Going Against Society Norms

Sexual orientation is a large controversy in the United States.  Compared to previous years, society is beginning to accept individuals who have a different sexual orientation than others.  Under the topic of sexuality, sex is defined as the biological distinction between females and males.  Culture plays an important aspect in sexuality.  It sets the standards of attractiveness throughout the world, and underlies individuals choices about reproduction.  As stated earlier, having a different sexual orientation (Ex. An individual who is bisexual or gay) is starting to be accepted by society.  Individuals are becoming less fearful of telling society their sexual orientation.  Even celebrities are releasing their feelings to the media, for example Ellen DeGeneres.  I actually have two friends who are both female, and announced that they have been dating for almost a year now.  Even though I was one of the first people to know and had to keep it a secret, I was so proud of them for announcing it and being proud of how they feel.  They did not care what negative thoughts people were thinking, and did not listen to the judgements that were being made.  They have not acted any differently either from when they announced it, so nothing has changed and that is great.

During our lecture of sexuality, the topic of teen pregnancy was discussed.  We learned that teen pregnancy rates are the highest in the United States compared to other high-income countries.  The media does not help the cause either.  A few years ago, MTV released the television show 16 and Pregnant followed by Teen Mom.  These shows followed teenage mothers and the struggles they faced with having a child at such a young age.  The teenagers were not just on television, but started to be in magazines and on other social media.  I believe that if society saw these teenagers becoming famous because they were having children so early, that other teenagers would want to be like them.  Here is a picture of the first season of 16 and Pregnant, and I believe there are now four other seasons and MTV continues to still make new episodes.

In addition, our class talked about the Incest Taboo and Polygamy.  The Incest Taboo is found in every society, and it forbids sexual relations between family relatives.  Polygamy is when an individual has two or more wives or husbands at once.  One article I found was written by the U.S. News about the TLC television show Sister Wives.  It explained how the family had defeated a Polygamy law in the state of Utah.  Polygamy is more common in the state of Utah, but is not accepted as "normal" by society.  There have been several criticisms towards this reality show, and another show that just started called My Five Wives, also on TLC.  It is a different living style, and people who participate in it are judged for it by the rest of society.

Website: http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2013/12/16/sister-wives-defeat-polygamy-law-in-federal-court

Also another topic we discussed during this chapter lecture was pornography. In the United States, pornography is a $10 billion dollar a year industry.  An article I found on about.com explains how pornography is an addiction to some individuals.  The blogger explains how she met a group of adult men who lost connections with their family and friends because of their pornography addiction.  To society, this is not "normal" either just like teen pregnancy and polygamy.  The blogger explains how it is addictive cycle, and includes ten steps.  It is disgusting to know that people would devote their time to pornography whether watching it or participating in it, and lose a connection with their own family because of it.

Website: http://fatherhood.about.com/od/sex-and-porn-addiction/a/Pornography-Addiction-Understanding-The-Addictive-Cycle.htm

Within this chapter lecture of sexuality, our class discussed some controversial topics that society portrays throughout the media.  We not only talked about the above topics, but also about the body in general and the topic of rape within society.  Even though there is judgement within society about individuals who have a different sexual orientation than heterosexual, it is becoming apparent that they are becoming less fearful of society as a whole and are announcing their true feelings.  Since it is becoming more common, society is taking small steps to accept these individuals feelings and not label them as "different."