History Main / DominanceThroughFurniture

-->-- '''Series/{{Succession}}'''

* ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea}}'': Etna has been known to use her Prinny servants as seats, particularly in her introductory scene in the [[VideoGame/Disgaea2CursedMemories second game]]. Of course, it's one of the ''nicer'' things she does, as she also uses them for knife-throwing targets, punching bags, and makeshift bombs.

Needless to say, this is a technique used almost exclusively by villains and {{Nominal Hero}}es of a distinctly sadistic bent and is often used as an EstablishingCharacterMoment to that end.

* ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea}}'': Etna has been known to use her Prinny servants as seats, particularly in her introductory scene in the second game. Of course, it's one of the ''nicer'' things she does, as she also uses them for knife-throwing targets, punching bags, and makeshift bombs.

-->'''Series/{{Succession}}'''

* ''LightNovel/{{Overlord|2012}}'':
** After Ainz frees his subordinate Shalltear from her brainwashing, she demands to be punished for betraying him. After another of his subordinates, Demiurge, makes him a macabre throne made of human bones, a disgusted Ainz instead decides to punish Shalltear by making ''her'' his seat for the time being. [[{{Unishment}} Instead of being a punishment]], however, Shalltear becomes very, ''very'' [[TooKinkyToTorture aroused by being sat on by her beloved Ainz]]. In fact, it makes Shalltear so happy that an [[GreenEyedMonster extremely jealous Albedo]] excuses herself from the room and can be heard yelling and breaking things in frustration.
** Ainz's skeletal soldiers also often get used this way, such as in his epic entrance with the lizardmen, in which an entire group of skeletal soldiers lay themselves and their shields against a gigantic stone block thrown into a frozen river, forming themselves into stairs for Ainz and his entourage to ascend.

-->'''Series/Succession'''

* The 1968 movie ''Film/GreatCatherine'' (based on the eponymous play by Creator/GeorgeBernardShaw) features [[PowerDynamicsKink a playful, flirtatious version of this]]: the empress Catherine the Great takes a liking to the handsome British ambassador, and when he refuses her advances, [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8FDp4OLdv4 she orders to tie him up and uses him as the footstool]], [[FriendlyTickleTorture tickling his ribs with her bare toes]]. As a condition for getting him untied, she tells him [[IKissYourFoot to kiss her foot]] ("When an Empress allows you to see her foot, you should kiss it"), [[SlapSlapKiss and after that, they spend a passionate night]].

* The 1968 movie ''Film/GreatCatherine'' (based on the eponymous play by Creator/GeorgeBernardShaw) features [[PowerDynamicsKink a playful, flirtatious version of this]]: the empress Catherine the Great takes a liking to the handsome British ambassador, and when he refuses her advances, she orders to tie him up and uses him as the footstool, [[FriendlyTickleTorture tickling his ribs with her bare toes]]. As a condition for getting him untied, she tells him [[IKissYourFoot to kiss her foot]] ("When an Empress allows you to see her foot, you should kiss it"), [[SlapSlapKiss and after that, they spend a passionate night]].

* ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents'': In "A Bad Case of Diary-Uh!", Vicky exploits her position of babysitter to force Timmy to drop to his knees and act as a footrest while she watches TV.

* Practically an InvokedTrope in UsefulNotes/{{BDSM}} where a dominant may require their submissive to serve them as a seat or footrest or any other similar ways.

* After he was taken captive by Shapur I of Persia, Roman emperor Valerian (199-260 or 264) is said to have been used as a footstool by the Persian emperor.
* Practically an InvokedTrope in BDSM where a dominant may require their submissive to serve them as a seat or footrest or any other similar ways.

Compare and contrast HumanDoorstop, the lighter, comedic variant of this trope.

In one common form, a servant, lackey or victim is forced to kneel on the floor while their master props their feet up on them like an ottoman. Another popular variant features the victim being made to play the role of a chair and support the weight of their tormentor - with dire consequences if they collapse. Others still may involve the victim being used as stairs, footstools, or even carpets.

Needless to say, this is a technique used almost exclusively by villains and {{Nominal Hero}}es of a distinctly sadistic bent, and is often used as an EstablishingCharacterMoment to that end.

* In the ''ComicBook/TwoThousandAD'' comic ''Hope Under Fire,'' a sorcerous Mafia boss is able to steal the demon Cade from the protagonist, using her to slaughter most of his rivals and make himself TheDon of the city. As a result, his next scene features the boss reading a newspaper while using surviving enemy as an ottoman; for good measure, he also warns the poor man that if he keeps trembling, he'll happily use the man as a toilet instead!

