ogr ess of obsceni t y Al lt h a ti s hi dden and s t l lenj oys a f or bi dden s t a t us wi l lbe unear t hed,r ender ed t o speech and made t o bow bef or e t he f a c t s The r e a li s gr owi ngever l a r g e r some day t he ent i r e uni ver se wi l lbe r e a land when t he r e a l s uni ver sal , there wi l l be deat h

Por nogr aphi c si mul at i on nudi t y i s never anythi ng but an ex-t r a si gn Nudi t y vei l ed by cl ot hi ng f unct i ons as a s e c r e t ambi val ent r ef er ent Unvei l ed, t sur f aces as a si gn and returns t ot he ci r cul at i on of si gns nudi t y desi gn The same occur s wi t hhar d cor e and bl ue porn t he sexual or gan, whether er ect or


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TH E LI PTI O S X 33

open w de i s j u s t anot her s i gn i n t he hypersexual panopl yPhal l us- desi gn The mor e one advances wi l l y- ni l l yi n s ex s ver -ac i t y,i n t he exposure of i t swor ki ngs, t he mor e i mmersed onebecomes i n t he accumul at i on of s i gns ,and t he mor e encl osedone becomes i n t he endl ess over- si gni f i cati on of a rea l t h a t nol onger e x i s t s ,and of a body t h a t never exi st ed Our ent i r ebodyc u l t u r e ,w t h i t s concern f or t he express i on of t he body s des i r es , f or t he st er eophoni cs of des i r e ,i s a cul t ur e of i r r e -deemabl e monst r os i t y and obsceni t y

Hegel J ust as when speaki ng of t he exteri ori ty of t he hu-man body, we sai d t h a t i t sent i re s u r f a c e ,i n contrast to that oft he ani mal wor l d, reveal s t he presence and pul sat i on of t heheart, we say of a r t t hat i t has as i t s task t o create i n such a wayt h a t at al l poi nt s of i t ssur f ace t he phenomenal t he appear ancebecomes an eye, t he s e a t of t he s o u l , r ender i ng i t s e l fv i s i b l et o t he s p i r i t There i s t heref ore, never any nudi ty, never anynude body t h a t i s s i mpl y nude there i s never j u s t a body I t

i s l i k ethe I ndi an sai d when t he whi t e man asked hi m why her an around naked For me i t i s al l f ace I n a non- f et i shi st i ccul t ur e ( one t h a t does not f e t i s h i z enudi t y as obj ect i ve t r u t h )t he body i snot , as i n our own opposed t o t he f ace , concei vedas al one r i c h i n expr ess i on and endowed w t h eyes : i t i si ts e l fa f a c e ,and l ooks at you I t i s t heref ore not obscene, t hati s t o say, made t o be seen nude I t cannot be seen nude, nomor e t han t he f ace can f or us , f or t he body i s and i s onl y

a symbol i c vei l; and i t i s by way of t h i spl ay of v e i l s ,whi ch,l i t e r a l l y,abol i shes t he body a s such, t h a t seduct i on occurs Thi s i s where seduct i on i s at pl ay and not i n t he t ear i ng awayof t he vei l i n t he name of some mani f es t at i on of truth or desi re

The i ndi s t i nct i on of f ace and body i n a t o t a l cul t ur e of ap-pearances t he di st i nct i on between f ace and body i n a c u l -ture of meani ng (the body here becomes mons t r ous l y v i s i b l e ,i t becomes t he s i gn of a monst er cal l ed desi re) t hen t he t o t a l

t r i umph i n pornography of t he obscene body, t o t he poi ntwhere t he f a c e i s ef f aced The erot i c model s are f a c e l e s s ,t heactors are nei t her beaut i f ul , u gl y,or express i ve ; f unct i onal nu-di ty ef f aces ever yt hi ng i n t he spectacul ar i t y of sex Cer t ai nf i l m are no more t han vi sceral sound- ef f ects of a c o i t a lcl ose-up even t he body di sappear s, di sper sed amongst o ver s i z e,par-


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34 SEDUCTI ON

t i a l obj ects Whatever the f ace, i t remai ns i nappropri ate, f or i tbreaks the obsceni t y and rei nt roduces meani ng where every-thi ng aspi res t o abol i sh i t i n sexual excess and a n i h i l i s t i cvert i go

