LadyEllen
Posts: 10931
Joined: 6/30/2006
From: Stourport-England
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quote:
ORIGINAL: fluffyswitch
okay so i'm presenting this paper on bondage porn and the social acceptance of sexual minorities in march (essentially the paper is about how commodified images of sexual minorities can and will impact the acceptance of those minorities,especially if it's such a closeted/ignored sexuality that those images are the only ones being seen by mainstream society). anyway i'm reading this article that is articulating the position (which i agree with) that no sexual act is in and of itself immoral--that certain sex acts are immoral because society says that they are which is why some acts are okay in some sub cultures but not in others.
my question is (simply because i'm bored and happen to have writers block) why do YOU think that some acts are perfectly acceptable to some but not to others?
I'm assuming youre talking about our cultural and sociological time and place? Because to start getting into historical and cross cultural areas is going to get very complicated! Well, perhaps historical areas within the context of our culture might be useful?
Certainly in the Christian past, all that we get up to now was occurring - and all of it was frowned upon wherever it deviated from acts of heterosexual sex between married couples conducted with the aim of procreating children to the greater glory of God. A clear social context, derived from an enforced religious perspective, whereby sexuality and morality were clearly defined. And the penalties - both in terms of being ostracised socially and punished criminally for any deviation are there to be researched.
Prior to Christianity there is little information available, but it would seem that sexuality and in particular female sexuality was subject to far less stringent limitations of social acceptability. For instance, there are records remaining which indicate that homosexuality and transgender behaviours were known (resulting in "ergi" a sort of disgrace in Viking culture), records which indicate that the worship of the Goddess had at least some elements which are found in modern Femdom, records which show that a far more earthy attitude was taken towards sexuality and clear indications that priests of the Goddess were required to join the ranks of what must have been a respectable form of transgenderism by way of auto castration and thereafter living as women. Sadly however, the Church saw to it in its misogyny that as much as possible of female sexuality was curtailed and as many records of it as possible were destroyed. Again though, within our own original culture, social norms determined the view on sexuality and morality.
Our more modern culture though is one which I would say is based on the rights of the individual than any religious perspective. I would venture to say that this movement began long before today in the move towards the end of slavery - a system within which the owned were regularly subject to whatever whim of the owner, including the satisfaction of the owner's sexuality despite the otherwise strict Christian context in which he lived, or perhaps because of it, and despite the owner's justification of his ownership and acts in that the owned were not seen as human and yet not as an animal either.
So, as a 21st century westerner, its my view that the measure of acceptability of a form of sexuality is entirely down to the rights and abilities of individuals to make an informed decision according to their own morals and interests and then to give or withhold consent accordingly. And by individuals I would also include animals, who like children and unwitting or perhaps even intended witnesses have no opportunity to make an informed decision or give or withhold consent. So, I guess anything goes as long as those involved know what theyre doing and agree to take part.
At the same time though we also live within another cultural framework - that of the law. Given that it is derived for the most part from Christian ideals it has some very outdated limitations, but given that it is also more and more affected by our more modern attitudes towards the rights of individuals and the protection of those rights it yet limits us in the modern context. Whether one hits someone in a bar or with their consent whips them, an assault has been committed in law - and very many if not all bdsm activities are illegal in law because to protect us we have enacted laws which prevent the ability to consent to an offence or to solicit an offence.
Now if we were to follow the law, it would render bdsm impossible, yet the interest and drive to engage in it is such that it will be conducted regardless. So it has come to be, and rightly in my opinion that it is governed by a strong regard for safety and sanity - no permanent injury being intended whatever is done. This is a crucial difference between the abuse which the law is intended to limit and the fun and games we get up to - yet the law sees no difference, and this principle is one which we have ourselves developed to govern our sexuality within the context of our culture. We are having regard for the intention of the law, not the letter.
As for wider society, and your initial question - of course, the wider society by its own lack of interest and its fear of transgressing what remains of the former Christian social norms, will know little or nothing of what we get up to, and by those two factors will know only so much as it comes across by accident or incident. If what it comes across is the sort of commodified images of bdsm used for marketing and for sensationalist reporting, then this will be a very strong influence indeed - perhaps the only influence it has, in forming its view on us and thus the acceptability of bdsm in whole or part.
E
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In a test against the leading brand, 9 out of 10 participants couldnt tell the difference. Dumbasses.
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