Naturists and Nudists as Deviants not Perverts

I had fun with this image today. I wanted something different, something far outside of the norms that I have been using with photographs. Is it art? Well, that is debatable.

I have been reading a few sections out of a book called Tolerable Differences: Living With Deviance, by Robert Stebbins (1996). Of special interest in the book is the section on nudism and at the beginning when deviance is defined. Here is an important look at deviance:

“Deviance from or non-conformity with the norms of the group with an interest in morality is one of humanity’s oldest concerns. Collective life is possible only when certain crucial rules of behaviour are observed by all or a large majority of the members of the community. These rules are an important part of the complicated, standardized solutions that evolve in response to the problems people encounter while living in proximity to one another.  They are nothing less than strategies for personal and social survival. Such solutions take years to develop and crystallize. They are seen by most community members, especially those who have the greatest power and interest in preserving the status quo, as indispensable to the quality of community life.” [p. 1]

This makes me step back and do some deep questioning about naturism, and about why I have embraced naturism as part of my healing process and perhaps even lifestyle. There is no question that naturism/nudism is about not conforming to the moral belief of the larger society.

Standing outside the crowd, doing something differently, being different – if I accept this definition of deviancy, then yes, I am a deviant. However, the word rankles. Somehow, the non-judgemental definition, one that is used in mathematics as a statement of separation from the median, the middle, the mean. As humans, we have found a new word to describe those who are furthest outside the mean – outliers. These people are heralded when they serve our needs, and

What does it say about those who engage in nudity, especially social nudity? Is there at its depths, something immoral about human nudity in terms of personal and social survival? Why has humanity moved away from its natural roots where nudity was normal? I don’t know the answers, nor if answers are to be found. And if there are good answers that would unquestionably support the inclusion of naturism within the collective norm, would society then accept those answers? In my opinion, there is too much power, authority and money invested in the status quo. If anything, power is invested in keeping the bulk of human society in a controllable state of unconsciousness. Real awareness, consciousness, would have too many people question the status quo and thus present a real threat to those invested in maintaining the status quo.

Being an authentic person means you stop being one of the crowd. It really doesn’t have anything to do with nudity. It has everything to do about being an individual who risks being herself or himself in the collective. Sadly, most naturists and nudists hide from the collective in secluded and often isolated locations. Only when safely behind their own doors with draperies closed and the doors locked, or in nudist camps do they dare allow themselves to set aside the protective camouflage.