Feminization (sexual activity)

{{Short description|Submissive sexual practice}} thumb|A dominant woman and a submissive man practicing feminization|alt=Picture of a standing woman, seen from the neck and down, wearing high-heeled boots and an open jacket with a see-through bra underneath. She holds a leash connected to a collar around a kneeling, cross-dressing man's neck; his attire includes a bra, a corset, jewelry and make-up. {{Cross-dressing}} '''Feminization''' or '''feminisation''', sometimes '''forced feminization''' (shortened to '''forcefem''' or '''forced femme'''),<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.vice.com/de/article/das-geheime-leben-von-crossdressern/ |title=Das geheime Leben von Crossdressern |author=Parks-Ramage, Jonathan |language=German |date=2016-08-08 |website=Vice |publisher=Vice Media |access-date=2020-06-28 |archive-date=2020-09-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916134250/https://www.vice.com/de/article/9aeevy/das-geheime-leben-von-crossdressern |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="new sexuality">{{cite book |author=Fischer, Nancy L. |author2=Seidman, Steven |author2-link=Steven Seidman |title=Introducing the New Sexuality Studies |edition=3rd |publisher=Routledge |page=351 |date=2016 |isbn=9781317449188}}</ref> and also known as '''sissification''',<ref name="vice us"/> is a practice in dominance and submission or kink subcultures, involving reversal of gender roles and making a submissive male take on a feminine role, which includes cross-dressing. Subsets of the practice include "sissy training" and variations thereof, where the submissive male is "trained" to become feminine.

Feminization as a sexual fetish is different from being a transgender woman, and the submissive partners engaging in it are typically cisgender men.

==Practice== Feminization is a practice in dominance and submission or kink subcultures, which involves reversing gender roles: a submissive partner – typically a man – takes on a feminine role, often for humiliation-based sexual pleasure.<ref name="vice us"/><ref name="huffpost"/> This may include them cross-dressing in feminine clothing such as lingerie, wearing makeup, jewelry, and perfume, acting in a feminine manner, getting referred to by a feminine name, having anal sex as the receptive partner,<ref name="vice us">{{cite web |url=https://www.vice.com/en/article/i-cross-dress-do-you-still-love-me-the-secret-lives-of-sissies/ |title='I Cross-Dress. Do You Still Love Me?': The Secret Lives of Sissies |author=Parks-Ramage, Jonathan |date=2016-07-28 |website=Vice |publisher=Vice Media |access-date=2020-06-28 |archive-date=2020-09-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200916134250/https://www.vice.com/en_us/article/9aeevy/i-cross-dress-do-you-still-love-me-the-secret-lives-of-sissies |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="kinkly">{{cite web |url=https://www.kinkly.com/definition/6140/forced-feminization |title=Forced Feminization |date=2019-10-28 |website=Kinkly |access-date=2020-06-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191107233447/https://www.kinkly.com/definition/6140/forced-feminization |archive-date=2019-11-07 |url-status=live }}</ref> wearing prosthetic breasts, or tucking.<ref name="violet blue"/>

Participant in feminization often role-play scenarios together, based around the submissive partner's femininity or feminine clothes. Common scenarios include being caught in the act of trying on panties or lipstick; being discovered to be wearing frilly lingerie under one's clothes; being a princess;<ref name="violet blue"/> being treated like a helpless "damsel in distress";<ref name="dominatrix lindemann"/> or being hired as a woman for a female-coded job like a nurse, cheerleader, sex worker, or businesswoman.<ref name="violet blue"/> ''HuffPost'' described one dominatrix's sissification sessions as involving humiliating the submissive by "parading them around" in high heels, make-up, and lingerie, and another dominatrix as "cheerleading" men into exploring femininity.<ref name="huffpost"/>

Despite the term "forced" feminization – as the role-played scenario may involve that the submissive partner is feminized against their will – it is a fantasy that is agreed upon by its participants.<ref name="kinkly"/> Whereas not all participants are interested in the BDSM aspects of feminization, and only enjoy dressing up, it may also include things such as spanking, pegging, bondage,<ref name="vice us"/> and humiliation such as making fun of the submissive for having a small and soft penis, or referring to it as a clitoris.<ref name="violet blue"/> The feminized partner is sometimes called a "sissy" if male,<ref name="vice us"/> and may be said to have been "sissified".<ref name="kinkly maid"/>

===Sissy training and variations=== [[File:Nicky Campbell, male cross-dresser in a PVC maid uniform, standing in a domestic kitchen.jpg|thumb|A male sissy wearing a PVC maid dress|alt=Selfie by a sissy smiling at the camera. He has long, red hair, and wears a black-and-white PVC maid uniform with breast forms underneath, a white apron, and a pink choker.]]