* The live action ''Film/TokyoTribes'' has the BigBad's son, N'koi, who has an entire room full of people he's posed as living furniture. It's not fun for the poor sods involved; N'koi's implied to have tortured them to get them to that state, and when he's not sitting on them he's establishing his dominance by putting out cigarettes on their naked skin.
* In the ''Film/{{Fantozzi}}'' series, renown for its BlackComedy, the company's top [=CEO=]s have chairs made of [[GenuineHumanHide "human leather"]] as a status symbol. When he has a chance to touch one of the chairs, Fantozzi even recognizes the specific colleague that was used.

* In ''Literature/ModernFaerieTales'', the Unseelie Queen orders an unfortunate to act as her dinner table just because she can and she's in a bad mood--and being the Unseelie Queen, she's going to do something really nasty if he spills anything, which he will, because he's not that strong and he's terrified of her. Roiben, a knight traded into her service, offers himself in the poor guy's place.
* In ''Literature/TheWheelOfTime'', Graendal of the QuirkyMinibossSquad spends her free time using mind-control to amass a harem of servants who also act as living furniture. Her preference is for men or women who are both attractive and politically important.

* In ''Series/TheDrewCareyShow'', when Kate worked as Mrs. Lauder's personal assistant, the former was often used by the latter as a desk when she needed to write a quick memo. When Kate finds another job, she sings a happy-sounding quitting song, but when that job falls through, she begs Mrs. Louder for her job back by lying about an "impersonator" going around pulling pranks. Mrs. Lauder rehires Kate, and immediately puts her to work as a footstool.

* ''VideoGame/{{Disgaea}}'': Etna has been known to use her Prinny servants as seats, particularly in her introductory scene in the second game. Of course, it's one of the ''nicer'' things she does, as she also uses them for knife throwing targets, punching bags, and makeshift bombs.

* In a ''Webcomic/{{Subnormality}}'' comic, an average joe goes to multiple job interviews, but keeps getting turned down. These constant failures wear him down and his posture gets worse with each new interview until he's finally so slumped over that the last manager uses him as a footrest.

* ''WesternAnimation/TheFairlyOddParents'': In "A Bad Case of Diary-Uh!", Vicky exploits her position of babysitter to force Timmy to drop to his knees and act as footrest while she watches TV.

* ''Series/{{CSINY}}'': In season one's "Hush," Danny & Aiden go undercover as a couple looking to learn about BDSM techniques. The seminar they attend features a woman hanging upside down as a chandelier and a man posed as an end table. They ask the leader how long they have to stay like that and she replies, "until I tell them they can stop."

* ''Series/{{CSINY}}'': In season one's "Hush," Danny & Aiden go undercover as a couple looking to learn about BDSM techniques. The seminar they attend features a woman hanging upside down as a chandelier and a man posed as an end table. They ask the leader how long they have to stay like that and the woman replies, "until I tell them they can stop."

* After he was taken captive by Shakur I of Persia, Roman emperor Valerian (199-260 or 264) is said to have been used as a footstool by the Persian emperor.

* ''ComicBook/WonderWoman2011'': Hades has his father chained up with a hole through his stomach as his throne. Because they're in the afterlife and his father was not mortal to begin with he is ''conscious'' and in agony.

[[caption-width-right:350: Nzinga Mbande shows us how it's done.]]

* ''LightNovel/{{Overlord|2012}}'': After Ainz frees his subordinate Shalltear from her brainwashing, she demands to be punished for betraying him. After another of his subordinates, Demiurge, makes him a macabre throne made of human bones, a disgusted Ainz instead decides to punish Shalltear by making ''her'' his seat for the time being. [[{{Unishment}} Instead of being a punishment]], however, Shalltear becomes very, ''very'' [[TooKinkyToTorture aroused by being sat on by her beloved Ainz]]. In fact, it makes Shalltear so happy that an [[GreenEyedMonster extremely jealous Albedo]] excuses herself from the room and can be heard yelling and breaking things in frustration.

* In the ''Central Shadow Realm'' stories, crime lord Dark Ruler Ha Des is notorious for his furniture. Everything in the room either was alive or ''is'' alive. Ha Des uses it as an intimidation tactic; sitting in a chair that was a fellow monster at one point sends the message that if you screw up you could be the chair next to it in short order.