What’s Wrong With Teen Nudity?
October 26, 2007
The other day I was listening to a bimbo talk show host who was scandalized that a nudist resort in Virginia or someplace allowed teens. He seemed to feel that while it was OK for consenting adults to practice nudity, it was horrifying that teens would be allowed to practice nudity. In fact, he thought it was downright immoral of the resort to allow teens in.
Now, I happen to think the talk show host was making a moutain out of a mole hill. For some years ago, I was acquainted with many teens in this town, several of whom would invite me to go along with them on their various excursions, which were often to a nude resort up in the mountains. I recall a number of things about those trips, including staying up until three in the morning in the sauna listening to the teens discuss relationships, sex and God, or being sought out by one teen or another for private chats about their anxieties, but I don’t recall that any kids were traumatized by their experiences on these trips. So, I tend to think the bimbo talk show host was just being a bimbo.
But what do you think? Do you think the bimbo talk show host for once had a point? Is there a danger to teen nudity that I didn’t see (wouldn’t be the first time I haven’t seen something)? Should teens be allowed in nudist resorts?
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October 26, 2007 at 2:08 PM
I think there’s been a heightened fear in our society of kids being molested. I know my husband won’t even consider being friendly with neighborhood kids because he’s afraid he might get accused of something improper.
In movies, books, and video games parents are more likely to be outraged by sex than by violence, and the perception is that children are innocent and pure and to expose them to nudity or sex in any way will ruin their minds, addict them to pornography, and turn them into sexual deviants.
But the fact is that most children have sex before they become adults. If I ever have kids I would encourage them to wait because of the risks of pregnancy, disease, and emotional maturity, but I’m not naive enough to think it won’t happen.
And I think it’s ridiculous that nudity is thought of as dirty. Sure, it can be, but a person can be fully clothed and still be very sexually suggestive. But I don’t think most people can separate the concepts of nudity and sex.
October 26, 2007 at 2:22 PM
Ordinary Girl, it disturbs me that so many people cannot seem to separate nudity from sex. When I’ve been at a nudist resort, separating sex and nudity has seemed ridiculously easy — even for naturally horny teens.
October 26, 2007 at 5:05 PM
If it’s going to be photographed they’ve got to understand that there’s no going back.
If they’re cool with that, it’s their choice…. but I do suspect they are vulnerable to rape
October 27, 2007 at 11:54 AM
Laws on pictures of naked kids, in particular, are way out of proportion. 17-year-olds face being tried as adults and sent away for a long time for taking pictures of each other.
As a culture we still have not come to terms with sexuality, and in particular with the fact that people don’t suddenly start having sexual feelings on their 18th birthday.
As for plain ol’ nudity, it is seen as an incitement to sex – another “gift” of our culture.
Why do you torture yourself listening to news bobbleheads?
October 27, 2007 at 6:26 PM
The talk shows you listen to are never in the business of academic inquiries or intellectual pursuits. More they are marketing to a specific audience, in the same a politician may appeal to voters in his district–by demographics. In that regard it may be of interest to know who the target audience is or is perceived to be as it will have an impact on opinions conveyed.
I think though that while it may seem inherit for naturalist colonies or resorts to be innocent that possibly such an institution may have a higher allure to the small minority of people who are predatory by nature due to the paradigm presented. It has the potential to be opportunistic.
With putting that thought on the table the transition from idea to actual resort would need to have strong checks, balances and precautions to consider and if the conception from idea to facility could not be conservatively accommodated to eclipse such areas that could be opportunistic for someone of a predatory mindset.
I am myself far too ignorant in this area to know the answer to the question of safety in a naturalist colony but feel they are paramount due to my perceived potential for possible harm. As neutral and natural as the idea sounds, it would be foolhardy to think all who participated in such a facility would have the a neutral intent.
October 27, 2007 at 6:52 PM
I do not see a problem with the teens in such places, it would be the adults that were attracted to these places with that knowledge.
