Mind Control and Free Will

Like God on high, I prefer that devotion be freely given.  I feel the need to preface this entry with that statement that I am, essentially, at heart, and always, a big fan of free will.  And that cannot help but color my remarks here.

Of course, I’m also right.

A psychologist friend of mine, living in a D/s relationship (He’s the “D”), confided to me that, with her enthusiastic consent, he has begun using hypnosis on his live-in girlfriend to reinforce her position as his slave.  That is, he regularly hypnotizes her and plants post-hypnotic suggestions designed to increase her feelings of submission and devotion to him.  Things like, “You will always feel pleasure from serving me in any way”, and, “Each day, your desire to serve me increases”.  You get the idea, right? 

Let me note that she’s totally in favor of the idea, and did freely agree/consent to it.  It’s not like he “secretly” hypnotized her or whatever. 

Anyway, they were both foolish enough to ask for my opinion on this practice.  After a thoughtful pause, long enough to enjoy a large draught of an excellent Bordeaux wine they were serving, I replied, “While the notion definitely has an appeal…I think it’s a bridge too far.  Personally, while I might be tempted by it, ultimately I wouldn’t be comfortable with it.” 

They, naturally enough, argued that since she freely consented to the hypnosis sessions, fully aware of their purpose, that it was not an abridgement of her free will.  I suppose that might possibly be at least “true in a way”.  But I don’t think that it’s ultimately true.  No, if I were to do that sort of thing, I’ve no doubt that at some point I’d begin to feel – and quite uncomfortably so – that I’d rather more or less created a robot servant for myself.  And robots, while useful and fun, are simply not the same thing as a person genuinely, willingly devoting themselves to you in freely-chosen submission.  There’s nothing flattering, for instance, or particulary gratifying, about a robot doing simply what you’ve programmed it to do. 

It is an interesting question, however, and, as alluded to above, it brought to my twisted mind the larger issue of God desiring love and devotion, but not willing to compel it in any way.  Why doesn’t God just make everyone be good? – Answer:  Because it wouldn’t mean anything then.  Not to Him, nor to us.  Likewise, I have no desire to “program” anyone in any way to slavishly devote themselves to me – because the genuine pleasure that I receive from a girl’s submission is very much wrapped up in the fact that she has freely chosen to offer herself to me in that way.

Plus, there's the simple fact that, knowing myself as I do, I know that, were I to indulge in such a practice, my wicked sense of humor would insist that I implant post-hypnotic suggestions like, "The next time you're in church, whenever you hear the word 'prayer', you will bark loudly three times, like a happy puppy".

Again, this is certainly a debatable issue.

But, again, I’m right. :)