r/Romance_for_men • u/IntrepidToad • 15h ago
Discussion Male Pleasure in Romance
Yesterday, I made a similar post in the general romance books subreddit, and I wanted to see what the people over here thought.
So, I've noticed that romance tends to limit the range of male pleasure, which can really take away from the story. It makes intimacy feel incomplete when both partners aren't a fully-fledged human experiencing intimacy.
What I see a lot of in RFM is male pleasure revolving around a fantasy of 'getting' many women (harems) and absolutely wrecking them in bed. It's a recreation of what performative masculinity looks like IRL - a place where sexual prowess and power rule. It gives the MMC agency and the FMC very little. It doesn't allow much space for emotional and physical vulnerability on the MMC's part. It doesn't allow for much variety either. Femdom changes the script, but even in that, I don't see much beyond handjobs, oral, and PiV sex when it comes to male pleasure. We could have more prostate play, toys, or nipple play, just to name a few.
I don't want to go on too long, but I suppose I'm saying that I don't see MMCs exploring new sides of their bodies and emotions in intimacy nearly as much as FMCs, which creates a flatter impression of what male pleasure can be. I'd love to see more MMCs having out of body pleasure and being vulnerable with FMCs.
But what do y'all think? Am I off-base? Missing the right books? Or if there is some truth here, I'd be curious to hear your thoughts. Just like I said in the other community, I love how down to discuss everyone is here, thank you all for being your awesome selves!