At t he end of t hi s t er ror i s t debasement , where the body ( andi t s desi r e are mde to yi el d to the evi dence, appearances nol onger have any secret ul ture of the desubl i mat i on of ap-pearances everyt hi ng i s materi al i zed i n accord wt h the mostobj ecti ve categori es ornographi c cul ture par excel l ence onethat pursues the worki ngs of the real at al l ti ms and i n a l l pl aces A pornographi c cul ture wt h i t s i deol ogy of the concrete, off act i ci t y and use, and i t s concern wt h the preemnence of useval ue, the materi al i nf r as t r uct ure of t hi ngs, and the body as themateri al i nf ra st ruct ure of desi r e nedi mensi onal cul ture thatexal t s everyt hi ng i n t he concreteness of product i on or ofpl easure unl i mted mechani cal l abour or copul at i on Whati s obscene about t hi s worl d i s that nothi ng i s l ef t to appear-ances or to chance Everyt hi ng i s a vi s i bl e, necessary si gn Li ke

t hose dol l s , adorned wt h geni t al i a, that t al k, pee and w l l oneday mke l ove And t he l i t t l e gi r l sreacti on My l i t t l es i s ter, sheknows how to do that t oo Can t you gi ve me a real one?

From he di scourse of l abour t o t he di scourse of sex, f romthe di scourse of product i ve f orces t o that of dr i ves, one f i nds

the sam ul t i mat um that of producti on i n the l i t eral sense ofthe term I t s or i gi nal meani ng, i n fact , was not to f abr i cat e, butt o render vi si bl e or mke appear Sex i s produced l i k e oneproduces a document , or as one says of an actor that he per-f orm se produi t ) on stage

To produce i s to mat er i al i ze by f orce what bel ongs t o anot herorder, that of t he secret and of seduct i on Seduct i on i s at a l lti ms and i n a l l pl aces, opposed t o product i on Seduct i on r e-

moves somet hi ng f rom t he order of the vi s i bl e, whi l e produc-ti on const ructs everythi ng i n f u l l vi ew be i t an obj ect a numberor concept

Everyt hi ng i s to be produced, everyt hi ng i s t o be l egi bl e,everythi ng i s to becom real , vi s i bl e, accountabl e everythi ngi s to be t ranscri bed i n r el at i ons of f or ce, syst em of concept s


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or measur abl e energy ; ever yt hi ng i s t o be s a i d,accumul at ed,

i ndexed and recorded Thi s i s sex as i t exi s t si n por nography,but more gener al l y, t h i si s t he ent erpr i se of our ent i re c ul t ur e,whose nat ur al condi t i on i s obscene a cul t ur e of monst r at i on,of demonst r at i on, of product i ve monst r osi t y

No seduct i on h e r e , nor i n por nogr aphy, gi ven t he abr uptpr oduct i on of sexual a c t s , and t he f eroci t y of pl easur e i n i t si mmedi acy There i snot hi ng seduct i ve about bodi es traversedby a gaze l i t e r a l l ysucked i n by a vacuum of t r anspar ency ; nor

can there be even a hi nt of seduct i on wi t hi n t he uni ver se ofpr oduct i on, where a pri nci pl e of t r anspar ency gover ns t hef or ces bel ongi ng t o t he worl d of v i s i b l e ,cal cul abl e phenomena obj ects, machi nes, sexual a c t s , or t he gross nat i onalproduct

TH ECLI PTI C O S X 3 5

The i nsol ubl e equi vocal ness of pornography i t put s an end t oal l seduct i on vi a s e x , but at t he same t i me i t put s an end t osex v ia the accumul at i on of t he si gns of sex Both t r i umphantparody and si mul at ed agony there l i e si t sambi gui t y I n a s e n s e ,pornography i s true i t owes i t s t ru th to a syst em of sexual d i s -suasi on by hal l uci nat i on, di ssuasi on of t he rea l by t he hyper-r e a l , and of t he body by i t s f or ced mat er i al i zat i on

Por nogr aphy i s usual l y f aul t ed f or two r easons f or

mani pul at i ng sex i n or der t o def use t he c l a s sst ruggl e al wayst he ol d myst i f i ed consci ousness ) and f or cor r upt i ng sex t hegood, true s e x , t he sex t o be l i b er a t e d,t he sex t o be consi der edamongst our nat ur al r i ght s )by i t scommodi f i cat i on Por nogr a-phy, t hen, i s sai d t o mask ei t her t he truth of c api t a land t he i n-f r a s t r u c t u r e ,or t h a t of sex and desi r e But i n f a c t pornographydoes not mask anythi ng y e s , t h a t i s i ndeed t he case) I t i s notan i deol ogy, i . e i t does not hi de some truth ; i t i sa si mul acr umi e i t i s a t ruth ef f ect t h a t hi des t he t r u t h snon- exi st ence

