By saying this โ go right ahead. A sadist is someone who enjoys the suffering of others. While a sadist who has a good sense of morality and empathy will stick to playing a Cruel Player-Character God or doing some Casual Kink in a Safe, Sane, and Consensual way, sadism becomes outright Nightmare Fuel when combined with sociopathy. This is the kind of character that takes pleasure in inflicting Cold-Blooded Torture and psychological abuse.
Whether it's physical or psychological, a sadist will take pleasure in making or seeing others suffer. Sometimes, a sadist has a Lack of Empathy that stops them from feeling any guilt from the suffering they cause. However, that is not a prerequisite: Some of these characters do indeed feel bad about their actions; they just enjoy it too much to stop. Note that while real-life sadists are usually of the decent kind and psychiatry stopped perceiving sadism and masochism as mental disorders long ago, fictional sadists are usually of the truly despicable kind.
After all, a sociopathic sadist is much easier to use for drama or for eroticized daydreaming. When the non-sociopathic kind of sadism is included in fiction, it tends to be either for a plot twist , some lighthearted fun , or maybe even tragedy. The original Trope Namer is the Marquis de Sade , an author who in his books used sexual sadism both for fetish fuel and for satirical ways of describing the hypocrisy and injustice rampant in pre-Revolution France.
Back when psychiatry viewed all sexual minorities including homosexuality as "mental disorders", regular BDSM was considered pathological under the diagnoses "Sexual Sadism" and "Sexual Masochism". Sadist characters may or may not fit any diagnosis, or in the case of sympathetic characters, be unfairly labeled with such a diagnosis. Many sadist characters are not physically violent, and the ones who are usually come from a violent culture or background. Psychological and emotional sadism is much more common and, in some cases, much more sophisticated and harmful, being easier to disguise from either the victim or their loved ones.
Many target family members in particular, as they are "safe" targets they can control easily, or otherwise go after someone who is in their power e. Others, including the nastier types of internet Troll , prefer to target strangers and may hide their behavior from those closest to them at least, if they feel they will be judged for it , essentially leading a double life.
