If pedophilia is so wrong...

[Apolyonn]

If pedophilia is such a grotesque act, then why, by modern definition, did ancient cultures practice it? Why did the Greeks marry 14 year olds when they were 24? Why did Americans in the 1800's do the same?

I'm thinking about doing a research paper on pedophilia for psychology, so any thoughts on the matter would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Donald Trump]

Well firstly it's paedophilia.
Secondly a fourteen year old is not a child, teenagers of that age and younger are having sex all the time, though not with 24 year olds.
Also what is socially acceptable changes, for example, everyone in 1800s America was a racist, Lincoln et al. Today racism is looked down upon.
Also marriage doesn't equal sex. You'd have to show that men often had sex with 8 year old girls regularly, and were not hated/disliked for doing so to prove that paedophilia was an accepted social norm.

 

[Franice]

Men naturally have a preference for younger females. Most fourteen year old girls can bear children, and are therefore fit to pursue their natural role of carrying on the species. If that were still our primary goal, I'm sure it would be much more common to have old men marrying young girls. Plus, our definition of marriage has changed in that it's no longer a contract between two families for a couple of cows or something. In the west, at least, it's consensual and done for love.

Society changes. Today, most fourteen year olds still live with their parents, haven't got jobs, and haven't actually got any adult responsibilities, and aren't going to be considered legally an adult for another four years. Two hundred years ago, that would have been different.

"True" pedophilia, where one is helplessly attracted to prepubescent children, is a fetish. Most "normal" people think it's gross, just like most "normal" people think corophilia is gross. Both occur, have always occured, and will probably continue to occur for as long as the human race exists.

It's more of a touchy subject than a poo fetish because it's something that's looked down upon so strongly in our society. As I said before, society has changed. We probably value our children more, and we're a lot less prone to beat them to death nowdays, so it's fitting that we respect their innocence and view any sexual contact as unforgivable.

 

[Finnegan III]

I half expected the end of the sentence to be:

"....why does it feel so good"


The reason it is wrong now is because human kind has developed into a more civilized species (well almost, after reading about the cat being abused I'm not so sure) than back in the 1800s etc.

It's the same reason we don't practice human sacrifice any more, we've become more civilized.

 

[XemnasKH]

In the past, procreation was the top priority and life expectancy was low. This led to women being married as young as they could have children. Also, the parents were setting up the marriages.

 

[Kandy-Sugar]

In the past, procreation was the top priority and life expectancy was low. This led to women being married as young as they could have children. Also, the parents were setting up the marriages.

Exactly what I was thinking.

If pedophilia is such a grotesque act, then why, by modern definition, did ancient cultures practice it? Why did the Greeks marry 14 year olds when they were 24? Why did Americans in the 1800's do the same?

Back then it wasn't really considered pedophilia. The 'practiced' it because it was their way of life if they were to survive.

It was as Killall said: Procreation was the top priority and life expectancy was low.

Men were marrying young girls because they were forced into an arranged marriage, not because they had some sick fetish to be with little children. I don't think there would even be a man in that time period to be considered a pedophile because young girls were who they were meant marry. Therefore they were meant to be attracted to them and it was not considered wrong back then.

There may have been men who really did enjoy sleeping with younger children but who would have noticed?

Society in that time period wanted things to be that way and if it was conisdered pedophilia back then, every man would be classed as a pedophile. And obviously things wouldn't have been the way they were.

It still is common in some countries today for young girls to marry much older men. However, the majority of countries have become more civilized and in this time period it is now looked on as pedophilia even though it isn't in some cases.

E.g: Once again arranged marriages in some countries in which the girl is much younger than the man, are still classed as normal. To that particular society at least.

Pedophilia is to intentionally engage in sex with a minor.

Pedophilia: A psychosexual disorder in which the fantasy or act of engaging in sexual activity with prepubertal children is the preferred or exclusive means of achieving sexual excitement and gratification.

Medical Dictionary

That was obviously not the intentions of most men back then.

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Just a thought:

Times have obviously changed and with the internet and what not these days it makes it so much easier for pedophiles to be who they are. It's scary to think that todays teachers are some of the most common to engage in these activities.

They're more than often caught out searching child pornography on the internet and engaging in sexual acts with children. It's just scary to think that someday I will send my children to school and not know anything about the teachers. I would hate for my child to be the one who catches them out because their teacher has done something to them.

I mean yeah great they're caught out, but I'd hate for it to be at my childs expense.

 

[nikkuchan]

[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]Its wrong society decided so. Our society developed with certain morals and ethics that include the belief that sex with a child is a deviant and evil act. As most of you know, walking in a house in Japan with shoes on is considered horribly disgusting and is something a child may get slapped for doing, but people in America don[/FONT]’[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]t care. Something is bad because people think it is (and vice-versa). I would imagine that a society that didn[/FONT]’[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]t have an age of consent or laws prohibiting sexual acts with kids would probably be a normal society.[/FONT]

 

[Donald Trump]

[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝] I would imagine that a society that didn[/FONT]’[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]t have an age of consent or laws prohibiting sexual acts with kids would probably be a normal society.[/FONT]

lulwut? Not having laws from protecting children from being raped is normal?
Also wearing shoes into a house may be offensive, but in no way is it equal to having sex with children. No cultures are that drastically different.
Also can the OP provide the proof that paedophilia was a common practise "back in the day"?
As others have said, having sex with a fourteen year old makes sense, from a biological perspective, though no other. Whereas there are no reasons for ancient cultures to have sex with Children.
It's not South Park, they didn't think having sex with kids gave them leet powers.