Por nogr aphy says there must be good sex somewher e f or am t s car i cat ur e I n i t sgr ot esque obsceni t y, i tat t empt s t o saves e x st ruth and pr ovi de t he f a l t e r i n gsexual model wi t h somecredi bi l i ty Now t he whol e quest i on i s whether good sex ex-i s t s or whet her , qui t e si mpl y, sex e x i s t s ,somewhere sex as


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SE U TI ON

t he body s i de l use v l u e sex as possi bl e pl easur es whi ch c n

and must be l i ber at ed t s t he same quest i on demanded ofp o l i t i c leconomy i s there good val ue, an i deal use val ue be-yond exchange val ue under st ood s t he i nhuman abstr act i onof c p i t l n i de l val ue of goods or s o c i l r el at i ons whi chcan and must be l i ber at ed ?


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SEDU TI ON PRODU TI ON

I n r e a l i t ypornography i s but t he paradoxi cal l i m tof t he sex-ual r e a l i s t i cexacerbat i on, mani acal obsessi on w t h t her e a l t h i s i s t he obscene, i n t he et ymol ogi cal and ever y ot hersense But i s not t he sexual i t s e l fal r eady a f or ced mat eri al i za-t i on? I s not t he advent of sexual i t y al r eady part of occi dent alr e a l i s t i c st he compul si on pr oper t o our cul t ure t o i nstanti ate nd i nst rument al i ze everythi ng?

I t i s absurd, when speaki ng of ot her cul t ures, to di ssoci ate

r e l i g i o neconom cs , p o l i t i c sand t he l e ga lsystem i . ,

t he so-c i a land ot her c l a s s i f i c a t o r yphant asmagor i as ) f or t he reason t h a tsuch a di ssoci at i on has not occurred, these concept s bei ng l i k eso many di seases wi t h whi ch we i nf ect these cul t ures i n ordert o better understand them I n t he s me manner , i t i s absurdt o aut onom z e t he sexual as separat e i nstance, n i rreduci bl egi ven, as s omet hi ng t o whi ch ot her i nst ances or gi vens c nbereduced We need a cr i t i que of sexual Reason, or r a t h e rgeneol ogy of sexual e son s imlar t o Ni et zche s geneol ogy ofgood and e v i l f or i t i s our new moral i t y ne mght say of sex-u a l i t y as of deat h i t i s a new wri nkl e t o whi ch consc i ousnessbecame ccustomed not s o l ong ago .

We r emai n perpl exed nd vaguel y compass i onat e when con-fronted wi t h cul tures f or whi ch t he sexual act i s not a f i n a l i t y


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38 SEDUCTI ON

i n i t s e l f f or whi ch sexual i t ydoes not have t he mort al ser i ous-ness of an energy t o be l i be r at e dof an ej acul at i on t o be f or ced,a pr oduct i on at any pr i c e or hygi eni c audi t i ng of t he body Cul -tures t h a t preserve l engt hy procedures of ent i cement and sen-s u a l i t yl ong seri es of g i f t sand c o u n t e r - g i f t sw t h sex bei ng butone ser vi ce amongst ot hers , and t he act of l ove one possi bl eend- t er m t o a pr escr i bed, r i t u a l i s t i ci nt erchange Such pr oceed-i ngs no l onger make sense t o us ; ; s e xhas become s t r i c t l yspeak-i ng t he ac t ual i zat i on of desi r e i npl easure - al l e l s ei sl i t e r a t u r e

n ext r aor di nar y c r y s t a l i z a t i o naround t he or gasm c, and moregeneral l y, t he energi zi ng f unct i on

Our s i s a cul t ure of pr emat ur e ej acul at i on I ncreasi ngl y al lseduct i on, al l manner of ent i cement - whi ch i s al ways a hi gh-l y r i t ual i zed process - i s effaced behi nd a natural i zed sexuali mperat i ve, behi nd t he i mmedi at e and i mperat i ve ;real i zat i onofdesi re Our center of gravi t y has been di spl aced t owar ds a l i b i d i -nal economy concerned w t h onl y t he nat ural i zat i on of d e s i r e

a desi r e dedi cat ed t o dr i ves, or t o a machi ne- l i kef unct i oni ng,but above a l l t o t he i magi nar y of r epr essi on and l i berat i on Hencef or t h one no l onger says : You have a soul and i tmust

be saved, but :You have a s e x and you must put i t t o good

use.You have an unconsci ous, andyou must l e t t he

i d speak .

