Ring of O
The ring of the O is a special finger ring that has been a popular piece of jewelry in German-speaking countries since the 1990s and a distinguishing mark for supporters of BDSM . It got its name after a ring that the protagonist O wears in the classic BDSM novel The Story of O by Pauline Réage .
Literary template
In the literary model, the ring is shaped like a signet ring and has a triskele .
"... The man now held out a small wooden chain with nothing but identical rings and asked her to choose a ring that would fit her left ring finger. They were strange iron rings, edged with gold on the inside; the wide, heavy ring, similar to the setting of a signet ring, but high domed, carried a gold wheel with three spokes in niello work , which were curved in a spiral, like the sun wheel of the Celts. "
The symbolic meaning in the history of the O differs considerably from that which is generally widespread in the field of BDSM. In the book, only submissive "slaves" wear this ring, which is given to them as part of their training. The ring bearers are obliged to submit to every man who knows the meaning of the ring. In today's BDSM subculture, the ring only signals that you belong to it.
Today's forms
In the first literary adaptation of the novel The Story of O , the ring was represented as a finger ring to which a small ring is movably attached via a small ball. It resembles a ring clamp, as it was used in larger versions to chain animals or prisoners.
Inspired by this film, finger rings with this look quickly became popular in German-speaking BDSM circles. The first illustration of a commercially available ring in this design was in September 1989 in issue 4 of the headlines . Its development is attributed to Jörg Hampel and Jan Scheu. Since the beginning of the 1990s, the design of the ring can increasingly be found outside of the BDSM context. Corresponding model variants exist, for example, in the Calvin Klein jewelery collection and were in some cases also sold by fashion house chains specializing in young target groups.
In the English-speaking world, driven by The Emblem Project , another symbol for BDSM has established itself, which is referred to in the subculture as the BDSM emblem and is closer to the design of the Ring of O described in the novel.
BDSM conventions
It is common for doms (tops) to wear the ring on their left hand and subs (bottoms) to wear the ring on their right hand.
In the literature, O wore the ring as a sub on his left hand. Due to this different convention, the preferred BDSM role cannot be concluded with absolute certainty from the wearing side of the ring. Switchers occasionally wear the ring on a chain around their necks.
literature
- Regine Deforges, Pauline Reage, Dominique Aury: The 'O' told me. Background to a bestseller . Charon, 2000, ISBN 3931406253 ( The story of O , return to Roissy and interviews in one volume)
Web links
- Ring of O in the paper tiger
- Homepage of the Emblem project
Individual evidence
- ^ Jean Paulhan (preface), Joseph Melzer Verlag, Darmstadt, 1967, p. 86