October 27, 2007 at 6:52 PM
I think its part of the fear of children or young teenagers having sex with each other. We know that sex and nudity need not be connected but in this both cloistered and prurient society we have so sexualized body display that we cannot help but think that way.
If they are having sex with each other, they have the power. And it bothers us that they have broached the mystery that we like to think is ours alone.
October 27, 2007 at 10:18 PM
I think people definitely need to relax on the sex issue. But I think our TV culture has helped increase this fear of nudity and sex.
Almost every sitcom and drama show on TV has in some way demonized sex. Most of the time it’s done by showing how awkward it is to talk about sex with your kids.
I get pretty pissed every time I see that. It’s complete BS and we need to drop it. You can’t close your eyes cover your ears and scream LA LA LA LA LA… and wish away they thought that your kid might have sex.
Besides the fact that I don’t think sex is a big deal, I think it’s important that parents talk to their kids about sex. When you educate someone you tend to put them in a position where they can make smarter decisions.
October 28, 2007 at 4:42 PM
I think enreal stumbled on the real problem. Maybe you don’t correlate nudity with sex, even if a nubile teenage girl is standing naked in front of you, but I don’t that’s true of a lot of adult men. It is exploitave of minors, even if they are ‘ok’ with it, most teenage girls don’t really understand how their bodies will provoke graphic and unwelcome thoughts in the minds of the opposite sex.
I wouldn’t want my daughter to be naked at a resort filled with strange men, and I’d be horribly uncomfortable about the thought of her sitting naked in a sauna ‘bonding’ with a grown man. Any sort of bonding that is appropriate can be done with her fully clothed, and hopefully a decent distance away from him.
If they were using naked teenagers to promote a movie most of us would think that disgusting. Why are naked teens in a resort any different?
October 28, 2007 at 8:22 PM
“Why do you torture yourself listening to news bobbleheads?” — DOF.
I’m getting better at that, DOF. I used to tune into the bimbos much more often than I do now. Nowadays, it’s about twice a month — but whenever I do tune in, it always seems they are saying something ridiculous.
Amuirin, it’s ironic that before I started frequenting naturalist resorts, my views were very similar to yours. Few people have been as surprised as I have been. I expected being nude with others would increase my sexual desires. But what I actually experienced was a lessening of those desires. I’ve wondered about that ever since, but I still don’t know why nudity has that effect. It’s counter-intuitive, isn’t it?
October 29, 2007 at 12:33 PM
Paul: I think you may have hit on something there… Partly I think the explanation is along the lines of “We all want what we can’t have”.
It’s wrong and immoral in our society to have people walk around naked or to see others when they are naked. Yet people constantly wear more and more revealing clothes in our society. So to me it seems like we create this system where sex and seeing people naked is craved by the somewhat revealing clothes (think string bikinis on a clothing mandatory beach).
Where when one is constantly surrounded by people that are naked, it no longer becomes some mystifying thing. It just becomes natural and the sexual arousal from seeing someone naked becomes more and more diminished. To almost all people that are part of a naked community, from what I have read, interactions are very non-sexual even though people are nude.
October 29, 2007 at 1:17 PM
Webs, you have put it better than I have. Thank you!
May 28, 2008 at 3:18 PM
I think being shown “what ought not to be seen” is what has a sexual context to it. There’s a great quote in Memoirs of a Geisha about enticing men by giving them the impression that they, and they alone, are allowed to see parts of the geisha’s body that nobody else is allowed to see (in this case, the inside of the wrist!)
So for me it’s not an issue of what flesh is on display, but the amount of “pudenda” (literally that which should be hidden) on display – and what counts as pudenda varies from place to place. On a nudist beach, nothing is hidden, therefore there’s no element of display of the forbidden to make it erotic.
There’s a huge difference between a woman on a beach in a bikini and a woman in a bikini (or even more so, in lingerie) in the city. As they’re revealing similar amounts of flesh, the amount of exposure alone can’t explain the difference. It’s easy to underestimate just how much difference the context makes.
