PDA history runs
from taboo to ‘woo-hoo’
Public displays of affection make some students grimace,
but others find ‘oral eroticism’ acceptable in today’s culture
By Caron Alarab
forthe Emerald
T^s
K g]
JLVh
issing, hug
ging, pecking,
olding and
groping.
At one point in
time, these interac
tions were consid- 1
ered sacred or pri
vate, meant only for
the home and the
bedroom. However,
in today’s society,
some of them have
moved outside,
where they’re
known as public dis
plays of affection,
and people’s views
on them vary.
In the book
“Strange Customs of
Courtship and Mar
riage,” William J.
Fielding states that
during horse-and
buggy days, kissing
along the roadside in
broad daylight was
known as “spoon
ing” or “mooning”
and was considered
quite taboo.
Fielding also
found that the urban Italians of
the late 15th century treated this
“oscillatory greeting” so serious
ly that if a young man kissed a
maiden in public, it practically
made marriage obligatory. In con
trast, Fielding’s studies showed
that in the early 16th century,
Pierto Lando — a Paduan offi
cial — ordered his own son to be
decapitated for kissing a girl,
with whom he was in love, in a
public street.
In early 20th-century Ameri
ca, young men of the working
class were often promiscuous,
according to Alfred Kinsey in
“The Modernization of Sex.”
But because the lower classes
considered all types of kissing or
“oral eroticism” perverse, a
working-class boy might have
had intercourse with hundreds
of girls but only kissed a few of
them, Kinsey states.
Nowadays, social attitudes
about physical affection seem to
be more diverse, and some people are more accepting.
“I think I’m one of the few people who doesn’t have a
problem with public displays of affection,” senior Molly
Lancaster said. “It shows there’s a little love in the world. ”
On the other hand, sophomore Harvey Chan
r
prefers discretion.
“Be aware of those
around you. A kiss, a
hug, it’s all good. But
too much touching
and stuff, then it’s
time to get a little bit
more private,”
he said.
Junior Jennifer
Levy chooses to ab
stain from too much
public intimacy in her
relationships.
“I won’t do it,” she
said. “I’ll hold hands,
I will hug, and I will
give a quick peck.
There will be no swap
ping spit. There will be
no long embrace.”
Senior Amy Farley
and senior Alex
Subert have been dat
ing for four years.
They think there are
some places where
people should refrain
from public displays
of affection; Farley
said the worst place
would be in class,
while Subert said, “I
think anytime you’re
around a lot of chil
Photo illustration by Adam Amato Emerald
clren it seems like an inappropri
ate time.”
As far as what they allow in
their relationship, the two said,
“We aren’t that into PDAs as a
couple. A kiss on the cheek good
bye and holding hands, but noth
ing really beyond that. ”
They agreed that PDAs happen
most often in the spring.
“Remember in the residence
halls, when the couples would
come out in mass quantities to
make out on the Humpy Lumpy
Lawn?” Farley asked.
Sophomore Sara Banks and
sophomore James Dugan will
celebrate a one-year anniversary
on Feb. 12th. They think PDAs
happen most often during
the summer.
“A lot more bodies are being
shown,” Banks said.
“Everybody’s coming out of
their holes,” Dugan added.
But they don’t agree about
everything. They both think kiss
ing and holding hands are okay, “but no groping or any
thing,” Banks said.
Dugan disagrees. “Oh, I’m OK with groping. ”
Caron Alarab is a freelance reporterforthe Emerald.
673 Lincoln St Ecigene 1423 Monroe Corvallis
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