Submission vs. Surrender
» My Inner Life
… “subbie” which to me sounds rather diminutive, diminishing and insulting to a seasoned submissive …
- Midori
This is a small quirk of crankiness. Nothing worth disputing.
Partly because lexicographers have yet to accept the word submissive as a noun I never call myself one. Also because I don’t like the term sub outside of maritime usage. And subby just plain annoys me.
Since the early days of this site I’ve preferred to write of surrendering than submitting. There’s no logic to that. But I’ve wondered why.
It is a matter of my subjective sense of nuance. Certainly I submit and bend to her will. Surrender (within my mind only) captures a nuance of letting go. Letting go of self. There’s a happy almost Buddhist flavor to it.
Not that I feel anyone should do likewise. My pleasure is in unlocking the hidden springs of my own quirks.
Maybe you have an atypical usage that appeals to your aesthetics or sense of self.
Earlier: My Personal D/s Idiolect
Comments
Be Your Own Lexicographer TM!
Surrender to me is very associated with love and passion. To say that someone is “a submissive” has much more kinky overtones and produces images of prostration.
The only problem is that outside of D/s it could make someone sound dumb or weak, perhaps the word is too thick a brush to paint with so the term “submissive-erotic” is something I coined to get around that.
Posted by: Alexandra | February 6, 2006 6:21 PM