Discussion about this post

User's avatar
Peter Stokes's avatar

A well thought-out and expounded piece as usual, Steve. Nudism/naturism is what we want it to be, all those varieties you lay out; giving oneself a label has always left one open to another’s different understanding of that label, so adopting it is always a risk.

As nudism/naturism is not a protected characteristic or copyrighted title we’re stuck with the confusion if we choose to adopt the label.

For another perspective - policeman is a label worn all over the world, but people’s views of it vary wildly depending where they are! So we’re not alone with our label confusion.

I shall carry on avoiding any labels whenever I can, and wish everyone else well in their self-description.

Expand full comment
Karl's avatar

Indeed, your definition of naturism aligns with my own, one borne from an environmental ethic and a practical enjoyment of the freedom of being nude. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!

One small edit: as I understand it, bell hooks intentionally used lowercase letters for her name so as to “emphasize the ideas over her authorship “.

Expand full comment
11 more comments...

No posts