I think one way is to call a spade a spade.
If dead bodies are floating down a river, go upstream and see whose throwing them in.
Men and women in America are fueling a chronic culture of sexual consumerism and it’s creating addicts. Men are particularly voracious supporters and consumers of pornography, not just naked pictures of beautiful women but hardcore porn. Sex presented as a dominating act of objectifying, illusion-fueled fantasy. Men are being brain washed into thinking every plump princess in their browser is a perpetual invitation for pleasure. They are trained biochemically for no restraint on sexual impulse, if they are hungry, they can feed like vampires.
Women don’t say “no” on fantasy island. This kind of mental, emotional and hormonal training creates men and women who don’t understand or follow the boundaries, norms and healthy relational narratives of sexual maturity. They can become irresponsible and dangerous predators, particularly in environments where colleges are erasing more practical boundaries like separate dorms, bathrooms and even showers. Add to that libertine lunacy the assault against religion, ethics and morality in universities and you’ve got a recipe for just what we are seeing take place.
Women are not guiltless in this orgy of objectification. We still worship Aphrodite and that worship involves the commodification of women. Her faithful followers use women for their own satisfaction without commitment, relationship or repercussion, they are sacrificial lambs to be consumed at the various techno-altars created by the money God, Jesus called Mammon.
Our culture begins training up neophytes from an early age, soaking the seeds of selfishness and lust with a heavy rain of sensuality in images, tv shows, music, fashion, stories, movies and cultural expectations. Modesty and morality are jokes, virginity and restraint is mocked like a dream of some prudish Victorian era.
We parade a smorgasbord of well prepared, perfectly cut chunks of juicy meat in front of sex hungry, hormonal young men and women and tell them to dine with dignity and moderation.
The real joke is the chefs slapping the hands of the patrons.
Eric, are you making a distinction between ‘naked pictures of beautiful women’ and ‘hardcore porn’? I’m asking because I think there isn’t really a difference, but I don’t want to merely be misreading what you wrote.
I do take issue with your last paragraph, in that while I think modesty is a wonderful virtue to pursue, I do not think that modesty has any bearing on rape, and to even suggest that it does leads to the continuance of rape in our society and others. No means no, no matter what anyone is wearing or what time of the day/night it is. I do think that self-restraint is a virtue that we could all try to work harder on and also teach the kids about.
Jan, I think that there is a difference between a naked picture of a beautiful woman [or man] and hard core porn. The naked human body can be the subject of beautiful art – as it has been for centuries. It is only when it becomes objectified, treated as an object for someone’s sexual gratification that it becomes pornography. And there is also a scale of pornography. I believe there is a difference between a sexualized image of a beautiful naked body and pictures of rape and other forms of sexually related violence. When we treat these as if they are all the same, we limit how effective we can be in taking seriously the consequences of violent pornography.
Jan, I usually use the term “nude” for descriptions of art that portray the human body and “naked” to describe the use of the human body for overly sexualized material. I do see a differance between nudity and pornography. Granted its a hard line to judge sometimes but as an artist and believer in the sacredness of the human body, I think there has to be a differance. One celebrates the body and the other uses the body.
As for the point you make about no culpability by a woman for anything she does or wears. I understand the position that a no is always a no and I agree. But I don’t share the position that a man or woman doesn’t own responsibility of invitation and presentation. Try dressing like a hooters waitress for a bank interview. Your image will send messages in the adult world. To deny that image and presentation sends a message, is illogical to me.
I found this interesting.
http://www.doctoroz.com/videos/can-porn-cause-erectile-dysfunction-pt-1