May 28, 2008 at 4:18 PM
Hi Lirone! I would suggest men can be enticed by the thought they, and they alone, are allowed to see some part of a woman’s body in part because men are so visually oriented and, along with that, seem to often equate nudity with intimacy.
I think you make a very good point about context, too. Nudity at a nude resort doesn’t impress me as very sexual. But if I came home to find a nude woman on my bed, I’d probably have a very sexual response to the sight.
August 3, 2008 at 4:06 PM
While I’ve never been to an actual nudist resort, I’ve learned a lot about nudism. Non-sexual nudity can be for everyone…adults, teens, old people, kids, infants. Unlike most men, I don’t equate nudity with sex unless it’s shown that way in movies and tv. Our society is so focused on sex and pornography that it’s forgotten that natural nudity is a healthy respect for one another since it removes the mystery of “what’s underneath?” that a lot of people (mostly men) feel when they see the opposite sex. In fact, by hiding the naked human body, it actually causes the lust that many people can’t control because of the fact that they CAN’T see what’s underneath clothing. In many places in Europe, non-sexual nudity among many people of all ages is normal and healthy. Not so in this perverted country called USA…Unnatural Sex of America!
August 3, 2008 at 4:19 PM
Not to mention the benefits to being nude versus wearing clothes. For one, save money by not having to buy new clothes or doing much in the way of laundry. Also, Vitamin D comes from the sun…or is it Vitamin A…well, one of them comes from the sun. Anyway, nude people with all-over tans from the sun (in moderation, of course) get a good source of it, which adds to the health benefit. Let’s not forget that clothes restrict certain body parts from doing most of their natural functions. And, those of us who go to the beach must hate getting sand stuck in their swimsuits. How many of us complain about that? Then, there’s the bacteria that also gets stuck within the fabric. This is what causes those uncomfortable rashes some people get when they go to the beach. And, small sea animals that get caught within the fabric tend to bite a swimmer. Just some points to consider before you say “it’s not right to be naked”. If, after reading my comments you still think naked is not good, then don’t complain next time you get a rash or bitten by something in the water. Because then, you’ll have no one to blame but yourself.
September 8, 2008 at 1:51 PM
Kids in that setting are vulnerable to predators. When I was a teen I worked at one of the little photo huts. Boring as that was, we often looked at the pictures. One perv would bring in photos of kids playing vollyball at a nudist resort. And he did it regularly. No matter what the intentions of most of the participants, one creepy guy can ruin them.
September 8, 2008 at 2:43 PM
Hi Gardenqueen! Welcome to the blog!
I think it’s unfortunate the people at the resort did not do a better job of policing their resort. It seems to me they should have been on the look out for predators. But I don’t see the existence of predators as a strong reason to ban kids from nudist resorts. After all, we don’t ban kids from churches just because some priests are predators. Instead, we try to uncover the predators and get them out of the churches. I think the same should be done at resorts.
Thank you for an interesting comment!
September 22, 2008 at 8:08 AM
People need to remember that the point of view towards nudity in America come from Judeo-christian beliefs. Which not everyone believes in or submits to but the “moral” majority expect them to live there lives by a religion that is not their own.
September 30, 2008 at 12:15 AM
Tate, the American view towards nudity is not the fault of the Judeo-Christian religions per se. The bible or ‘God’ never forbids non-sexual public nudity. It is a distorded belief that nudity might lead to lust, and that lust is a sin, therefore nudity must be wrong. It is as ridiculous as saying that eating might lead to gluttony, and gluttony is a sin, therefore eating must be wrong.
Why society thinks that nudity is more likely to incite lust in people than clothing is beyond me as, in my opinion, most people look more attractive with clothes on than clothes off.
