Just a note to say that I do distinguish between passion(maybe "emotion" is a better word) and control.

If a dom ever loses control, then you've moved out of the realm of BDSM and into the world of simple physical abuse, and I don't think anyone would find that acceptable, at least not as a BDSM practice.

I guess I mean to ask whether subs prefer their masters to show some emotion during a session or whether they like them cold and aloof. I'm afraid that using the word "passion" gave an idea of a master getting carried away and kind of foaming at the mouth, which wasn't what I meant.

I was playing around with the idea that part of the reason a sub enjoys being punished is that her pain "pays" for her master's pleasure. She's willing to put up with it because she sees how it arouses him.

But then I wondered about subs who prefer their masters to be very cold and unemotional. This is generally a more degrading and severe relationship, and I'd talked to some subs who refused to be with a dom like that because they didn't feel the emotional closeness or reward they got with a more demonstrative master.