About Normal and Abnormal Sexuality

There has recently been few threads considering distinct types of sexuality. Therefore I wanted to begin a thread considering sexuality in general – about it’s meaning, functions and so on.

First we may need to define normal sexuality. Normal means something average. So if most people in world are heterosexual, it can be without further justification to be called normal sexuality. One could also add notions of reproduction, but today in the time of birth control, purpose of reproduction in sex may not be average purpose of sex any more. Pleasure has become more meaningful nominator – yet pleasure and reproduction are interlinked by our animalistic reward system (including hormones, spasms etc.)

Abnormal sexuality would then be any form of sexuality that is practiced by minorities of sex practitioners. While I do not consider anything in world to be unnatural, I have no problem saying that homosexuality as well as other type of sexual minorities is abnormal.

Our organ (the body) is quite likely developed to reward the act of reproduction. Males and females alike may experience strong positive feelings and emotions during the sexual intercourse. Also there are slight differences between the sexes (genders). While men usually feel like done after successful ejaculation and orgasm, women tend to require more attention, caressing and proximity. This is quite normal also, because to system of women know that end of sexual intercourse is not it – there’s gonna be implications sooner or later.

Also the hormones released during and after sexual intercourse may have beneficial effect on our body. Most of them who have ever experienced this, knows what I speak of.

So where does the abnormal sexuality step in? I’d say it’s sole purpose is pleasure. And pleasure as well as joy has been identified by the philosophers to be the sole goal of human being. Everybody seeks this. Everybody wants to be happy and feel good. Well, we all know the key to happiness, but we are required to work hard to gain this happiness. Our culture and society have taken the happiness away. This is the paradise lost. In order to be happy – to have food, sex and sufficient leisure we need to work. We need to make money to appeal on possible mating partners and so on. Otherwise we’ll be very much married with our active hand...

Anyhow, there is ways to avoid this rat race, although it is not the issue of this thread. All I really wanted to say, that whatever your sexual alignment is, it is quite natural in the sense that in the universe, there is no unnatural. It is impossibility. Our society and culture is the beast that determines the boundaries of good and evil, yet all this is illusion in the sense that no moral or ethic code is universal. It is not illusion in the sense that they (cultural morals etc.) are very much affecting our everyday life.

These beasts (Giants, as they are referred in another thread) will condemn abnormal behaviour which abnormal sexuality may be. There will be people who will always say that (insert a prefix here) –sexuality is a sin. These people are just puppets of our collective unconsciousness. Ones who have transcend culture and ethics in this sense, have to be careful not to provoke their anger too much, for the puppets do not know what they do.

If you have any questions, I’d be glad to answer once I got time.

-v

Well sex is sex - it is an act... It has several purposes.

I think everyone can decide upon that purpose or meaning and determine for themselves based upon their own existence.

People are free to decide -

If there is a god and this god wishes to charbroil people for making poor decisions, that time will come based upon
the judgement of god.

To worry about the definitions of normalcy is a waste of energy, it is not going to impact ones ability to
to be religious or ones choice to define their own reality. I rarely here of people being convinced or able to bone
something that does not initiate a desire.

Everything is fine -

Being gay is either genetic, or caused by hormones while still in the womb. It has very little to do with personal choice. People who are gay are aware of it by the age of 4 or 5. Long before they start having any sexual thoughts or even aware of sexual pleasure.

It is very simple. Choice has almost nothing to do with it. Of course there are exceptions, if you're exposed to some sort of sexual act at a young age, not necessarily molestation, that can tend to have an impact later on. Sexuality is very complex.

Some people think breast-feeding a baby is abnormal and that bottle feeding is normal. We live in a topsy-turvy world. I predict your discussion will bring out some extreme points of view, contain TONS of argument, and will grow HUGE.

I got dibs first page .

And anyway, why are gay people mentioned already? That isn't an abnormality. Horses for courses.

There are about as many types of sexuality as there are people on Earth.

Some people are just repressed and refuse to admit they like it a lil' weird.




-TheAssoc.

reply to post by Janky Red

Originally posted by Janky Red

Everything is fine -

I agree. Everything is as it should be. The past actions and choices are now in effect, and our current choices will be effect in future. The ball is in motion, constantly. Boundaries of ideologies are constantly crumbling.

-v

reply to post by Son of Will

Originally posted by Son of Will
Being gay is either genetic, or caused by hormones while still in the womb. It has very little to do with personal choice. People who are gay are aware of it by the age of 4 or 5. Long before they start having any sexual thoughts or even aware of sexual pleasure.

I can't claim to know what determines the fate about one's sexual alignment. Some schools of psychology maintains that children do have sexual thoughts on early age, they are not just expressed same way as they are expressed in adolescence and adulthood.

But you are right in the sense that it often starts in early age or even in womb. And that it cannot be willfully changed. One can always pretend to be something else, but in the long run that may be disastrous for one's psyche.

-v

Originally posted by wigit
And anyway, why are gay people mentioned already? That isn't an abnormality.

By abnormal I meant something that isn't quite avarage. Minorities are abnormal in this sense, as they are minority of population.

I didn't use abnormal to describe anything contrary to the natural. I hope that this clarifies it.

-v

Originally posted by TheAssociate
There are about as many types of sexuality as there are people on Earth.

Quite likely if you count in all the pecularities and combinations one can have when considering sexual affections.

But usually there can be seen clear boundaries between hetero- and homosexuality. Not forgetting the bi-sexuals.

