Where would you say is 'Appropriate' to be nude??

[MaxUK]

I have long held the view that public nudity is only acceptable in 'appropriate' places but that throws up the problem of 'where's appropriate'??
Well, at the risk of being shot down in flames, here's my hastily drawn list!:

1. Anywhere around the home or garden, no matter what the view is like for the public. Your property, your choice. No one has to look if they don't want to.
2. Naturist/nudist clubs, resorts etc. naturally.
3. Private boats, yachts etc. when at sea
4. Beaches - every beach, everywhere should be seen as appropriate. Ones favoured by naturists would soon become obvious, as would naturist 'sections' to otherwise clothed beaches. It would work itself out, I'm sure.
5. Special areas in some public parks should be designated 'nude friendly', perhaps with a small unobtrusive notice to inform people of the fact.
6. Any other private enclosed area when used exclusively for naturist use ie. Pool, sauna, etc.

That's just about it! Of course there are the one offs like the Spencer Tunick stunts in cities but those are for a short duration only. Such places should not normally be seen as 'appropriate' - only appropriate for a 'stunt', ala Tunick's art inspired antics.

There are many other places that would be appropriate depending on the circumstance - ie. middle of a deserted desert, hot spring in the mountains, empty trail in the hills etc. but these become 'grey areas' the minute someone else clothed comes on the scene. Hmmm..difficult one that!

OK - where would you add onto the list as 'appropriate' - please don't just put 'everywhere'. Think about it a little.

Max

[MaxUK]

I have long held the view that public nudity is only acceptable in 'appropriate' places but that throws up the problem of 'where's appropriate'??
Well, at the risk of being shot down in flames, here's my hastily drawn list!:

1. Anywhere around the home or garden, no matter what the view is like for the public. Your property, your choice. No one has to look if they don't want to.
2. Naturist/nudist clubs, resorts etc. naturally.
3. Private boats, yachts etc. when at sea
4. Beaches - every beach, everywhere should be seen as appropriate. Ones favoured by naturists would soon become obvious, as would naturist 'sections' to otherwise clothed beaches. It would work itself out, I'm sure.
5. Special areas in some public parks should be designated 'nude friendly', perhaps with a small unobtrusive notice to inform people of the fact.
6. Any other private enclosed area when used exclusively for naturist use ie. Pool, sauna, etc.

That's just about it! Of course there are the one offs like the Spencer Tunick stunts in cities but those are for a short duration only. Such places should not normally be seen as 'appropriate' - only appropriate for a 'stunt', ala Tunick's art inspired antics.

There are many other places that would be appropriate depending on the circumstance - ie. middle of a deserted desert, hot spring in the mountains, empty trail in the hills etc. but these become 'grey areas' the minute someone else clothed comes on the scene. Hmmm..difficult one that!

OK - where would you add onto the list as 'appropriate' - please don't just put 'everywhere'. Think about it a little.

Max

[Gary Naturist]

Focusing on appropriateness rather than legality, here is my expansion of what you have suggested.

I think that it should be possible to swim nude in public pools, especially when the purpose is exercise rather than play (e.g. swimming laps).

I think that it should also be OK to cycle nude in parks and on sideroads. The cyclist passes by others quickly so doesn't remain in proximity to anyone for any length of time.

Gary

[Guest]

Max

1. Anywhere around the home or garden, no matter what the view is like for the public. Your property, your choice. No one has to look if they don't want to.

I have a problem with this one. I may have a very tiny front garden just next to a primary school - and I may even get a kick out of displaying myself to kids or their mums. It's just the same as displaying obscene or racist material in your window or from your garden. The law rightly regards behaviour or displays on private property that are visible from public places to be "projections from the private into the public domain". So No. 1 is a no-no for me.

2. Naturist/nudist clubs, resorts etc. naturally.
Agreed.

3. Private boats, yachts etc. when at sea.
That's a bit too sweeping for me, Max. Being "at sea" can mean 25 yards out to sea off Blackpool beach!

4. Beaches - every beach, everywhere should be seen as appropriate. Ones favoured by naturists would soon become obvious, as would naturist 'sections' to otherwise clothed beaches. It would work itself out, I'm sure.

I'm not sure what you mean by this, Max. Certainly it isn't appropriate to have every beach everywhere as clothing optional. That would be great for naturists but unacceptable to most textiles. Naturist sections on carefully selected beaches would certainly be OK - provided there was either screening of some sort, or a suitable gap.

5. Special areas in some public parks should be designated 'nude friendly', perhaps with a small unobtrusive notice to inform people of the fact.

Agreed. But the "small unobtrusive" notice must also be very clear and unmissable!

6. Any other private enclosed area when used exclusively for naturist use ie. Pool, sauna, etc.

Agreed.

Gary,

"should be possible to swim nude in public pools, especially when the purpose is exercise rather than play (e.g. swimming laps)."

