Torah Edgeplay: Risk, Community, and Ethics from the Beit Midrash to BDSM

“Deviant” sexual activities are often treated as the height of selfish, chaotic individualism.  But what if “deviant” sexualities offer models for communal ethics that account for collective wellbeing and identity as well as individual variation, risk-taking, and pleasure? And what if classical rabbinic text has within it narratives and resources that not only mirror and elucidate those communities’ virtues, but also mirror, illuminate, and help to mend their vices?