I was completely shocked by the breast milk ice cream mentioned in a previous post. But I chalked it up to those crazy Brits across the way. They are always trying to push the envelope it seems: Beatle mania, Boy George, a female head of state, Prince William refusing house servants. And who can forget poor dental hygiene? That certainly sends a message.
But those crazy Midwesterners have put our European cousins to shame! A Northwestern University professor delighted his human sexuality class with a live sex demonstration. You heard right: live. A woman, with the help of her boyfriend, used what appears to me to be a power tool equipped with a phallus to pleasure herself in front of about 100 people. The professor believed it would spark "thoughtful" discussion. So that's what all of those people log on to porn sites for! I just thought they liked to watch other people have sex...
The students were informed that the material would not be on any test and that it wasn't for the faint of heart. (Good to know.) Any uncomfortable student was urged to leave. (Seems many didn't.) Tuition at Northwestern is about $28,000 per year. Seems like an awful lot to pay to watch a couple of cheesy voyeurs perform for some adolescent college kids.
But then again, I have never understood porn...
Our society is very sexual and pornography, i.e. sexually explicit material, is everywhere. Voyeurs of all ages watch it in soaps, in movies and on TV everyday. (Side note:Voyeurs watch, exhibitionists perform.)
ReplyDeleteWhy shouldn’t we learn about it in a classroom setting? What’s wrong with challenging our outdated notions on what is and is not appropriate? Is there any greater way to learn about yourself and your fellow man than by confronting your own feelings on the subject? And why should sex be such an uncomfortable topic in the first place? In the immortal words of George Michael, “Sex is natural. Sex is fun.”
As far as understanding porn, the xxx variety, I find it a very interesting form of people watching. Like a nature documentary on humans it shows us interacting on the most basic level. Some of its good, some of its bad, some has you reaching for the eye bleach.
I applaud the instructor from Northwestern for being bold in their lesson plan, for taking a risk and for achieving his goal of starting a discussion, a national discussion. Though I wonder how thoughtful it has been.