Dance With the Devil (Professionals story)
| Fanfiction | |
|---|---|
| Title: | Dance with the Devil |
| Author(s): | Artemis |
| Date(s): | 1992? |
| Length: | |
| Genre(s): | slash |
| Fandom(s): | |
| Relationship(s): | Bodie/Doyle |
| External Links: | |
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Dance With the Devil is an 8-page circuit Bodie/Doyle story by Artemis.
It was written as a response fic to Velvet Underground, a 1990 story by Sebastian. Artemis' author notes are explicit about her intent to counter the original story.
Dark of the Night was supposedly written as a response to "Dance With the Devil," as was the Grievous Bodily Harm series (one which includes the famous catheter story) by M. Fae Glasgow.
One fan described "Dance With the Devil" as "a brutal rape story disguised as an anti-S&M story." In 1993, another fan described it as "a "fisting stool story."[citation needed]
Reactions and Reviews
1992
In the real S/M world, I think it is fair to say, that sexual, consensual S/M NEVER involves a threat to life, limb or even blood. Anything more is not S/M, is not truly sexual, and is indulged in by a tiny minority of true perverts who rarely have a willing partner. In S/M it is the 'slave' who has ultimate control, not the 'master'. And who, least of all B and D, WANTS to be hospitalized. In the one slash story I've read that soared off into the realms of fantasy (DANCE WITH THE DEVIL), I believe Doyle would have got a gun and shot Bodie for what he did. I don't understand how anyone would confuse the levels of pain and mutilation with therapy! The poor sod would probably need nipple transplants! S/M is trust and love, and that is what should make the story erotic. [1]
One of the most disturbing stories for me was 'Dance With The Devil', where graphic rape and non-consensual violence are used as a 'cure' for consensual S/M. This story reminded me of the straight men who wish to 'cure' lesbianism by raping lesbians, or else those practitioners in mental hospitals who attempted to 'cure' homosexuality by using shock aversion 'therapy', such as what happened to Alan Turing in the '50's. The descriptions of the rape and other 'cures' for S/M were done in an explicit way, which made me think that eroticism had crept into the 'cure', whether intended or not. [2]
1993
[E] asks how people feel about explicit torture in slash. For me it depends on how it is handled. Torture is a component of a some hurt-comfort stories, so it's been around a while. I recently read a Pros circuit story 'Dance With The Devil' that I though was written just to write a torture scene, because it did not seem to be 'in character' at all. On the other hand,
a friend of mine liked it. I may take another look sometime. [3]
I thought was written just to write a torture scene
Well, not exactly. As a matter of fact (and I thought it said this on the header of the story) this story was written in reaction to a very good S&M themed piece called "Velvet Underground" by Sebastian. This person was so upset that anyone could imply that HER boys could play S&M games (by choice) that she just had to redeem them from their sick fate. Hence the story in question where Bodie tops and abuses Doyle to "push him past his limits" and bring him back to "sanity".
Can you tell I wasn't too crazy about this one?
This story, in turn, was rebutted by M. Fae later on....[4]
I did not enjoy DANCE WITH THE DEVIL, but for reasons quite different from the one [K F] explained in a previous ish. I was not shocked, nor repulsed by what Bodie did to Doyle : had it been consensual, why not?
This story had two defects in »y opinion, one at a moral level, and one a writing level.
Firstly, I as profoundly shocked by all kinds of bigotry, and the kind which says 'sado-masochistic behaviour is not moral and should be cured' seems to me quite redolent of the 'homosexuals should be cured' attitude towards one's chosen sexuality. No need to explain at length that I hate this, or why!
Secondly, the story is not consistent with the previous one, VELVET UNDERGROUND, which was a very good, very mature story, trying to explore the fascination of S/M, how one could come to enjoy such sexuality, how it intermingles with love and trust, and how it could hint at deeper problems in one or both of the partners.
Come to that, the story is not even consistent with the aired characters. I can't imagine Bodie going to these kind of lengths to 'cure' Doyle: for one, Bodie is a man of the world, he must have seen and done a lot of things in his time, and I think he knows better than to judge another's behaviour, as long as it does no harm to others. If he was truly not interested in Doyle's S/M scene, he would have left him alone, he wouldn't have tried to 'convert' him to some fallacious morality. [5]
1997
I really enjoyed Artemis' Dance with the Devil, which hit the online library a couple months ago. It's actually anti-S/M, but it has an appreciation for the seductive pleasures of pain even while the lads try to overcome them. It involves Doyle as an unwilling (but consenting) Bottom, and it's a sequel to Sebastian's (?) Velvet Underground, which I haven't read but which apparently involves Bodie as Bottom. Other stories, like Dark of the Heart, I found interesting, but the characterizations never really clicked for me. Mostly, I've found that S/M appeals to me less now than it used to in the days of my callow youth. Not sure if that's because my tastes have changed or I just don't like it between the Lads. Probably the former, I expect; getting more conservative with age. (Now there's a frightening thought -- I'll turn into my parents next!) [6]
One that's well written and bothers me a great deal is Artemis' "Dance With the Devil" -- a sequel to Sebastian's "Velvet Underground" -- where Bodie takes it upon himself to "cure" Doyle of his perversion by, essentially, causing more pain than he can take and making him admit that it's not fun anymore. I find this story really repugnant, the more so because it could be a turn-on if it weren't for the meaning behind the actions.
