[lit-ideas] Re: British nakedness/Semitic non-nakedness
- From: Omar Kusturica <omarkusto@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2004 01:30:21 -0700 (PDT)
--- Scribe1865@xxxxxxx wrote:
> over any other socio-cultural arrangement that ever
> existed. All right now, here it is:
>
> http://www.lrb.co.uk/v26/n08/woot02_.html
> This is an excellent piece.
>
> It also recalls one of the conflicts between Greek
> and Semitic cultures in
> the Hellenistic period. Membership in a "Gymnasium"
> was an important status
> boost in the new Hellenistic cities, but it carried
> with it the exposure to people
> exercising in the nude, as was the Greek custom.
>
> Exercising in the nude was a taboo to the Semites.
> They were unable to take
> part, and consequently were excluded from an
> important sphere of local cultural
> life.
Yes, this was in part the occasion for the Macabee
rebellion, but it had to do also with circumcision.
Apparently the Greeks considered circumcision to be a
shameful mutilation of the body, hence the Hebrews
could not participate even if they were so disposed.
However, note that here you are talking about public
nakedness, not about private nakedness which was
discussed in the article. The Islamic, and I believe
also the Judaic, admonitions against nakedness refer
only to public nakedness.
Neither was public nakedness peculiar to the Greeks -
it was practiced by many cultures which the 17. and
18. century English characterized, without much ado,
as "savages." While I would not go quite as far,
myself, it's not clear to me that socially sanctioned
public nakedness is such a great thing. On a personal
note, there were few things in the army that I hated
as much (and I hated lots of them) as having to be
naked in the presence of strangers. I still have a
strong aversion to public shower houses, which seem to
be rather common in China.
O.K.
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