Why Are We Ashamed of Being Naked?

Discussion in 'Ethics, Morality, & Justice' started by TruthSeeker, Aug 9, 2004.

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Are You Ashamed of Being Naked?

  1. Yes

    21 vote(s)
    31.8%
  2. No

    45 vote(s)
    68.2%
  1. DaveC426913 Valued Senior Member

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    18,935
    Wait. What? No.

    My 2nd comment was unrelated to the first one. My 2nd comment was addressing the original thread topic. Had nothing to do with you.

    Sorry.
     
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  3. wegs Matter and Pixie Dust Valued Senior Member

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    Okay, then. No worries.
     
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  5. kx000 Valued Senior Member

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    5,134
    We're not ashamed. I'm a heterosexual, I don't objectify women.
     
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  7. timojin Valued Senior Member

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    3,252
    It all depends , I I am in a nudist camp or area , changing clots in a bath house , I don't have a problem , but when all people are not naked than I would be ashamed.
     
  8. Schmelzer Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    5,003
    There is an interesting thesis by Hans Peter Duerr, namely about the universality of female body shame.

    Male shame is not universal. Cultures where man do not show signs of body shame exist. One also has to distinguish the shame of being naked from body shame. There are societies where women are naked too. But this does not mean that they show no shame. Even in societies where women are naked there is a difference between modest, shameful behavior and shameless behavior, which is reserved to whores.

    Given this universality thesis, there will never be a society without any form of body shame.
     
  9. timojin Valued Senior Member

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    3,252
    Is it in our society the exposure of young female to entice males , and as they get over 45 +++ they are ashamed of their body while male are not as sensitive to shame ?
     
  10. kx000 Valued Senior Member

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    5,134
    So it's shaming when you try to protect your wife's bossum for yourself because you love her
     
  11. DaveC426913 Valued Senior Member

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    18,935
    A few things that could use clarification here.

    1] "so it's shaming". Who is committing the act of shaming in the above scenario?
    2] why does he need to "protect" his wife's bosom? i.e. What is he protecting it from?
    3] Is he saving it for himself? Is it his? Or hers?
     
  12. timojin Valued Senior Member

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    3,252
    The bosom are to provide nourishment for a new baby, and not for you.
    I come from a society were a woman havc a child in a bus. and a child is crying been hungry , there is no shame to pull her boob and feed her baby.
     
  13. Xelasnave.1947 Valued Senior Member

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    8,502
    If God wanted us to run around naked we would have been born that way.
    Alex
     
  14. Schmelzer Valued Senior Member

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    5,003
    I think it makes no sense to make a theory of what part of culture causes female body shame if the point made by Duerr is that it exists in all cultures.

    Duerr does not speculate about the reasons. He simply presents a lot of facts in support of his thesis in a lot of thick books in his series against "The Myth of Civilization Process" or so (Der Mythos vom Zivilisationsprozeß), which are anyway very interesting reading.

    I think the point is that there are two strategies for women to survive and raise children - the first one is to find a husband, who is the only one to have sex with her, and supports her and his children. The other one is prostitution, where she lives with her children from money paid for sex by many men. Given that this strategy makes her an enemy of the wives of her clients, taking away resources from their families, they will fight this. The result of this fight is usually a low status of prostitutes in society. And the behavior of the prostitute with the aim to attract male clients becomes therefore bad, "indecent" behavior.
     
  15. birch Valued Senior Member

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    5,077
    That is a good point. It might be that as humans are more aware of sexuality, shame of nakedness and therefore clothing became more important. The awareness of vulnerability is equal to the awareness of others and threat. There is no reason to feel ashamed or threatened to be naked by yourself or in front of your dog/cat/ parakeet. Animals dont have that type or level of awareness of themselves or others.

    This would also be the reason why women would tend to feel more shame than men because of greater sexual vulnerability. Also, 'shame' of nakedness to strangers stems more from being objectified as a sexual organ (opportunistic) rather than a person. Those you want to be intimate with you dont feel ashamed is because you know they respect you as a person, who you are etc as in its not exploitive.
     
    Last edited: Dec 27, 2016
  16. timojin Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    3,252
    God give man a choice , live above the equator then you need to cover yourself from cold , of live by the equator then run naked.
     
  17. kx000 Valued Senior Member

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    5,134
    She can prepare baby bottles at home. Human beings make love for pleasure, her knockers are mine.
     
  18. kx000 Valued Senior Member

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    5,134
    1. It wouldn't be shaming
    2. He's a faithful
    3. Yes her breast should coordinate to my will.
     
  19. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    8,828
    I've reached that age, you know, old and fat. Now, I personally don't have a problem with my body, but I wouldn't share the shock value with those in public. We have an annual event in town, where people ride their bikes through town naked. It would be great if they were all models, but they are not, so I've never been a spectator nor a participant.

    As a young man, sitting by the river shirtless and in shorts during the summer months was typical, but even then I could never walk around with my junk swinging loose and free--not in public anyway. I think clothing is a form of security, something we have been taught through our lives since childhood. Clothing is part of our culture. I don't believe it's a natural sense of insecurity, but one that is learned.
     
  20. birch Valued Senior Member

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    5,077
    I dont think it is totally learned as in artificial. We are the most aware and aware sexually so therefore it behooves us to cover our intimate parts in general. Whatever parts are the most sexualized is what is covered up.

    We pick our mates based on complicated criteria whereas most animals dont. Humans are sexual all the time, there is no set mating season just for procreation and nonsexual the rest of the time. Most animals sexual organs are hidden by tails or fur whereas human organs protrude out and is very noticeable. This makes us more self conscious. Also animals dont have breasts like human females do etc.
     
  21. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

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    8,828
    That makes sense, but we do grow up in clothing from an early age. For most of Western culture clothing has been a necessity because of the environment, which might also contribute to the sense of security derived from wearing garments.
     
  22. birch Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    5,077
    Even primitive human tribes in hot climates tend to cover up their intimate parts even if its a loin cloth. Some tribes have female breasts exposed because it is not sexualized but just considered feed for human infants.

    Children generally arent aware of shame of nakedness because they arent sexually mature yet but as they get closer to puberty they naturally do etc.
     
  23. Bowser Namaste Valued Senior Member

    Messages:
    8,828
    I wonder if that's not more for protection than simply covering up their sexuality. Genitalia is a very sensitive area.
    And by covering them in our culture we turned women's breasts into sexual objects?

    Agreed. Young children haven't learned the concepts.
     

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