The naked human body (spam lite)

[Antimatter]

Originally posted by Gruntboy
I love the naked female form in particular.

Don't we all?

[Yshania]

Right, so the general consensus is that nudity is ok (and we are just waiting for repressed nations to loosen up) as long as the nude in question meets our idea of beauty? Whether sexually or asthetically?

[Scayde]

Originally posted by Yshania
Right, so the general consensus is that nudity is ok (and we are just waiting for repressed nations to loosen up) as long as the nude in question meets our idea of beauty? Whether sexually or asthetically?

LOL...I'll go along with that

[fable]

Originally posted by frogus
SPAM - What does vested mean? And why are interests never anything but it?

Absolute and unmovable. These aren't merely temporary interests that shift over time, or according to circumstance.

Hope that helps.

[RandomThug]

Bah! Keep your damn cloths on you dirty hippies.

[Gwalchmai]

Originally posted by Yshania
Right, so the general consensus is that nudity is ok (and we are just waiting for repressed nations to loosen up) as long as the nude in question meets our idea of beauty? Whether sexually or aesthetically?

This is a very interesting question, and one that I have thought about quite a bit. Okay, that sounds bad, but its not.... I don't think....

Does nudity necessarily relate to beauty? Sure, I personally would rather see nubile young ladies prancing around naked, and would not want to see most men naked, but what does that have to do with it? There's nothing that says everyone has to be beautiful. I look at people on the street, and I know many of them could look a lot more appealing to me if they changed their style of dress or mannerisms. But are they necessarily trying to attract me, or anyone? No, the guy with the spiky pink hair and 100+ piercings doesn't really care what I think. My dinner would curdle in my stomach just as much if I saw a naked middle-aged man walking down the street as it does when I see a decrepit drunk who hasn't bathed in 3 years stumble by.

What if public nudity were allowed? Minerva might not enjoy her public dining experience as well, to be sure, but maybe there could be a positive affect? Maybe the restrictive modern concepts of physical beauty would be changed to more realistic ideals? This might be a good thing, and those of us who are in our 30s and 40s might not feel so much pressure to look like a 14- or 18-year-old?

But rest assured, I will continue to keep my clothes on until society changes.

[VonDondu]

Originally posted by Gwalchmai
Does nudity necessarily relate to beauty?

Why would they necessarily be related?

The fact that people think of beautiful people first when the subject of nudity is brought up says a lot about people's attitude towards nudity, but very little about nudity itself.

[Gwalchmai]

Originally posted by VonDondu
Why would they necessarily be related?

The fact that people think of beautiful people first when the subject of nudity is brought up says a lot about people's attitude towards nudity, but very little about nudity itself.

Well yeah! That's pretty much the point I am trying to make, except that I propose further that if nudity were more acceptable in a society, you might see a change in people's perceptions of beauty/ugliness. So they are unrelated concepts, yet related at the same time.

My head hurts.

[Scayde]

Originally posted by Gwalchmai
Well yeah! That's pretty much the point I am trying to make, except that I propose further that if nudity were more acceptable in a society, you might see a change in people's perceptions of beauty/ugliness. So they are unrelated concepts, yet related at the same time.

My head hurts.

Mine does too

......I have an idea...why don't you go first, maybe something nice to look at will make me feel better

[dragon wench]

Well given Canada's imperial masters (Britain and the US), it should hardly come as a surprise to anybody that the culture up here tends to be a bit repressed on things like this.... *sigh*

However, that being said, BC does have a number of nude beaches and hotspings. In fact, my favourite beach in Vancouver is a nude beach

IMO if we, as a society, adopted more natural views on sexuality and nudiity the porn industry would suffer. I say this because I think porn and a repressed view of the human body are often flip sides of one another.
I recognise that the consumption of porn, much like prostitution, is also frequently related to power and the desire to dominate... Nonetheless, I believe that our puritanical attitudes towards sexuality and nudity do amplify the porn industry. For one, if something is percieved as "bad," there is a certain thrill associated with engaging in it....

[Bloodstalker]

*runs in, steals everyones clothes, and runs back out*

[dragon wench]

Originally posted by Bloodstalker
*runs in, steals everyones clothes, and runs back out*

lmao!
Hmmm... you will look quite divine in that black minidress I was wearing....

