Tuesday, 7 May 2013

Voyeurism: Drawing a Line between a Peeping Tom and a Sexual Predator


All of us indulge in vicarious pleasures of life ever now and then, whether it is while flipping through the pages of erotic thriller Fifty Shades of Grey or watching a celebrity sex video that has gone viral on the net. However, while we do step in the shoes of a voyeur unknowingly from time to time, God forbid someone brands us one and all hell will break lose. However, while it may not be “the” preferred way of sexual gratification for most of us, we seldom let a chance to pry on a sexual activity slip by.

Therefore, it may be safe to say that voyeurism is innate to human nature and perhaps the rock bed of physical attraction that we feel for the opposite sex. However, the point of concern here is identifying the difference between a harmless erotic preference and a sinister perversion that can end up leaving both the voyeur and the object of his or her obsession psychologically traumatized. Hitchcock’s cult classic Psycho is just the case in point. It was hard to imagine Peeping Tom Norman Bates turning out to be the knife wielding psycho in the end.

A sensitive subject that demands a thorough discourse by psychological experts, voyeurism can quickly turn from an undisruptive erotic activity into a dangerous sexual fascination. In general the attributes associated with voyeurs are considered undesirable and it is best to steer clear of people who exhibit a clear preference for this form of sexual deviance in their love lives. Voyeuristic tendencies can quickly aggravate from fantasy to obsession and may even lead to sexually aggressive behavior towards the opposite sex.

The technological advances in this century have only served to feed our innate voyeuristic tendencies further. We do not blink an eye before watching an MMS clip that has become quite a sensation due to its charged sexual content. Gone are the days when the glimpse of a pretty girl’s cleavage while she bent down was enough to satiate our voyeuristic urges. Today, we need to watch every other celebrity sex tape that hits the internet, thus propagating the voyeuristic culture even further.

Maybe we can term voyeurism as a full-blown fetish in today’s exhibitionist times when every other person wishes to grab eyeballs by uploading provocative and often wildly inappropriate pictures or videos of themselves on social media and live video streaming sites. In today’s world where the Kardashian family is perhaps as or more famous than the Obama family, there is no shortage of exhibitionists who love being watched and there are almost as many or more number of voyeurs present to oblige them.

However, while the exhibitionists and voyeurs can thank the lord of paraphilia for their heavenly match, those who do not fall in either category should concern themselves with the question of safety, both physical and mental, while indulging in sexcapades with voyeurs or exhibitionists. In fact, even when a voyeuristic sex act is consensual, such as watching your partner masturbate to feel arousal, it can lead to dangerous outcomes that are tailored to satiate more than just the erotic desires of a voyeur.

Thus, if the voyeuristic role playing that you have been introduced to by your lover is making you experience a new wave of intensity and excitement during love making, do not drop it all together but make sure that your partner has other bedroom tricks in his or her repertoire to get his or her and your motor running. However, if he or she insists solely on voyeuristic role playing, it would be wise of you to seek a consultation with a psychiatrist to determine your partner’s state of mental health and to identify any underlying and undiagnosed psychological issues.


Written By: Shweta Ghorpade

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