The concept of "borders of transgression" is still something that interests me from when we discussed it in class. The idea that crossing borders and into a new and, I suppose one can say 'taboo', sexual realm is fascinating to me, and with the articles in class showing us these multiple borders people cross, such as normative marital roles (Wardlow's article on how Huli men have socially acceptable extra-marital affairs from their wives in fear of their wive's sexuality), 'work and play' (Weiss's article discussing the BDSM community and how the participants have classes and 'munches' that go against the stereotypical and boring 'vanialla' heterosexual sex), and also literal borders (Montomery's article on children prostitution in Thailand), it's interesting to see how these borders are interpreted and understood. When we think about it, these borders are understood differently depending on what culture we looks at, and can also be manipulated and changed extremely easily.
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I find that any kind of borders (especially distance) can be totally crushed by...you guessed it, the internet! People have total access to other people all over the world, and that makes any kind of relationship easy to start, or even end. Still on the topic of the western 'sanctity of marriage' borders, dating sites and chat rooms (even places like Facebook) are a place where meeting people and potentially starting something on the side of your relationship is very, very easy...and can be easily hidden. Very easily. For instance, (personal story time), I was dating a guy who I found out was cheating on me at the start and the end of our relationship and I had no idea - and both of these relationships started on, you guessed it, his computer. With all of the private, password protected accounts and sites that the internet holds, it's incredible how many people someone can privately meet and interact with on the internet: literally, you have contact with people from all over the world. This contact with people can be just as pleasurable as it is dangerous.
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There has been a lot of problems lately, especially in our day and age, with sexual internet predators that go after kids for sexual pleasure via the internet. I found this to be a more Western idea of child prostitution in Thailand. Though these sexual predators, as far as I know anyway, except maybe those who do child pornography, a lot of age borders, as well as distance borders are broken. As horrific as child pornography is as well as internet sexual predators are, their ability to talk to people over borders on so many levels (age, distance, even sex/gender) can't really be stopped unless the internet is taken away...and we can't exactly do that. Similar to the travelers to Thailand use child prostitutes for sexual gratification, internet predetors are using unsuspecting kids as pleasure too, just through the internet rather than travelling to them (though I'm sure, that unfortunately happens in some cases).
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The internet also offers an open door to new ideas based on, well, specifically new sex ideas that stem away from normal-old-boring vanilla sex. This isn't just limited to the internet however: this also stems to magazines, movies, books, and tons of other media to open people up to new sexual ideas. This cross over from "normal" or socially-expected sex to something crazy and new is another good example of border crossing, and is even present super close to home. In Winnipeg, a sex show called Taboo (here's the internet link if you wanted to check it out: http://www.tabooshow.com/). As seen through the city (and online), many ads for taboo show up and offer a new way to experience sex. Away from the traditional "vanilla" sex. No more missionary - some new positions and toys that go against the grain are what's hot! According to these guys, anyway.
So as I said, there are more than just literal borders that people can cross - and the internet is there to help people do that. Through meeting new people, inviting them to community groups and get togethers, the normative borders of sexuality can be broken. I can't help but wonder - over time, how will the internet change in relation to people being in contact with another? Will sexuality and technology come together to develop something interactive and stimulating that goes against the "normal" sexual expectations: like a sex robot for instance? Though it may sound silly, you know what the future may hold. I'm sure that the concept of the internet, when first proposed, sounded pretty silly as well.
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(a) Holly Wardlow. 2008. "She Liked it Best When She was On Top:" Intimacies and Estrangements in Huli Men's Marital and Extramarital Relationships. Intimacies: Love and Sex Across Cultures. W. Jankowiak, ed. Columbia University Press.
(b) Heather Montomery. 2009. "What Constitutes Transgressive Sex? The Case of Child Prostitution in Thailand". Transgressive Sex: Subversion and Control in Erotic Economies. H. Donnan and F. Magowan, eds. Berghahn Books.
(c) Margot Weiss. 2006. "Working at Play: BDSM Sexuality in the San Francisco Bay Area". Anthropologica. 48(2):229-245.
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(1) http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1167718/Infidelity-Inc-The-boom-websites-offering-illicit-encounters-work-high-fliers.html
(2) http://www.soc.ucsb.edu/sexinfo/article/sexual-predators-cyber-space
(3) http://www.winnipegsun.com/news/columnists/laurie_mustard/2010/02/03/12730391.html
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