By: Arius of Treve

Ever since its appearance, Pasha's essay - "Master - A Granted Title?" has been a source of some controversy.

In some cases this is because of the extreme example given within the text... in others, the implied point in the title... and still others, as a reaction to the issue of just who is or is not a slave.

To me though... the central point of the essay is nailed right in the following quotation from the work in question...

"To the Gorean slave, whether or not she calls a man Master, is not dependent upon who HE is, but instead, upon who SHE is. In calling a man Master, she does not grant the man a title, for she has no right to grant a title, or anything else, to anyone. Instead, by calling a man Master, she reaffirms her own slavery."

- Pasha

The point is not even so much when you do or do not call a man a master. That is really just an example used to touch on the more relevant issue... the heavier topic is summed up in the above passage. Namely, that what a girl is, and how she acts, is dependent upon who and what she is... her nature... not what others are or claim to be.

Furthermore... that every time a girl places a wall between herself and that nature... every time she falls back on some excuse to justify an act of selfish disobedience, she pushes herself a bit farther from what she seeks to be. Each condition she places on her slavery, and every rationalization she conjures for things she will do and won't do before such even becomes an issue, throws a self-imposed obstacle in front of the goal she is trying to reach, and in effect forges another link in a chain that keeps her from her slavery. This does not mean the slave has to be unsafe, particularly in the face of the realities of our world, or that she cannot be grounded in well considered common sense, but the line between "reason" and "excuse" must be watched closely.

A girl does not have to walk down the street calling everyone "Master" and "Mistress" in order to be a slave. There is a big difference between not saying something because general conditions and expectations might not make the act appropriate, and deciding you will not say something because you don't want to or you decide the other is not worthy of your respect. Who and what you are should be constantly kept in mind and applied to how you act and behave. One's femininity and submission need not be compromised, even if it is not loudly declared for the uncaring masses to hear.

When a slave says the word "Master," she is not simply recognizing the place of the other as something above herself, or as the other being one to whom the word "Master" should apply. When a slave says the word "Master" she is saying much more than a single word about another person, but is saying something much deeper about herself. When a slave says the word "Master" she is in effect, and most importantly, saying... "I am a slave."

- Arius of Treve
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