At special naturist sessions, yes. I hope you're not suggesting all the time because that would be totally unacceptable to the vast majority of swimmers - and especially to parents whose kids used the pools!

"I think that it should also be OK to cycle nude in parks and on sideroads."

No chance, Gary. I believe that only a tiny proportion of the population would accept that. You have to accept the fact that nudity in public places that are not designated naturist places is simply not acceptable to most of the population. You may wish things were different, but that's the way it is.

There is nothing wrong with having a wish list - nor discussing possibilities. But if you want to have a PRODUCTIVE dialogue with the majority textile population then you need to be a little more realistic and consider their needs and desires. [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

Stu

[aunaturelone]

I think the question is being asked too broadly. There are too many answers. There are too many different ways of viewing what constitutes "appropriate" behavior. For that matter the appropriateness of a behavior may not emerge until long after the event takes place.

Appropriate in theory or pragmatically? You can go to jail for simple nudity without anyone who saw it being offended by it.

To me, nudity is obviously appropriate where ever you can be nude without stimulating an acutely hostile or fearful response. YMMV. Beyond that the considerations are merely practical. In most situations the nude person can do a great deal to minimize adverse reactions to their nudity. I have met a lot of clothed people on the trail (and even while camping) while nude and never had a strong negative reaction. Usually giggles and grins.

The human default condition is nude. More to the point is what conditions might make it inapproriate.

Usually we take propriety to be behavior that is "inoffensive" but every human action is gong to disturb someone else to some degree. Even running down the street throwing money like confetti to all and sundry would offend someone. Never to offend anyone is never to exist.

First you have to set a threshhold for how much "offense" is acceptable before one can say one's behavior was improper. I figure that the threshold for impropriety is somewhere less than immorality and higher than annoyance. (Legality is only a factor in propriety if you are arrested.)

This is a terribly situational thing. For simple nudity the degree of offense taken varies wildly from one person to the next and from one moment to the next for the same person. The adult who cheers on a gaggle of nude skaters in the park may become a very defensive parent if their own child is present. A woman who thinks a nude man is not at all frightening at a crowded beach may be absolutely terrified if no one else is about when she encounters you. Context is everything.

Ultimately you must decide for yourself how much offendedness you are willing to risk on the part of other people. There is no absolute definition of approriate.

[Jochanaan]

The question is not only hard; it's completely unanswerable, at least in any reasonable form. The best we could do is to answer it for a small area, such as a city or county, during a certain relatively brief time period. These things change. Sometimes very fast.

And Max is really asking the wrong people. Most of us are here because we believe nakedness should be appropriate, if not everywhere, at least in many more places and situations than it is. I personally would like to see it be appropriate anywhere it's warm enough and safe. This would eliminate flashing and peeping, and probably reduce the production of soft-core pornography. (Gee, maybe some of those people would have to find some real work! [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_biggrin.gif[/img] )

[aunaturelone]

quote:

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"I think that it should also be OK to cycle nude in parks and on sideroads."

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Nude Bicycling in Seattle parade

Naked skating in San Francsico

[Bob S.]

How about on hiking trails, especially on rarely used ones. Just about anywhere in nature where you believe that the chances of encountering someone else are low.

Hey, just trying to say something that stu agrees with for once.

Bob S.

[Rocket]

On your own property out of view of others..of course. In view? Absolutely NOT!!!

The argument it's "your property" doesn't wash..because you live in a communal area. I wouldn't be able to have a garbage dump at my parent's home..if it was on their property because it impacts others. Same with nudity..it impacts others..

For beaches..designated nude beaches is OK..but otherwise..NO!

Private places OK as well.... [img]/infopop/emoticons/icon_smile.gif[/img]

[Trailscout]

Comparing the beauty of a nude human body to a garbage dump? That doesn't wash with me!

Neither does confining myself to a tiny section of officially designated beach that is 5 miles from anything else. At Playalinda Beach in Florida, nude bathers have expanded the area of nudity because the demand for beach space required it. They did not get official permission, they simply occupied unclaimed beach as the nude section got too crowded. There isn't a beach in the world that was officially nude first and then the nude bathers arrived. Beaches become nude by popular acclaim and the government then sometimes officially acknowledges what has already transpired.

[Rik]

Ther's a real danger that this thread is going to become another Public Nudity Debate and before we know where we are we'll be debating the legal status of nudity and whether Steve Gough should be locked up.

So with some trepidation Max I would argue that nudity is appropriate wherever social pressure does not deem it to be inappropriate. The challenge of course is in discerning the current public mood and understanding how that mood can be changed to broaden the extent of appropriateness.

My personal view is that apropriateness is already broader than even many nudists think but to test this currently involves the risk of being made to feel silly, at best, or perverted at worst if you get it wrong (leaving aside, please Stu, any legal issues).

Rik