Ever since I read about opaque contact lenses I have had a sneaking interest in such methods of developing dependency and thus control. And then I came across this image, albeit with a different (although related) caption, and my imagination became instantly fired up. Nothing much to do with the plot of the new book, but don't fret; work is still progressing well on that front.
I may well add more to this posting as the day progresses. It all depends on where I go, if I take my notebook computer and whether any new ideas pop up in my head. There are all sorts of stuff bubbling under in my head inspired by this picture, but at present I don't seem able to formulate these ideas in terms of the written word.
Well, I guess that she will have some problems to "stay focused"! ;-)
ReplyDeleteSpanking is sexy, blinding is not, its just sick
ReplyDeleteIt was never intended to be blinding, more a temporary limitation, later reversible (in fantasy anyway) and symbolic as much as anything of that sort of 'prison of the mind' kind of approach of imposing control.
ReplyDeleteI think 'The Non Victorian Girl' girl (see the recent addendum to this post - above) has her finger on the pulse when she writes:
“The thing about the picture that strikes me is that the girl is indistinct and fuzzy, the bars are clear and concrete, as are her hands grasping at the bars.
To me it seems a bit symbolic. The girl is becoming indistinct. She's fading a bit, becoming less and less herself. The bars are clear, and concrete. The prison she is trapped in is slowly causing her to fade, and become less and less herself as time goes on. Her hands grasping at the bars are clear as well. So if the girl herself is fading out, her desperation is mounting. She is trapped, caged, confined, and there is no way out. And as her former identity slowly fades and becomes less distinct, her animal desperation is mounting, as she realizes that in time, she will eventually become – unrecognizable.
In a concrete sense, the picture could suggest prolonged sensory deprivation. Her vision could be affected by contacts/frosted goggles/a blindfold worn for long periods of time. Her hearing could be affected by white noise/dripping faucet/ears plugged for long periods of time. Eventually, she might have laser surgery - after she has lost the ability to read and write. She could discover - when asked to write out another biography or confession - that she no longer knows how to read and write. She might discover, when told to count the strokes of the cane out loud, that she can no longer remember how to count.
The Non Victorian Chick”