Bodies, Sexualities, Identities - Essay Example

?Introduction A child unlike adult does not have any complete or concrete idea about sexuality. Due to the fact that there are no thorough and even more empirical studies about the sexuality of a child, this cannot be exactly pointed out with high level of confidence, but recent evidences support the fact that there is a need to know more about how a child perceives sex in particular (Davies and Rogers, 2006; Celik and Odaci, 2012). Freud completely elaborated that a child’s response to sexuality and sensation can be based on fantasy. There is quiet an argument in here knowing the fact that modern psychologists believe that there is an actual innate biological response of a child’s body when it comes to sex. In line with this, it is assumed that a child’s response to what is pleasing is actually dependent on experience. As the child experienced being fondled in genitals or sexually stimulated with whatever it is that may cause sexual arousal, the sensation that may result to this could be a potential ground from time to time for the enhancement of any wonderful feeling associated with this activity. Thus, this further explains the fact why there are children who actually are involved in masturbation even then in the 18th century and substantially addicted to it (Egan and Hawkes, 2011). Nowadays, such kind of addiction may be further enhanced due to the presence of pornographic materials and commercialization of sex which involves minors in the age of fast broadband internet connection. Even though it involves high level of complexity, the actual point of this essay is to explicate how the body of a child questions notions of normative sexuality. Furthermore, the proponent shows how thinking about children and bodies involves the simultaneous absence and presence of sex. Child’s body’s questions on the notions of sexuality The first point is to address specific answer on how the body of a child questions notions of normative sexuality. Children are exposed to the environment and this is the point in their lives they understood what is morally good or bad. This is according to John Locke. He believed that children substantially depend on adult’s responsibility to guide them into the moral path. Thus, based on this idea, children therefore may be only left with the idea of what makes them feel good or bad, disregarding the notion of morality in the absence of actual adult supervision. The ideas therefore of sexuality from the perspective of a child will not be so complicated because they would only rely on their senses disregarding the issue of morality in the event that adult’s supervision is not present. For instance, in 18th century children were considered lacking in reason which actually made them subjects of adult supervision. In fact, the same response is actually happening in today’s modern society. In some TV programs, parental guidance is advised as there may be sexually illicit content or other scenes that may not be suitable for minor audiences. This specifically reflects the point that there are some certain things that a child could not still understand the way adults do. Thus, the belief in 19th century that a child is susceptible to be influenced by the environment would make sense (Egan and Hawkes, 2011; Angelides, 2004). There was a strong point to consider that children substantially have many things to be explored, either by accident or learning experience, which would be much focus on bodily rather than psychological response. Louis Kahm agreed to this by specifically pointing out that masturbation can be learned from example or actual experience. This can be substantially supported by the idea of Alfred Vogel which points that anything which causes erection or sexual stimulation could promote masturbation. Furthermore, in the case of child sexual abuse, the abused is actually exposed to either sensation or traumatic experience. Finding that not all abused children suffered hysteria and traumatic experiences, Freud concluded that at some point an abused child would have potentially created significant varying meanings on that experience. Thus, children do have ideas about sexuality but everything about this depends on the outside influences or the environment as argued by Locke. Locke states that since children do not have preconceived ideas or moral principles, sensation plays a significant part in order to develop reasoning and understanding of different things (Egan and Hawkes, 2011). Applying this in the context of the ideas of normative sexuality, children therefore may only rely on their sensation in understanding about sex for instance. By relying on their senses, the children are actually exposed to specific concern on whether sex is good or bad for their age. They may also understand at this point which parts of their bodies are sensitive to respond to sex related concerns. Locke believes that mind and body connection is the basic point of the dynamic of moral order, making sensations as the ultimate means of attaining reason (Egan and Hawkes, 2011). However, Freud significantly emphasised that childhood fantasies need to be carefully understood as well and even above the seduction theory in order to closely understand the child’s perception of reality (Angelides, 2004). Freud added that there is a need to understand further how perception of reality is imbued with personal reasoning which is invariably inflected with personal projections and fantasies. So far, there is a strong inclusion of the senses and minds or thoughts in order to understand how the child creates meaning and eventually questions on the actual sexual act. A child normally gets into a stage in life in which body exploration would take place. Based on the above arguments, there is a stage in child development, from physical and psychological point of views that the young body in