NAKED BODIES, BIRTHDAY GIFTS AND CELEBRITIES

Yesterday, the internet was abuzz with naked pictures of pregnant Blac Chyna, [fiancée to Rob Kardashian] as well as the semi-naked picture of Karrueche Tran, Chris Brown’s former girlfriend. The pictures, as can be expected, provoked all sorts of reactions ranging from comments of admiration to those of irritation and disgust.

For me, however, those pictures provoked a mental trip down memory lane to how far the world has come. There was a time in the 1800s when people’s outfits generally looked like this:

Centuries later, the story has changed. People evolved from being fully clothed to being partially clothed, and now you can even walk around semi-naked if you wish. It all depends on the country you live in.

Basically there are three types of people who don’t see anything wrong or strange in showcasing their nudity for the world to see.

Type A: People who are rebelling against society in general and religion in particular. Most times such people have had terrible religious experiences in the past and so their own way of getting back against religion is to rebel against it. Such people love pushing and encouraging others to push moral boundaries.

Type B: Those who feel they must pose nude for career sake, e.g acting and music. The demands of the modern day acting job seem to be such that actors and actresses must be prepared to play any role, including nude ones. Hmmm…..

Type C:  People who like posing naked because it makes them feel sexy and powerful. They like the power they wield over those who drool over their naked body, even if it’s just temporary.

It should be stated that type B and C people are subsets of type A. However, whatever category a person may belong to, one thing is clear: all three types of people are in search of one form of fulfillment or the other. But at what price? For the boundary pusher, it is quite clear that there comes a time when there are no longer any boundaries to push. The evolving of the female attire over the years is a very good example. First, there was the era of the total cover up; when women covered themselves from head to toe for modesty’s sake. Centuries later, women rebelled against such clothing. Necklines became steeper and hemlines shorter. Shorts became shorts in the real sense of the word. Bikinis replaced one piece bathing suits for the most part. But then a curious thing happened, and is still happening. These various stages of rebellion did not bring the satisfaction expected; rather it only brought a craving to break more boundaries, because human wants and desires are insatiable. Enter the era of nakedness. Many celebrities like Kim Kardashian, Amber Rose, Jennifer Aniston, etc, posed naked for various magazine covers in an effort to destroy all boundaries. So the question is…what now? We’ve seen Kim Kardashian et al naked. *yawn* Next one please!  

And this is the problem with destroying boundaries: it often promises a fulfillment that it cannot deliver. No matter how voluptuous a person’s body may be, there will always be someone else even more voluptuous…and there will always be people who are disgusted at the sight of naked people on magazines or TV. So either way, it’s a lose-lose situation. You may please some people by posing naked but eventually your body holds no appeal for them even if you remain perpetually naked, and you put off other people.

This is an appeal to the present- day woman: there are few things as admirable as a strong, feminine, confident, and MYSTERIOUS woman. A woman who knows that she has power, but who chooses not to abuse it. A woman who knows that she can drive men crazy if she decides to strip naked today, but who is very aware that there is more to life than men, women and sex, that life is all about adding value to people. And thank God that there are many such women out there, despite the media’s claim to the contrary. They are women who ‘walk like the boss and talk like the boss’ whether they be career women or housewives, and though the media tries to label them as women who are ‘ashamed of their sexuality’, the truth is that they are more in touch with and in control of their own sexuality than those who pose naked for fame, money, or in defiance of religion and society.

A stylishly dressed woman is like a beautifully wrapped birthday gift- You not only love the gift, you also love the excitement of unwrapping it.

I will like to conclude with this analogy: Seeing a naked person on the cover of a magazine or on TV is like being given an unwrapped birthday gift-You sort of wish the person had wrapped it and allowed you the excitement of unwrapping it. It’s also like being given something that everyone else has- you find it difficult to value it. I sometimes wish I could peep into the minds of the spouses of those who have posed naked publicly. How does it feel like knowing that men [or women] around the world have a saved picture or video of their naked spouse? Are they really happy about it as they claim, or are they seething inside with anger and jealousy? Imagine having an actor husband who was naked in one of his films, and then one day you discover that your friend has your husband’s naked picture on her laptop. Some will say ‘as long as people look at my spouse’s body but don’t touch, I’m OK with that’.  I won’t say too much about that except this: Seeing often goes before touching. Doubt me? Go ask Brad Pitt, Simon Cowell, and all others who have been unfaithful to their wives or betrayed their best friends. They will confirm my statement.