Perversion (morals, beliefs, Jacob, sexuality, religion)

[zombieharlot]

How do you define the term, "perversion"?

Is it a term based on morals?

If somebody told you that you were a pervert, would you be offended?

What if somebody told you that your religious beliefs (or lack there of) were perverted?

[Sunstone]

Calling people a "pervert" is seldom meant seriously, IME, but when it is, it's largely problematic what grounds, if any, someone might have for thinking someone else is a pervert. I think the word is largely meaningless.

[angellous_evangellous]

Originally Posted by Sunstone

Calling people a "pervert" is seldom meant seriously, IME, but when it is, it's largely problematic what grounds, if any, someone might have for thinking someone else is a pervert. I think the word is largely meaningless.

I agree... most times when I hear people accused of being a pervert, it's for doing something completely natural and harmless.

[eudaimonia]

Originally Posted by zombieharlot

How do you define the term, "perversion"?

It's just a nasty-sounding word for "not in the norm of sexual behavior or interests". It's like the word "deviant" applied to sex.

Is it a term based on morals?

Oftentimes, people seem to think that not having a "normal" sexuality is equivalent to being immoral.

If somebody told you that you were a pervert, would you be offended?

I would be annoyed that someone had expressed a negative opinion of me to my face, but I would not be offended at being considered outside of the mainstream.

What if somebody told you that your religious beliefs (or lack there of) were perverted?

I'd probably laugh and say that it was an advantage over being prudish or uptight.


eudaimonia,

Mark

[Comprehend]

I'll quote former Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart:

"I shall not today attempt further to define the kinds of material I understand to be embraced within that shorthand description; and perhaps I could never succeed in intelligibly doing so. But I know it when I see it..."

Jacobellis v. Ohio 1964

[FatMan]

Originally Posted by zombieharlot

How do you define the term, "perversion"?

Is it a term based on morals?

If somebody told you that you were a pervert, would you be offended?

What if somebody told you that your religious beliefs (or lack there of) were perverted?

I think a perversion is a deviance from the perceived accepted moral values. So, in our most common usage of the word, it is based on morals.

However, there are varying levels of perversion and different ways to look at it. If the SI swimsuit issue arrives and I have a page open that I'm leering at, my wife might jokingly say, "You Pervert". However, if your young child has been sexually molested by somebody, your usage of the word takes on a much more serious tone.

From a sexual standpoint, I take no offense when called a pervert for looking at a magazine. In the case of molestation, I'd be less offended than those who'd be calling me that - by a long shot.

If somebody called my religious views perverted, I'd wonder what religion they practice since Presbyterianism is a rather mild and tame belief system. So I would be less offended than I would be puzzled.