 

[Tumikoro]

People who are against lolicon and shotacon claim that it is actual child abuse. Some countries see these manga genres as child pornography so therefore they ban them.

But in Japan, it is legal because the "kawaii" style is very popular.

 

[nikkuchan]

lulwut? Not having laws from protecting children from being raped is normal?
Also wearing shoes into a house may be offensive, but in no way is it equal to having sex with children. No cultures are that drastically different.
Also can the OP provide the proof that paedophilia was a common practise "back in the day"?
As others have said, having sex with a fourteen year old makes sense, from a biological perspective, though no other. Whereas there are no reasons for ancient cultures to have sex with Children.
It's not South Park, they didn't think having sex with kids gave them leet powers.

[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]I[/FONT]’[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]ll try to explain myself one more time. My point is that bad things are bad because of the stigma attached to them; the degree of the crime makes no difference. Eliminating the stigma often times alleviates the problem. Thailand has many people who have had sex change operations (and many clinics that practice it), because there is no stigma associated with it (or at least very little of it). Compare this against the discrimination that many of these types of people meet in the US. In the US, smoking marijuana is a crime and those who do it are criminals, viewed by some in the same light as murderers and rapists. However, in Holand (at least until recently), marijuana is practically legal, and its status has had no negative impact on society, because since people don[/FONT]’[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]t view it as a problem, it never causes any.[/FONT]
[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝][/FONT]
[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]It takes an objective state of mind to consider these ideas. I am not supporting or condoning any thing, mind you. This is just basic philosophy stuff. Anyway, take a philosophy class, or try living in another country for a while and I think it would be easier to understand.[/FONT]

 

[Donald Trump]

[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]I[/FONT]’[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]ll try to explain myself one more time. My point is that bad things are bad because of the stigma attached to them; the degree of the crime makes no difference. Eliminating the stigma often times alleviates the problem. Thailand has many people who have had sex change operations (and many clinics that practice it), because there is no stigma associated with it (or at least very little of it). Compare this against the discrimination that many of these types of people meet in the US. In the US, smoking marijuana is a crime and those who do it are criminals, viewed by some in the same light as murderers and rapists. However, in Holand (at least until recently), marijuana is practically legal, and its status has had no negative impact on society, because since people don[/FONT]’[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]t view it as a problem, it never causes any.[/FONT]

No, the stigma is a result of the negative effects of the crime. Things aren't bad because of the stigma attached to them, the stigma is attached because the actions are bad.
There is hardly any stigma attached to using drugs, however that is not true of being an addict.
People disliking child rape is not due to sentiment as you would like to believe but due to the fact that it causes harm to the child.

[FONT=ＭＳ 明朝]It takes an objective state of mind to consider these ideas. I am not supporting or condoning any thing, mind you. This is just basic philosophy stuff. Anyway, take a philosophy class, or try living in another country for a while and I think it would be easier to understand.[/FONT]

So my bourgeois attitude towards child molestation is because I've only lived in one country?
I call bullshit, my own dislikes are created by my enviroment, but rather myself. Unless my consciousness' formation is influenced by my environment, in which case everyone would think the same depending on their geography.
Also complete objectivity is impossible.

 

[nikkuchan]

No, the stigma is a result of the negative effects of the crime. Things aren't bad because of the stigma attached to them, the stigma is attached because the actions are bad.

And how did these actions become bad? Who decided, and why?

There is hardly any stigma attached to using drugs, however that is not true of being an addict.

Hardly any stigma attached to using drugs? If a child used a drug just once, it would be pretty safe to assume that the parent(s) would be plenty angry. Also, there are lots of addictions that people don’t worry about. “You can never have too much of a good thing” is a common phrase. Coffee addicts aren’t pestered to kick their habit. The question is, is the person addicted to a good thing, or a bad thing?

People disliking child rape is not due to sentiment as you would like to believe but due to the fact that it causes harm to the child.

I agree. I dislike child rape. However, I never mentioned child rape. Pedophilia and child rape are not the same thing. Many child rapists are not pedophiles, just sickos. Also, there are probably many pedophiles who have never committed a crime in their life.

So my bourgeois attitude towards child molestation is because I've only lived in one country?

It was just a suggestion to try something to open your mind, just in general. It’s a very challenging thing to do, to try to imagine hypothetical situations like “what if something as disgusting and horrible as pedophilia was normal and acceptable?” But doing so will help you think in new ways.

I call bullshit, my own dislikes are created by my enviroment, but rather myself.

I’m sorry, but I don’t understand this part at all.

Unless my consciousness' formation is influenced by my environment, in which case everyone would think the same depending on their geography.

But your consciousness’ formation was influenced by your environment: What your parents taught you, what you learned in school, the experiences you’ve had throughout life, everything has influence. How did you think your consciousness was formed?

Also complete objectivity is impossible.

Are you sure?