Why is masturbation and sexual abstinence such taboo subjects in the social sciences and the mass media?

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We all know that the gay lifestyle is powerfully supported in our society, but masturbation, which entails a large population of individuals who engage in this type of sexual activity regularly, is seldom talked about or studied. Masturbation seems to be a rather neutral subject, with society neither condoning or condemning it. Why is this popular sexual lifestyle stuffed in a closet? (Note that I’m not trying to support this lifestyle in any way.)

The other group of individuals that are largely ignored in academia and society as a whole are the sexual abstainers. We never hear about them! Why? Who are they, and what is their story?
 
Robert_Sock said:
We all know that the gay lifestyle is powerfully supported in our society, but masturbation, which entails a large population of individuals who engage in this type of sexual activity regularly, is seldom talked about or studied. Masturbation seems to be a rather neutral subject, with society neither condoning or condemning it. Why is this popular sexual lifestyle stuffed in a closet? (Note that I’m not trying to support this lifestyle in any way.)

The other group of individuals that are largely ignored in academia and society as a whole are the sexual abstainers. We never hear about them! Why? Who are they, and what is their story?
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Because people who masturbate aren’t using the habit as a means to receive special legal status or political power, or as a weapon against Christianity. We also don’t have travel, tourism, and wedding industries set aside for people who “do unto themselves”. And they don’t file lawsuits, either.

Abstainers are not heard about because continence holds up a mirror to everyone else’s lack of self-control. Society would much rather they stay in the closet.
 
Daddy’s Girl hit the nail on the head - no one (except Catholics aware of and faithful to the Church’s teaching on human sexuality) thinks masturbation is a bad thing - so no one talks about it much. Even with that being said, I seem to remember Seinfeld doing an entire episode about it and sex ed classes in schools promote it. Abstinence is seen as impossible and ridiculous, so why bother talking about it.

Both are disregarded b/c the culture assumes morality is reducible to “don’t hurt someone else” which usually really means “don’t stop someone else from doing what they want to do.” In this worldview, extramarital sex, if consensual is a good thing as is masturbation. So no one talks about it.

Give the cultural 10 yrs. Homosexuality will get there too.

All that being said, we can convert the culture back to Christ and turn all this around!!
 
PietroPaolo said:
Daddy’s Girl hit the nail on the head - no one (except Catholics aware of and faithful to the Church’s teaching on human sexuality) thinks masturbation is a bad thing - so no one talks about it much. Even with that being said, I seem to remember Seinfeld doing an entire episode about it and sex ed classes in schools promote it. Abstinence is seen as impossible and ridiculous, so why bother talking about it.

Both are disregarded b/c the culture assumes morality is reducible to “don’t hurt someone else” which usually really means “don’t stop someone else from doing what they want to do.” In this worldview, extramarital sex, if consensual is a good thing as is masturbation. So no one talks about it.

Give the cultural 10 yrs. Homosexuality will get there too.

All that being said, we can convert the culture back to Christ and turn all this around!!
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These subjects used to be embarrassing to talk about with friends, no less on TV. Now in 2014, there is no longer any shame. Everyone is airing their dirty laundry for all to see.
We may be headed for another Sodom & Gomorrah judgment from God ! :eek:
 
truetofaith said:
These subjects used to be embarrassing to talk about with friends, no less on TV. Now in 2014, there is no longer any shame. Everyone is airing their dirty laundry for all to see.
We may be headed for another Sodom & Gomorrah judgment from God ! :eek:
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If we believe St Paul, God might already be punishing us (from Romans 1:21 and following)

For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and birds and animals and reptiles.

Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another. They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.

Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their error.

Furthermore, just as they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters, insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy.
 
Robert_Sock said:
… but masturbation, which entails a large population of individuals who engage in this type of sexual activity regularly, is seldom talked about or studied. Masturbation seems to be a rather neutral subject, with society neither condoning or condemning it. Why is this popular sexual lifestyle stuffed in a closet? (Note that I’m not trying to support this lifestyle in any way.)

The other group of individuals that are largely ignored in academia and society as a whole are the sexual abstainers. We never hear about them! Why? Who are they, and what is their story?
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Autosexual activity is discussed in the media all the time. Perhaps it is not discussed in the media that you currently consume. If you really wanted to find it I could identify some shows for you.

As for asexuals and abstainers, I personally can’t think of anything they do that would significantly set them apart in day to day interactions. Behaviorly is there a difference in the responses of a person that has no interest in see with a specific person approaching him/her or a person that has no interest in see being approached by some one that does?

Pardon my mistakes. Sent from my mobile device.
 
truetofaith said:
These subjects used to be embarrassing to talk about with friends, no less on TV. Now in 2014, there is no longer any shame. Everyone is airing their dirty laundry for all to see.
We may be headed for another Sodom & Gomorrah judgment from God ! :eek:
Click to expand...
For masturbation or for talking about masturbation? Because people were doing it well before they were openly talking about doing it.
 
Robert_Sock said:
We all know that the gay lifestyle is powerfully supported in our society, but masturbation, which entails a large population of individuals who engage in this type of sexual activity regularly, is seldom talked about or studied. Masturbation seems to be a rather neutral subject, with society neither condoning or condemning it. Why is this popular sexual lifestyle stuffed in a closet? (Note that I’m not trying to support this lifestyle in any way.)

