Sadism

Sadism lies at the heart of the novel Beauty's Punishment. As a central theme, sadism pervades the lives of Beauty and Tristan, the main characters. At first, the main characters, who are slaves, are appalled by the experiences they are expected to endure and perhaps even enjoy.

The first introduction of sadism to the slaves is when they arrive at the palace of Queen Eleanor. Once in residence, the slaves are forced into being "naked pleasure slaves" for a master and/or mistress. The slaves are routinely beaten, sexually violated, humiliated and forced to service not only the master and mistress but others as well.

The level of sadism increases when the slaves are taken to an auction to be sold as a result of disobedience. Aside from not being able to speak or defend oneself, the slaves must endure severe punishments and whipping from various people in...