Seduction at the Boundary of Horror : The limits of bodily autonomy in sexuality

Sammanfattning: The thesis discusses the topic of bodily autonomy as a Human Rights related matter in connection to sexuality, specifically BDSM. In the realm of BDSM concerns regarding bodily autonomy, bodily integrity, perversion, physical and mental health can be found. Therefore the space of BDSM is analyzed in regards to aspects, such as medico-judicial institutions, social and personal perception factor in on the space of bodily autonomy and its transgression, with the aim of getting a deeper understanding of the concept of bodily autonomy. Three different countries, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Denmark are being analyzed and compared in a content analysis. Foucault’s theory of power, self-disciplining, transgression as well as Bataille's theory of transgression and eroticism are made use of. This shows how and which topics relate to bodily autonomy and each other and how bodily autonomy and its use changes depending on the factors relation to each other and their prioritization.