Why is nudity a crime?
Perception! Think on the word and what it means. It is how we see, experience and interpret the world. Miranda shows that you can perceive her body in different ways, depending on how she is clothed or how she poses. It is the same body, the same person, yet our interpretation is different and varies, depending on how viewed. That is how nudity is seen. There is no right or wrong, just how we interpret. Even the notion of right and wrong is interpreted by every individual in different ways. No two are really alike, but that is not the point of this essay.
It is how we perceive nudity that counts. A crowd of people can see a nude person. They all see the same thing, yet they all have different views and opinions and perceptions of it. Using Miranda as an example, some people we see a beautiful woman and appreciate her nudity. Some will see sexual desire and fantasize about having sex with her. Some people will compare themselves to Miranda's nude form, either positively or negatively. Some will be upset that she is naked. Some will have their spirits lifted and have a smile on their face for the rest of the day. Some will just ignore it. Some will want to join in. Some will want to buy similar shoes. As you can see everyone will see the same thing differently. Nudity in itself is not bad, not a criminal activity.
Nudity is often classed as a criminal activity, yet it is a victimless crime. When you are assaulted you are physically harmed. When you are nude, no actual harm takes place. It Is only a persons perception, their interpretation, their beliefs, that are questioned. Lets use this as an example. a person walks nude in a crowd of clothed people. Most just look and smile, but one person finds it offensive. The nude person is then arrested, because that one person in the crowd thought it was bad. Don't worry about the rest of the crowd, who saw the exact same thing and had no problem with it. It was that one person's perception of nudity that was an issue. No harm took place. No one was injured. Just one person's brain "thought" it was wrong. In a round about way nudity is a "thought crime".
Now lets take the example again. This time the nude person is no longer nude, but wearing blue jeans and a t-shirt. Everyone else is in a suit and tie. The person wearing jeans picks a person at random, and starts beating them with a hammer. They then turn on the crowd and start to attack the crowd. That is a real crime. Actual harm is taking place. Not just an interpretation, not just one persons opinion. So why is nudity put in the same class as real criminal activity?
Western Culture teaches us from an early age to fear nudity and see it as a bad thing. Main stream media reinforces this by associating nudity with criminal activity. They don't directly say it is criminal, but take a criminal event, and state that the criminal was nude. You probably saw headline like "Naked home invader caught", or "Nude drunk driver causes fatal crash" and everyday there are similar headlines around the globe. As you can see they are not directly saying nudity is bad, but your mind interprets criminal activity, with that persons nudity. This is just one example of how we are taught to see nudity as bad. You don't see headline with "clothed man robs store" or "smartly dressed woman crashes car". So why single out nudity?
Anyone who has ever been nude on a beach, or in their own home, will know that nudity is just a comfortable and liberating experience. Wearing just your birthday suit, instead of a business suit is a choice of dress not a criminal activity. The people that find offense choose to do so by their perception, which is interpreted in their minds.
Whether it is Miranda, you or I. Our nudity is what we are. Look at the first three photos. The first is clothed, which accepted by just about everyone. The next is without a top, which only 50% of the population is lawfully allowed to do, The third is fully nude, which no-one is lawfully allowed to do in public. It is the same person, doing the same thing in each photo, yet the last one will have that person fined, or jailed. Can you see how ridiculous that is? We all are naked all the time. Educating those around us that the nude form is just another state of dress, is the most important first step in gaining acceptance by others.
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