[Bloodstalker]

Really? Fair enough, you look divine without it

[Scayde]

@BS...I would suggest shaving your legs though

And give me back my leather Teddy

[Bloodstalker]

At the rate I am losing hair, I refuse to intentionally shave any off.,

[Maharlika]

Give me back my lampshade...

Originally posted by Bloodstalker
At the rate I am losing hair, I refuse to intentionally shave any off.,

...or that's not the only thing you'll be losing, Sensei.

@VonDondu: Interesting and a very good point there.

Does this mean then that for some people, nudity is only acceptable if you got the stuff to flaunt?

Is it nudity for nudity's sake or is it for art's sake?

[frogus]

Great post (as always) @ VonDondu - you should be on TV

But would a nude society actually make us realise our flaws, and make our perception of beauty more realistic?
Not in the slightest, I think.
I think that it is completely obvious to anyone who cares to look now that Gwally (say) does not look like a 14 year old under his clothes, but that does not stop (more than his fair share, IMO ) women being interested in him...
I do not see any reason why he would suddenly become more beautiful were he to get naked, surrounded by other naked people (mostly fat and ugly of course ).

[Mr Sleep]

Originally posted by frogus
Great post (as always) @ VonDondu - you should be on TV

Surely VonDondu is too intelligent and witty for TV?

I agree with Dragon Wench, the way nudity is viewed as taboo also makes it more rebellious to push the boundaries and appear nude when possible.

I read a book called Pengunia or Penguin Island (cheers to fable) that documents the rise of a new society of penguins that are sentient and basically on par with humans, it's quite fascinating really. The author explores all the different ways a society establishes its rules.

To make this preamble relevant he writes about nudity, when the penguins are all nude the male penguins are unconcerned by the nudity of the other women. However the Satan character clothes a female penguin and suddenly all the males become interested in her, it is the mystery that surrounds covering up that has made it more interesting. Or:

"If fashion is your trade,
then when your naked,
I guess you must be unemployed,
Cos once it's underway
there's no escaping the fact that you're a girl and he's a boy
I couldn't stop it now.
There's no way to get out.
He's standing far too near How the hell did you get here.
Semi-naked in someone else's room
I'd give my whole life to see it.
Just you stood there
only in your underwear" - Pulp, Underwear, Common People.

[Gwalchmai]

Originally posted by Scayde
Mine does too

......I have an idea...why don't you go first, maybe something nice to look at will make me feel better

ROFL! You had better stick with Chan in that case, if you want something nice to look at! I would agree with Frogus that I look better either in clothes or in the dark!


@DW: Does HLD and Ned know about your plans to ruin the porn industry? Actually, I think you bring up a valid point. I wonder if there is a converse relationship between the acceptance of nudity in a society and the successes of the porn industry?

[C Elegans]

Originally posted by Gwalchmai
I wonder if there is a converse relationship between the acceptance of nudity in a society and the successes of the porn industry?

That's a very interesting point. I was just thinking about Japan and the US, two countries with (relative to where I live) have a repressive view of nudity and sexuality but at the same time has a very large and thriving porn industry. Does the need for porn increase in cultures where sex is viewed less liberal? Do the taboos induce a stronger interest?

This is merely anecdotal, I have not seen any polls or studies of the topic (maybe somebody else has? I'd be interested in the results), but at a personal level, I have found that many people from the US seem to have a very liberal view of porn and prostitution, more like "it's a job like anything else" and "two conscending adults have the right to do whatever they like". On one hand it is perhaps good that people working with porn and prosititution are not looked down upon, but it surprises me to find this liberal attitudes towards pornography when the society in general seems sexually repressive? Or did I just hit a very weird and unrepresentative sample, these views are perhaps highly uncommon in the US?

And what about Japan? On one hand the society in general does not have a liberal view of sex and nudity, but on the other hand there are plenty of shops around (legal, it seems?) where people can buy used panties and pictures of posing non-pubescent kids, something that would be viewed as pedophilia in the liberal Sweden? It seems the limit between adult, post-adolescent and child, not sexually mature, is more vague in Japan than in Europe?