The introduction of nudity and pornographic images into mainstream society has always fascinated me. America has always been a country that, despite freedom of expression laws, has censored its citizens. Whether it be censorship of speech or behavior (like the Prohibition Act), certain things were deemed unfit for public and even private consumption.
The discussion of nudity’s debut in films, musicals, novels, and other mediums is an interesting one. The chapter “America Undressed” makes it clear that while those in control may have wished to keep nudity at bay, ordinary American citizens were ready for something a little more risqué than flapper dresses. Rob Kirkpatrick, the author of 1969, echoes this idea when he writes that “the fact that a film about the relationship between an aspiring gigolo and a live-in male companion and pimp would gain such acceptance by the industry, by the popular culture at large, showed just how much the underlying puritanical roots of American culture were being challenged at the end of the sixties” (53).
In Kilpatrick’s description of this time period, he shows a constant struggle between the American people’s desire to break out of their shell and the legal system and residing Protestant mindset. Despite freedom of speech, courts tried to find a way to keep certain books out of circulation and certainly photos that were deemed inappropriate. This kind of stifling of human expression is indicative of some of the platforms being run on in today’s society. The tea party is attempting to pull America back into a severely restricted society and what is interesting is the fact that this party is not being met with much resistance.
What is the parallel between the movement to embrace the forbidden in 1969 and the desire to move back into the confinement of a narrow mindset today?
No comments:
Post a Comment