A subset of feminization is "sissy training", wherein the dominant partner slowly trains the submissive in being a sissy over time, having him take on "ultra-feminine" behaviors and participate in feminine activities.<ref name="kinkly training"/> As part of this, it is common for the sissy to cross-dress; to shave his body,<ref name="kinkly training"/> including his genitals; wear make-up; and wear women's underwear,<ref name="kinkly maid"/> to appear more womanly. Sissy training involve non-sexual activities, such as applying make-up or cleaning the house, as well as sexual ones.<ref name="kinkly training"/>

A further subset is "sissy maid training",<ref name="kinkly training"/> a common scenario,<ref name="dominatrix lindemann"/><ref name="varrin dominance"/> where the sissy takes on the role of a maid, taking care of housework or serving drinks and food at a party while behaving submissively and wearing an often frilly and revealing maid uniform,<ref name="kinkly training">{{cite web |url=https://www.kinkly.com/definition/6753/sissy-training |title=Sissy Training |date=2017-10-02 |website=Kinkly |access-date=2020-06-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191107233519/https://www.kinkly.com/definition/6753/sissy-training |archive-date=2019-11-07 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="varrin dominance"/> such as a French maid or rubber maid dress. The dominant partner in a sissy maid training scenario, overseeing the sissy's housework, may role-play punishing him through spanking, humiliation or bondage,<ref name="kinkly maid">{{cite web |url=https://www.kinkly.com/definition/6705/maid-training |title=Maid Training |date=2017-05-09 |website=Kinkly |access-date=2020-06-28 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20200628071600/https://www.kinkly.com/definition/6705/maid-training |archive-date=2020-06-28 |url-status=live }}</ref> whether the infraction was real or made up;<ref name="violet blue"/> a reward for good behavior might be allowing the submissive to orgasm.<ref name="boyd sex and sensibility"/>

Another common subset is "slut training", where the submissive partner is wears "slutty" feminine clothing<ref name="dominatrix lindemann"/> that may reveal a lot of bare skin and show off the sissy's curves,<ref name="kinkly slut"/> while being teased or chided for supposedly being promiscuous or overly sexual.<ref name="dominatrix lindemann">{{cite book |author=Lindemann, Danielle J. |title=Dominatrix: Gender, Eroticism, and Control in the Dungeon |publisher=University of Chicago Press |pages=167–169 |date=2012 |isbn=9780226482569}}</ref> The training involves making the often shy or embarrassed sissy overcome those emotions, shifting his mindset to instinctively act more provocatively and uninhibitedly. The training may involve provocative poses, such as spreading one's buttocks or exposing one's genitals, and learning to instinctively assume certain such positions in certain contexts.<ref name="kinkly slut">{{cite web |url=https://www.kinkly.com/definition/6757/slut-training |title=Slut Training |date=2017-09-04 |website=Kinkly |access-date=2020-07-07 |archive-date=2020-07-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200707225755/https://www.kinkly.com/definition/6757/slut-training |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Society== According to a ''HuffPost'' feature interviewing sex workers, including dominatrixes and escorts, forced feminization is one of the most common sexual fantasies among sex workers' clients: one dominatrix said that a vast majority of her clients want to be sissified.<ref name="huffpost">{{cite web |url=https://www.huffpost.com/entry/sexual-fantasies-sex-workers_n_5bcf5d10e4b0d38b587cf309 |title=6 Of The Most Common Sexual Fantasies, According To Sex Workers |author=Borresen, Kelsey |date=2018-10-24 |website=Huffington Post |access-date=2020-07-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200424115314/https://www.huffpost.com/entry/sexual-fantasies-sex-workers_n_5bcf5d10e4b0d38b587cf309 |archive-date=2020-04-24 |url-status=live }}</ref> In Danielle Lindemann's book ''Dominatrix'', about a third of a sample of 305 sex worker clients were interested in being made to cross-dress.<ref name="dominatrix lindemann"/> The fantasy is to a large degree practiced by heterosexual, cisgender men as the submissive partners, although ''Vice'' noted that there were also bisexual and pansexual men present at a feminization meet-up they reported on, as well as some genderfluid and transgender people.<ref name="vice us"/> In slut training scenarios, the submissive partner is most commonly not a man, however, but a woman.<ref name="kinkly slut"/> The dominant partner may likewise be of any gender;<ref name="kinkly"/> in maid training scenarios, the dominant is typically a woman.<ref name="kinkly maid"/>