-v

why do you want to define sexuality as normal or abnormal?

i think as long as the involved adults are conform with each other it is ok!
nothing to judge nothing to classify

as far as i am informed some states of the usa have forbidden some common ways to express sexuality – these laws came into effect in the 19th century or earlier

do we really want government and police judge what is going to happen in our bedrooms?
i say NO

reply to post by orange-light


Normal and abnormal here are merely statistically describing terms - I try not to imply on any values, saying that something's wrong with abnormal. Just statistics, thats all

-v

In terms of sexuality, our species is actually quite abnormal in the sense that we have sex primarily for pleasure. Animals, on the other hand, have sex to reproduce and only engage in sexual activity during mating season. They are driven unconsciously by instinctual impulses at certain times of the year, very likely in accordance with lunar or astronomical alignments. This connection between mating and lunar forces is reinforced by the study of the menstrual cycle in women and its relation to the moon.

The thing that separates humans from animals then is that we consciously and arbitrarily choose when to have sex while animals do not. We may gain some insight on this by looking at the bible.

In the story of Adam and Eve in Genesis, they are naked but are unaware (unconscious of their sexual organs), they then eat of the tree of knowledge of good and evil (had sex), then realize they are naked (conscious of their sexual organs), then are said to be ‘like gods’ (able to create from themselves at will through sex), now the woman will feel pain during childbirth (because she will no longer propagate in harmony with nature).

Though this is just a myth, in my humble opinion this story allegorically explains how we’ve evolved from mating seasonally by instinct to mating arbitrarily by our own volition.

The fact that we derive pleasure from sex seems to be, as the OP stated, a biological reinforcement. Pleasure is a form of sensory feedback letting us know that it is okay to do. Similarly, we get pleasure from foods which also is a survival mechanism to let us know that the particular food is safe to eat and good for us.

So, in my honest opinion, I would say that having sex solely for pleasure, and not for the sake of reproduction, is an act against nature. Morally, it is self serving and while I certainly think there is nothing wrong with that, I personally find it more rewarding to be a service to others rather than to myself.

Originally posted by Epiphron
In terms of sexuality, our species is actually quite abnormal in the sense that we have sex primarily for pleasure. Animals, on the other hand, have sex to reproduce and only engage in sexual activity during mating season. They are driven unconsciously by instinctual impulses at certain times of the year, very likely in accordance with lunar or astronomical alignments. This connection between mating and lunar forces is reinforced by the study of the menstrual cycle in women and its relation to the moon.

I watched a nature programme a couple of years back about animal sexuality. Bloke says over three hundred species of animals display genuine homosexuality. There was a species of monkey that made and used dildos, purely for pleasure.

There is no such thing to me as abnormal sexual behavior. There is inappropriate sexual behavior, which I classify rape, molestation, and any unwanted sexual or non sexual contact and harassment.

My philosophy is more what goes on in ones bedroom is no business but their own. There are many different sexual acts and some people feel comfortable doing them while others are not. Its a matter of ones own comfort level and trust with their sexual partner.

As for homosexuality I don't like to classify it as "abnormal" just because of the connotations and the fact when you classify it as "abnormal" there is a stigma that it is not natural, and it is in my mind. Who you love truly is who you love and no one can tell you otherwise. Also there are no definitive lines set in stone about what is "normal vs Abnormal" society's norms constantly change back in the 1920's homosexuality was a crime, whereas now same sex marriages are actually performed.

On this not of changing norms, various sexual acts are slowly becoming more accepted. I know that threesomes are less taboo now. I'm not saying we are accepting of it but now its a bit more accepted. Same with S &M, bondage and various other sexual acts of that nature. Rather than condemn these people we somewhat accept that it happens and it may not be your cup of tea but its some ones.

Everyone has a fantasy that is taboo in their mind, some people accept it others choose to repress it. All a matter of acceptance.

As a note be reasonable and use common sense, don't do anything illegal use your brain, and when it comes to sex BOTH parties have to be consenting, meaning don't rape the neighbors dog if your a furry, don't touch children sexually (child abusers should die the most painful deaths imaginable in my mind) and no rape overall, that's not appropriate AT ALL EVER. If rape becomes socially acceptable that's the day humans as a whole have failed and regressed into being the lowest of the low. But that's my opinion.

Don't forget that some people also have, perhaps from birth, no drive whatsoever to express any type of sexuality. Genetically lazy or bigger fish to fry?

reply to post by Xiamara


I think your reasoning is questionable.
Using your logic, since more people in the world are Ethnicly Asian, Asian is normal. Therefore all people not Asian are abnormal. Not too perceptive!
A faulty logical premise skews the entire argument.

Originally posted by v01i0


First we may need to define normal sexuality. Normal means something average. So if most people in world are heterosexual, it can be without further justification to be called normal sexuality.

Abnormal sexuality would then be any form of sexuality that is practiced by minorities of sex practitioners. While I do not consider anything in world to be unnatural, I have no problem saying that homosexuality as well as other type of sexual minorities is abnormal.

So let me get this straight, if most people in America are white, that is what is "normal". And any racial minority then would be abnormal? Hmm, your logic doesn't really work out.

reply to post by OldDragger


No I was actually trying to say that very logic is ambiguous. That very statistic may change, that's why its hard to classify things as normal and abnormal. There are shades of gray. So I'm basically saying there is no normalor abnormal.

reply to post by OldDragger


What the....?
I was trying to comment to the OP.
Duh!
I screwed up.

So its not sexuality on trial here is the words normal and abnormal. How about then prefered and non-prefered.