progress discovers sensations or even exposed to them and finally creates reason or understanding of them based on the actual exposure to self experience and environment. Thus, a child may either create a notion of sexuality by self exploration, experience, observation or accident. These play significant role how the child’s body questions the notions about sexuality. For instance, by self exploration a child may be able to find out that there is a pleasure involved in fondling of the genital organ. After this, the child may be able to know whether this specific action is morally good or bad based on the actual existence of adult supervision generally on the prevailing precedents in the society about sexuality, if there is any. Therefore, there could be two most important points how the body of a child questions notions of normative sexuality. By knowing whether any idea in line with sexuality is good or bad from the point of view of the society, children may potentially create questions or reasons regarding the significant notions associated with sex. Finally, by formulating own reason about any related activities in sex especially in the absence or presence of an adult, a child may also have varying questions associated with sexuality compared to what grown-ups have, which Freud closely considered to be pure fantasies from children’s perspective. Children, bodies and sex The second point of this essay is to answer how thinking about children and bodies involves the simultaneous absence and presence of sex. This specific issue is directly concerned about the social situation of viewing children and bodies which could be either associated or not with sex. Viewing homosexuals for instance is directly associated with practices connected with gender in social institutions like families, schools, workplaces, media, and sports (Pascoe, 2005). In the same way viewing children and bodies has significant social situations associated with it which can also be depicted in various institutions. Let us explore further in this context. Unlike adults, children for instance as viewed by Locke are incapable of understanding the real essence of sex. For Freud, the children’s view of sex may be invariably related only with fantasies. In fact, both Freud and Locke suggested that children should be properly supervised in understanding notions about sexuality. Although they might have contrasting opinions on how children may perceive sex, they were actually both giving important emphasis on the role played by adults in a mature way of viewing sexuality, particularly on the issue about sex (Egan and Hawkes, 2011; Angelides, 2004). This means that adults should remarkably think of children beyond the bound of sex and even protect them from having distorted perception or reality of it. In fact, there were no particular empirical studies on children’s sexuality in the 18th century due to the prevailing thought that a young child was assumed to know nothing about what adults understood about sex (Egan and Hawkes, 2011). Locke simply suggested guidance should be given to children when it comes to sex, but Rousseau’s theory of sensationism suggests that children should explore their body as the physical pleasure associated with experience, which may potentially result to the development of reason (Egan and Hawkes, 2011). However, Rousseau himself found a remarkable contradiction at this point because as reason requires experience, no experience can therefore be allowed prior to the development of reason so as not to loss the appropriate reason of a child. In this regard, Rousseau was still one with Locke and Freud in the belief that children certainly need adult supervision when it comes to understanding bodies and sex. Therefore, a normal adult should think of children not as objects of sex. Normal sexually-active adults, heterosexual or homosexual, should have a clear perspective that there should be absence of sex in children. However, since they have substantial experience in understanding the human body and its sexual desires as implied by Locke, Freud and Rousseau, sex is always associated with this power or capacity. In fact, even children experience significant sexual abuse with adults due to this capability (Angelides, 2004). As a remarkable proof, cases of adults having sex with children in the 20th century continue, which potentially calls for priority of intervention (Miles, 2000; Yahia and Tamish, 2001; Fanslow et al., 2007). Conclusion It is therefore clear that the classical notions of child sexuality are still applicable in today’s modern society. Although there are variations in the psychological and biological theories about sexuality, they could be combined together in order to understand the whole picture concerning child’s body and perception about sex in general. References Angelides, S. (2004) Sex and the Child. Meanjin 63(4): 28-36. Celik, C. B., and Odaci, H. (2012) The effect of experience of childhood abuse among university students on self-perception and submissive behavior. Children and Youth Services Review. 34(1): 200-204. Abstract only. Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0190740911003653 [Accessed 17th April 2012]. Davies, M., and Rogers, P. (2006) Perceptions of male victims in depicted sexual assaults: A review of the literature. Aggression and Violent Behavior, 11(4): 367-377. Abstract only. Available from: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1359178906000036 [Accessed 17th April 2012]. Egan, R. D., and Hawkes, G. (2011) Constructing the Modern Sexual Child in Theorizing the Sexual Child in Modernity. New York, NY: Palgrave. Fanslow, J. L., Robinson, E. M., Crengle, S., and Perese, L. (2007) Prevalence of child sexual abuse reported by a cross-sectional sample of New Zealand women Child Abuse & Neglect. 31(9): 935-945. Abstract only. 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