And the notion that people, younger people more specifically, are more likely to be victimized by sexual predators at a nude beach/resort is based on assumptions rather than fact. Statistics show that most sexual abuses are done by family members or acquaintances. Also, there are other places where children are far more vulnerable to predators, such as school, where kids are often alone with teachers. I have seen many news articles about teachers being charged with some offence related to pedophilia.
The nude beach I frequent is a public beach with no gates, everyone is welcome, and nudity is optional. What I see there is a strong sense of fellowship and community where people look out for one another. If anyone is being offensive, they are quickly removed from the beach. Sexual activity or masturbation is forbidden there, as well as taking pictures of others, so children or teens are not at risk (at least not a high risk) of being subjected to something they shouldn’t be.
I’ve personally seen more lewd conduct happening in places were people are supposed to be clothed rather than the nude beach (including a man masturbating in his car in front of an all girls private school during the afternoon hours when children were heading out).
October 1, 2008 at 7:35 AM
@ Tate: There does seem to be a strain of asceticism in the Christian tradition especially. I’m not entirely sure how much influence it has on American attitudes towards nudity, though. I suspect it has some.
@ Jules: I’ve had very similar experiences to yours at nude resorts. It seems to me there is markedly less lewd behavior at those resorts than there is in society at large.
March 25, 2009 at 9:10 PM
One must understand that the rest of society does not think like nudists.
A man who sees a naked woman does not think to himself “i am going to get an erection” , it just happens. Such a reflex would take years of nudist indoctrinating to reverse.
Everyone has the right to their opinion. Some are of the view that for men and women to view each other’s bodies in a totally non-sexual manner.. defeats the purpose of us having sex organs.
So instead of just saying that everyone else is “immature”, people should rather seriously consider the consequences of exposing their children at public nude events like this.
Is proving “nudity is not sex” so important to you that you would endanger your own child, by putting him / her in a situation where nude photographs may be taken and circulated ?
This is almost as rediculous as if I were to deliberately not give my daughter condoms because I am Catholic.
Sure I am Catholic, but I also have to recognise that I am living in the real world.
In the same way, nudists, and the owners of nudist resorts, must understand that though they may have their own opinion of nudity, most other people can’t help but get aroused by nudity.
Remember just because we believe we are generally good people; it doesn’t mena we don’t lock our doors at night.
IT DOES NOT PAY TO BEHAVE NAIVELY.
March 30, 2009 at 9:50 PM
@ TheWorldDidNotChange: Thank you for some interesting comments! I am unaware of any evidence — scientific or anecdotal — that it “would take years of nudist indoctrinating to reverse” a tendency to get aroused by nudity. On the other hand, I’ve known people who thought they would be aroused, but whose actual experience was otherwise, once they became nudists. In general, I think Americans simply associate nudity with sexual arousal — in much the same way as certain other cultures do not. There is, however, no natural reason why nudity would be arousing — otherwise, those peoples that go nude most of the time would be aroused most of the time.
July 10, 2009 at 10:03 PM
I see the problem as being women and children not being assertive and aggressive enough to deal with unwanted people at nudist places. And it is the ‘textile’ society that creates these perverts in the first place. If nudity was not treated as an abnormal, weird or criminal thing then there would be a lot less sex offenders out there than there are now.
And people can learn to restructure their mental selves so that they don’t get turned on by all nudity, except in the right circumstances.
If the rest of the world did adopt a nudist or naturist mindset we would have a more balanced and harmonious world as a result.
July 28, 2009 at 8:19 PM
If you have not been to a nudist resort, please visit one because until you do you cannot have an informed opinion. It does NOT take years of “indoctrination” to reverse the “erection reflex” but maybe a few hours. Cameras are prohibited in nudist resorts, so exactly how are children being “endangered?” How can anyone be harmed simply by someone seeing them nude or seeing others nude? It is only harmful if the parents are forcing them to be nude; but being nude at a resort is itself abusive? THAT is ridiculous. Americans’ illogical, paranoid fear of nudity IS the problem. Nude resorts are not arousing because it is the concealing of bodies itself that makes them sexual.