Gor and the Gorean Lifestyle
Science-fiction writer John Norman created the world of Gor in a series of 25 novels which appeared between 1966 and 1988. The planet Gor orbits the Sun exactly opposite the planet Earth, thus its alternate name "Counter Earth." In the culture of Gor, men are all-powerful and women are slaves. While some condemn the books as reactionary and sexist, a thriving subculture has grown up around the books. Fans of the series have created role-playing games and chat sites, and some maintain a BDSM-like "Gorean lifestyle" with consensual master/slave relationships.
ARTICLES
Julia Gracen explores the thriving subculture centered around John Norman's Gor novels. The series of 25 novels, beginning with Tarnsman of Gor in 1966, take place on a planet where women are slaves to men, which "the novels say -- and say and say and say again -- is the proper and rightful state of things because it is in consonance with the true evolved nature of the sexes." Fans of the series have created role-playing games and chat sites, and some maintain a BDSM-like "Gorean lifestyle" with consensual master/slave relationships.
Salon (May 2000)
In his lengthy monograph on John Norman's Gor, "Dreamer" explains the philosophy and workings of Gorean sexual slavery as practiced in the books and by real-life followers. The following chapter outlines the differences between Gor and traditional BDSM. This site also includes an article by "unicorn" about being a kajira (the Gorean word for female slave), explaining the different types of kajirae and the basics of kajira fashion. To read the whole monograph, start from the table of contents here.
Dreamstrike
At the BDSM information site Leather and Roses, an active Gorean presents an
introduction to the Gorean lifestyle.
Leather and Roses