''Kinkly'' describes the appeal of feminization as coming from the societal pressure on men to be traditionally masculine, and how being feminine can give men a feeling of guilt. When a man who is drawn to femininity does things considered feminine as part of a scenario where he is supposedly "forced" to do them, this may provide an outlet for his feelings while also giving him a relief of the guilt, since it within the fantasy is an external force that caused him to do it.<ref name="kinkly"/> Because of this stigma, it may still be difficult for either partner to bring up the subject of feminization, however, not knowing how the other will react.<ref name="varrin dominance">{{cite book |author=Varrin, Claudia |title=The Art of Sensual Female Dominance: A Guide for Women |publisher=Carol Publishing Group |pages=53–61 |date=1998 |isbn=1-55972-447-1}}</ref> Some people also use feminization as a way to explore their sexuality.<ref name="boyd sex and sensibility">{{cite book|first=Helen|last=Boyd|author-link=Helen Boyd|title=My Husband Betty: Love, Sex, and Life with a Crossdresser|pages=176–179|year=2003|publisher=Seal Press|isbn=978-1-56025-515-4|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/myhusbandbettylo0000boyd|ref={{harvid|Boyd|2003}}}}</ref> As a BDSM role-play practice, being feminized may appeal to the submissive through making them feel vulnerable and reinforcing their role.<ref name="kinkly maid"/> Dominant partners may enjoy feminization for getting to bring out the submissive's female persona,<ref name="new sexuality"/> or for getting to erotically humiliate them for their lack of masculinity.<ref name="varrin dominance"/>

In her book ''Fetish Sex'', writer Violet Blue says that although the kink may seem like it is devaluing women from an outsider's perspective, submissive partners engaging in it often have a lot of respect for women.<ref name="violet blue"/> In ''Gender Reversals and Gender Cultures'', Sabrina P. Ramet writes that although the fantasy may seem contradictory in its treatment of femininity as a source of humiliation, since it is often combined with femdom – as one could assume that the submissive's feminine clothing would be a symbol of the female superiority within a femdom–feminization role-play – the two fantasies are independent even within the role-play, with the humiliation coming from the cultural taboo of wearing women's clothing as a man.<ref>{{cite book|author=Ramet, Sabrina P.|author-link=Sabrina P. Ramet|title=Gender reversals and gender cultures: anthropological and historical perspectives|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZDalL3qJavgC&pg=PA12|year=1996|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-415-11482-0|pages=12–14|access-date=2016-10-28|archive-date=2014-06-17|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140617202527/http://books.google.com/books?id=ZDalL3qJavgC&pg=PA12|url-status=live}}</ref>

Feminization, as a sexual fetish, is not the same as being a transgender woman.<ref name="violet blue">{{cite book |author=Blue, Violet |title=Fetish Sex: An Erotic Guide For Couples |chapter=7: Cross-Dressing and Sissies |publisher=Daedalus Publishing |pages=119–140 |date=2006 |isbn=1-881943-23-2}}</ref> According to Ana Valens, writing for ''The Daily Dot'', forced feminization is still a common fantasy among trans women, however, because of how trans women's stigmatized need to be women, through feminization fantasies, can be met before a trans woman has even admitted to having that need.<ref name="valens kink">{{cite web |url=https://www.dailydot.com/irl/trans-sex-kink/ |title=Trans/Sex: Kink is affirming—and complicated—for trans women |author=Valens, Ana |date=2020-02-28 |website=The Daily Dot |access-date=2020-07-02 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200524111817/https://www.dailydot.com/irl/trans-sex-kink/ |archive-date=2020-05-24 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Cultural depictions=== Visual artist Río Sofia created a series of self-portraits in 2019 themed around forced feminization, influenced by the ''Forced Womanhood!'' magazine and sharing its name.<ref name="out sofia">{{cite web |url=https://www.out.com/art/2019/4/25/rio-sofia-making-work-her-own-image |title=Making Work in Her Own Image |author=Walker, Harron |date=2019-04-25 |website=Out |publisher=Pride Media |access-date=2020-07-02 |archive-date=2020-05-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200528200907/https://www.out.com/art/2019/4/25/rio-sofia-making-work-her-own-image |url-status=live }}</ref> Feminization was featured in an episode of the television drama series ''Law & Order: Criminal Intent'', which was described as an unrealistic portrayal by author Helen Boyd in her book ''My Husband Betty''.<ref>{{harvnb|Boyd|2003|p=33–34}}</ref>

== See also== *Cuckoldry *Cuckqueanry *Chastity belt *''Gynecocracy'' (1893), by Viscount Ladywood (Pseudonym) *Masculinization (sexual activity) *Sissy

==References== {{Reflist}}

==Further reading== * {{cite book|author=Gloria G. Brame|author-link=Gloria G. Brame|title=Come Hither: A Commonsense Guide to Kinky Sex|year=2000|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=978-0-684-85462-5}}

{{BDSM}} Category:BDSM terminology Category:Cross-dressing Category:Effeminacy Category:Femininity Category:Sexual fetishism Category:Sexual roleplay