The other group of individuals that are largely ignored in academia and society as a whole are the sexual abstainers. We never hear about them! Why? Who are they, and what is their story?
Click to expand...
I’m sure the song "I Touch Myself: is about giving yourself a hug, “Pictures of Lily” was clearly about an adorable puppy, etc.
 
Yesterday Digg had reference to an article on a growing trend for young men to pledge to abstain from this vice; apparently young guys who have lotsa porn really end up having difficulties talking to real women. . . with a variety of negative consequences. And also self-esteem difficulties.

I’m never quite sure what to make of the whole “since animals do it, you should too” kind of thing. I don’t even think true scientists make that kind of proscription.

I ran across a stat citing how frequently adult men masturbate and it really really surprised me; this ain’t something I care much to do or even desire to do, but apparently I’m behind the norm here.
 
Robert_Sock said:
We all know that the gay lifestyle is powerfully supported in our society, but masturbation, which entails a large population of individuals who engage in this type of sexual activity regularly, is seldom talked about or studied. Masturbation seems to be a rather neutral subject, with society neither condoning or condemning it. Why is this popular sexual lifestyle stuffed in a closet? (Note that I’m not trying to support this lifestyle in any way.)

The other group of individuals that are largely ignored in academia and society as a whole are the sexual abstainers. We never hear about them! Why? Who are they, and what is their story?
Click to expand...
Shame. No matter what “they” say. Everyone knows, in their heart that it is selfish and wrong, but they do it anyway because we are weak sinners and it is easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission.

Those who recommend it might have a misguided ignorant sense of empathy. That it is better to “feel good” about giving in to our temptations/weaknesses than to internalize the shame and guilt.

The great thing about the Church and confession is to repent and never stop trying.
 
migueltojose said:
Shame. No matter what “they” say. Everyone knows, in their heart that it is selfish and wrong, but they do it anyway because we are weak sinners and it is easier to ask for forgiveness than for permission.

Those who recommend it might have a misguided ignorant sense of empathy. That it is better to “feel good” about giving in to our temptations/weaknesses than to internalize the shame and guilt.

The great thing about the Church and confession is to repent and never stop trying.
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I’ve heard of mixed race marriages break up because of internalized shame and guilt, do you also find those marriages wrong?
 
Joie_de_Vivre said:
I’ve heard of mixed race marriages break up because of internalized shame and guilt, do you also find those marriages wrong?
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Seems like a stretch to relate the two. If there is shame and guilt in a mixed marriage that causes them to breakup… there are larger issues.

Mixed marriage isn’t a sin. Masturbation is.

Not sure I follow your train of thought.
 
migueltojose said:
Seems like a stretch to relate the two. If there is shame and guilt in a mixed marriage that causes them to breakup… there are larger issues.

Mixed marriage isn’t a sin. Masturbation is.

Not sure I follow your train of thought.
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My parents, one of who is white and the other is not, experienced discrimination because they were doing something “shameful and wrong”, for a while this was in fact a strain on their relationship. Give that my parents’ mixed race marriage experienced statements that are virtually the same as yours I do not think it is a stretch.

The above statement was based on accidentally thinking it was a thread on gay marriage after having just read several on this forum on precisely that topic.

Actually masturbation gets talked about quite a lot in society especially young people (they learned from the best) as does pornography. I myself have never experienced this shame as I simply don’t masturbated due finding the concept like tinsel which is to say attractive, but ultimately garbage and also that it seems like a cheap counterfeit of the real thing.
 
Joie_de_Vivre said:
My parents, one of who is white and the other is not, experienced discrimination because they were doing something “shameful and wrong”, for a while this was in fact a strain on their relationship. Give that my parents’ mixed race marriage experienced statements that are virtually the same as yours I do not think it is a stretch.

The above statement was based on accidentally thinking it was a thread on gay marriage after having just read several on this forum on precisely that topic.

Actually masturbation gets talked about quite a lot in society especially young people (they learned from the best) as does pornography. I myself have never experienced this shame as I simply don’t masturbated due finding the concept like tinsel which is to say attractive, but ultimately garbage and also that it seems like a cheap counterfeit of the real thing.
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Okay… but their “shame” was not internal (nor real). It was external. They recognized that other people thought, that what they were doing was “shameful”. I’m sure they didn’t feel that way themselves.

I’m saying that when we masturbate we know in our hearts that it is wrong.

I’m sure your parents knew in their hearts that they were right to be married.

So I still think it is very different.
 
migueltojose said:
Okay… but their “shame” was not internal (nor real). It was external. They recognized that other people thought, that what they were doing was “shameful”. I’m sure they didn’t feel that way themselves.

I’m saying that when we masturbate we know in our hearts that it is wrong.

I’m sure your parents knew in their hearts that they were right to be married.

So I still think it is very different.
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When everyone around you thinks something you wind up internalizing it to some degree.

Some things, such as rape and murder, are knowable by reason to be wrong however not everything that is morally and immoral is knowable solely through reason. That’s kind of the point of revealed truth.
 
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