Erotica By Helen E. H. Madden

I saw an article today on MSN.com about a lawsuit filed against the Chicago board of education over a showing of Brokeback Mountain to a class of eighth graders. Apparently a substitute teacher decided to show the film in class one day without getting permission from the students’ parents. One of the students was only twelve years old and her grandparents are now suing, saying their granddaughter suffered psychological distress after seeing the movie.

Before going any further with this blog entry, I feel I must reveal to you my ultimate dirty little secret. Are you ready? Here it is.

I am a closet prude.

No, really. I am. I know what you’re thinking. This is a woman who fulfills her artistic vision by writing erotic stories and creating erotic artwork. And I’m not shy about that either. Nor would I define any of my work as tame. I have written scenes about oral sex and orgies. I’ve published stories involving ass play and strap-ons. On the art side, if you check the gallery on the website, you’ll find images of full frontal male nudity, including a lovely picture of a young man masturbating while riding a horse. So yeah, I’m all about creative, explicit, erotic expression.

But you know what? I’m not keen on showing R-rated movies to a bunch of eighth graders without their parents’ or guardians’ consent. That may make me sound like a hypocrite, but keep in mind that though I work in the field of erotica, I am determined not to expose anyone under the age of eighteen to any of my work. I signed this website up with an internet review service designed to keep underage youngsters from seeing what I produce, and I intend to sign up with other services to further insure I don’t corrupt any young minds.

Here’s my beef. There is a time and a place to learn about certain things, and kids should be allowed to learn at a pace suitable to their age. I’ve never seen the movie myself, but a quick look online tells me that Brokeback Mountain got great reviews and several Oscar nominations. It is a movie that deals with the realities of being gay in today’s society and also looks at the problems caused by extra-marital affairs. Very sensitive, timely subjects that everyone needs to be aware of. However, that same quick look also tells me that the movie includes:

22 uses of the word “fuck”

A scene showing the results of a violent, fatal beating

Scenes of violence and fighting, some of which sound rather bloody

Lots of smoking and drinking

Several sexual encounters, both straight and gay, that show some nudity and action

Explicit sexual dialog

And on and on. It sounds like a movie I should watch sometime, something that deals with a highly charged subject in a sensitive yet realistic manner. It does not, however, sound like a movie appropriate for a child, especially given all the nudity and scenes of sex and violence. After reading the reviews, I can certainly see how a child of twelve would be psychologically distressed by seeing this movie.

I remember when I was twelve I saw a movie on PBS about women in prison. In one scene, one of the prisoners refused to eat, so the guards held her down and forced a feeding tube up her nose. Blood dripped out her nostril as they did it. It wasn’t an excessively gory scene and the woman wasn’t beaten into submission, just restrained to an examining table. But it was enough to make me feel positively ill at that age. There were other times I recall as well before the age of eighteen when I was exposed to sexual or violent material, and I simply was not ready for that kind of thing. It left me feeling ill and disturbed each time.

With age and maturity, my comfort zone has expanded (quite considerably, in case you hadn’t noticed). Though to be honest, there are still a few things within the realm of sex and violence that leave me feeling queasy any time I encounter them. However, at age thirty-eight I’m far more capable of handling the uncomfortable stuff than I was at age twelve. In fact, if I had encountered some of the things I deal with now back when I was twelve, I might never have grown up to have a positive view of sexuality. Seriously. Squick a person out at too young an age and you scar them for life.

So, it’s not for me to decide when and how someone else’s kids get exposed to sex and violence. Nor is it someone else’s business to expose mine before they’re ready. Leave the rough and ready cowboys of Brokeback Mountain to the adults who are ready to appreciate them, and give the kids something far more appropriate to their age.

Labels: My Inner Prude, Sex and Movies, Sex and Parenting

Monday, May 14, 2007

This Movie Is Rated 'R' For A Reason