You have a body, and you must deri ve pl eas-ur e from tYou have a l i b i d o andyou must expend i t et c

Thi s pressure t owar ds l i q u i d i t yf l u x and t he accel er at ed ar -t i cul at i onof t he sexual , psychi c and physi cal body i s an exactrepl i caof t hat whi ch regul at es exchange val ue: c api t almust c i r -cul at e, t here must no l onger be any f i xed poi nt , i nvest ment smust be ceasel essl y r enewed, val ue must r a di at ew t hout respi t e

- t h i s i s t he form of val ue s present r e al i z at i onand s e xual i t yt he sexual model si mpl y i t smode of appearance at t he l e ve lof t he body

As a model sex takes t he f orm of an i ndi vi dual ent er pr i sebased on natural energy : t o each hi s desi r e and may t he bestman, pr evai l i n mat t er s of pl easure) I t i st he sel f same form as


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c a p i t a l and t h i s s why s ex ual i t y desi r e and pl eas ur e ar esubal tern val ues When they f i r s tappear ed, not so l ong agoas a systemof reference on t he hor i zon of west er n c ul t ur e twas as f a l l e n r esi dual val ues t he i deal of i n f e r i o rc l as s es t hebour geoi si e, then t he pet t y- bour geoi s i e r e l a t i v e t o t hea r i s t o c r a t i cval ues of b i r t h and bl ood, val our and seduct i on,or t he col l ect i ve val ues of rel i gi on and s a c r i f i c e

Mor eover , t he body t h i ssel f same body t o wh ch we cease-l e s s l yrefer has no ot her r e a l i t ythan t h a t i mpl i edby t he sex-

ual and pr oduct i ve, model I t s capi t al t h a t i n a si ngl emovement gi ves r i se t obot h t he ener gi zi ng body of l abourpower , and t he body of our dr eams , a sanct uar y of desi r es anddr i ves, of psychi c ener gy and t he unconsci ous, t he i mpul si vebody t h a t haunt s t he pr i mar y processes t he body i t s e l fhav-i ng become a pr i mar y process, and thereby an ant i - body, anul t i mat e r evol ut i onar y referent Thetwo bodi es ar e si mul t ane-ousl y engender ed i n r epr essi on, and t h e i rappar ent ant agoni sm

i s but a consequence of t h e i rr edupl i cat i on When one uncover si n t he body s secret pl aces an unbound l i b i d i n a lener gy op-posed t o t he bound ener gy of t he pr oduct i ve body, whenone uncover s i n d e s i r e t he t ru th of t he body s phantasms anddr i ves one s s t onl y di s i nter i ng t he psychi c met aphor ofc api t al

Here s your des i r e your unconsci ous a psychi c met aphorof capi t al i n t he r ubbi sh heap of p o l i t i c a leconomy And t he

sexual j ur i sdi ct i oni s but a f a n t a s t i cext ensi on of t he common-pl ace i dea l of pr i vat e- pr oper t y, where ever yone i s assi gned acer t ai n amount of c api t a lt o manage a psychi c c a p i t a l a l i b i d i -nal sexual or unconsci ous c a p i t a l f or wh ch each person wi l lhave t o answer i ndi vi dual l y, under t he si gn of hi s or her ownl i berat i on

A f a n t a s t i cr educt i on of seduct i on Thi s sexual i t y t r ansf or medby t he r evol ut i on of des i r e t h i smode of bodi l ypr oduct i on andci rcul at i on has acqui r ed i t s pr esent character, has come t o bespoken of i n t er ms of sexual r e l a t i o n s onl y by f or get t i ng al lf or ms of seduct i on j us t asone can speak of t he s oc i a li n t er msof r el at i ons or soci al r e l a t i o n s onl y a f t e r t has l o s t al l symbol i c subst ance

Werever sex has been erected i n t oa f unct i on, an aut ono-


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mous i nst ance, i t has l i qui dat edseduct i on Sex t odaygener al l y

occurs onl y i n t he p l a c e and i n pl ace of a m s s i ngseduct i on,or as t he r es i due and st agi ng of a f a i l e dseduct i on I t i s thent he absent f orm of seduct i o

Jean Baudrillard-Seduction-New World Perspectives (1990)

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