[...]
This story bothers me the same way that a story about a gay character being "cured" through the love of a good woman would bother me. Especially if it were written by someone who disliked slash. [7]
The story never made me believe. Furthermore, I think the major points of the story, that a) BDSM is wrong, and b) you can "cure" someone by taking him beyond his limits, are both incorrect.
I apologize now and forever more for stating that I found some bits and pieces of "Dance with the Devil" intensely exciting. (How many hail Marys for *that*?) I thought its political position was dumb, and its result ludicrous.
I *liked* some of the forced sex and/or rape bits in (I am so helpless with titles, it's depressing) that Jane story where Doyle ends up in Bodie's nightmare and this trip through Africa is based on books Bodie has written and there are elves and a Dr Bodie and Mr. Mercenery....
ANYWAY--the nice bits had to do with the fact that Doyle *knew* when the psycho Bodie was coming, and couldn't stop him, and couldn't leave him, and was scared, and then rape happened anyway. That was fun. [8]
This was handed to me as a sequel or companion piece to "Velvet Underground" and the author begins with the explanation that Bodie "surely has the strength to bring [Doyle] back" from the inevitable doom as set up in the first story.
I felt uneasy about this. First of all, I had been happily convinced that the Bodie of "Velvet Underground" couldn't bring Doyle back, and had liked the sense of petrifying, frigid evil of the original. Secondly, I have a resistance to anonymous stories. I don't mind pseudonyms but there's something in me that resists anonymity, especially when the story is above the ordinary. Which this was.
My first impression was that it was beautifully written, a fitting sequel to Sebastian's piece, without the full power of the original but retaining its beauty of cadence and delicacy of characterization. My second impression was delight that the author chose to include various quotes within the text to illustrate her theme -- I love quotes. These were good, strong, effective quotes from the likes of Bismark, Bulter and Blake.
The story: [Spoilers here]
- Disturbed by the changes in Doyle, Cowley sends Bodie after him to his S&M club. Bodie again challenges Doyle on his practices and they engage in a winner-takes-all contest where Bodie determines to cure Doyle with a taste of his own medicine. After some escalating practices of pain, which Doyle easily withstands, Bodie wins by fisting him. His spirit broken and his pleasure in the game lost, Doyle comes back into the light' with Bodie.
Somewhere along the way, the author lost my suspension of disbelief. Unlike Sebastian, she dealt with the story on the level of emotion and psychology (rather than spirit and myth) -- and this was appropriate, since the climax concerned a psychological point, that an unhealthy psychological addiction can be cured with an overdose.
I'm not sure that's true. And the author didn't say anything to convince me of it, just took it as a given, that if Bodie could hurt Doyle enough, Doyle would be all right at the end of it. To which I found myself thinking: Really? Why?
I found it improbable. Just as likely that Bodie would fall into the abyss, or that Doyle's appetite for pain would increase with practise.
My second problem, worse than the first, is that Bodie as the Knight in White Armour coming to save Doyle from himself acted (by any standard I can think of) as bad as Doyle. If the story is set up as a metaphor of good and evil, the only thing difference between them was that Bodie was not doing what he was doing for its own sake, but for Doyle's sake. Considering that he was out-nastying Doyle, I couldn't see that this was in any way morally superior. Putting abstract considerations aside, I hate the "I'm hurting you for your own good" attitude, and that's what noble Bodie was supposed to be doing.
It was also a little too detached, too much on a moral and abstract plane, to be sexy.
The final straw was that I found the climax rather anticlimactic. Am I supposed to believe that fisting is physically and conceptually worse than the arcane tortures Doyle had presumably been practicing? I found myself going, "Huh?" and "Is that all?" and just not understanding it.
And it was all so beautifully written.
Three stars. All for style, none for content. [9]
References
- ^ from Be Gentle With Us #8
- ^ from Be Gentle With Us #8
- ^ comments by Susan H at Virgule-L, quoted with permission (June 1993)
- ^ comments by Megan Kent at Virgule-L, quoted with permission (June 1993)
- ^ from Be Gentle With Us #10
- ^ quoted anonymously from CI5 Mailing List (1997)
- ^ Jan Levine, quoted with permission from Virgule-L (1997)
- ^ from Virgule-L, quoted anonymously with permission (1997)
- ^ from Virgule-L, quoted anonymously (March 3, 1997)