An interesting case got way too much attention from the media here in Brazil: A girl was celebrating on a soccer game and her shirt got pulled up a bit, showing half of her bra. All guys went crazy over the photos. The religions say that Adam and Eve were naked and god made them ashamed of their genitals. Anyway, most of us wear clothes in public (unless you are on a strip club or a nudist). Why? I mean, why do we have to cover up so much? Why is is acceptable for a man to walk shirtless but not for a woman to do that? Why are we ashamed of our bodies? I get the wearing of clothes for protection/hygiene, but still…
I’m not ashamed, but there are social conventions and laws. Or is that what you mean why are there social conventions and laws? I don’t know. Just like I wouldn’t wear a T-shirt to a formal wedding I don’t walk down the street naked. A nude beach is a different matter.
Because too many people are over 40. There is no reason for almost any of them to be nude with the lights on at any time.
And, as it happens, the cultures who had the guns, germs and steel were from cold climates, and so were able to impose their “you’re crazy to go out naked in this weather” standards to everyone else. Case in point - Bali within the last century. Damn shame.
Sounds a bit like the famous Janet Jackson “wardrobe malfunction” of a few years ago, only even less of a big deal.
Nitpick: According to the Bible story, it wasn’t God who made them ashamed of their nakedness; it was a consequence of eating the forbidden fruit. In their original, “unfallen” state, they were naked and unashamed. (cite)
(1) It’s not necessarily that we’re ashamed of our bodies (well, maybe some of us are; and certainly some of us have better-looking bodies than others) but that our “naughty bits” are private.
(2) Circular as it may seem, it’s because of convention: it would be shocking or arousing or exciting or unnerving to see a woman walking down the street with bare breasts, or a man with his dangly bits hanging out, largely because it’s so unusual and unconventional and contrary to the prevailing social norms.
This is probably better suited to IMHO than GQ.
Colibri
General Questions Moderator
And what is shocking depends very much on social convention. In many traditional cultures in the tropics bare female breasts, and in some cases nearly full nudity for both sexes, are the norm and hence not shocking.
I recall reading of an expedition to New Guinea to an area in which the only “clothing” men wore was a long hollow gourd to cover their penis, tied on with a string around the waist. When crossing a river, one of the young men lost his penis sheath in the water. He was extremely embarrassed, and tried to cover himself with his hands when he met other people.
I wonder how nudists deal with their menstrual cycles if they don’t like tampons. Seems like pads would not be an option. That’s reason enough to ‘cover up’ as far as I’m concerned.
Another is esthetics. Years ago, my husband wanted to go to a nude beach when we were in Europe. I think he was expecting all the women to look like Victoria’s Secret models, but he was wrong :).
Animals display when they are interested in having sex. We seem to have retained that as people. So what is simply an effort to get a tan or to cool off can be misunderstood as a sexual display of willingness. That may cause some problems if it is miscommunication. Hence, our ambivalence.
All the way back to the earliest humans and nearly forever after:
I really think that the sense of nakedness as being dirty is quite literal and comes from our earliest childhood experiences. What does baby think when daddy, who usually is at least somewhat interested, shoves him away when he has soiled himself?
What’s with attentive mommy, who, upon exposing the rump (and incidently genitals) smells acka and makes a face or expresses disgust?
We’re enlightened but few of us like to change a diaper. And baby knows. Something to do with “that part” of him.
How about this take on it:
The human species, having lost most of its olfactory sense has become a very visual species. In the mating dance, there must be some way for the participants to signal they are ready/willing to have sex. So visually exposing the relevant body parts has become it. Pheromones won’t quite do it any more.
Consider the case of a female person, on a date with a male person, then invites said male person into her home after the dinner and show. If she is ready to jump into bed with said male, she may indicate so with the proverbial “Let me slip into something a little more comfortable” shtick. If she is not ready to jump into bed with said male, she keeps her clothes on.
I any social setting where public or semi-public nudity in mixed company is accepted (e.g., at clothing-optional beaches, naturist resorts, certain spas, etc.), that has to be modified. Either those settings must become utterly Victorian prudish in their intolerance of any hint of sexual activity (common at nudist resort, I’ve read) or else there must evolve some other way to signal readiness to have sex apart from just exposing oneself. But for the most part, we stick with the popular signals: Yes, we can find any number of specific exceptions, and there are those who will protest that seeing a naked body isn’t inherently sexual. Still, exposing oneself is the most general and common way of expressing readiness for sex.
ETA: I see I’ve been substantially ninjaed by Tethered Kite simulpost.
Because, look at your disgusting, naked body…
Go on… LOOK AT IT!!!
Yeah. Personally, I don’t really want to hurt other people’s eyes with my fat rolls, not to mention those spots on my backside…
It is obvious that it has everything to do with what is sexual. If breasts were not considered sexual, then women could walk topless too. I believe that the pubic area must be covered in all cultures and by both sexes. Beyond that it is mostly cultural. I remember seeing some beach photos from California around 1900. Both the men and women are essentially covered from ankle to neck with only face, hands, and, feet visible. By the 30s, both men and women were wearing swim suits not that would not be considered that unusual today. And we know that some cultures require that women cover their hair and others insist that everything be covered except a pair of eye slits.
That and really, clothes are functional. They keep us warm. Hide our cracks and pits. Conceal our boners and nipples. Keep your bodily residue and/or excretions off my sofa. They can actually serve to make us more sexy. Besides, where am I supposed to put my iPhone? Velcro it to my chest hair?
Also, I’m wearing a Millennium Falcon tshirt today. Try that naked! 
I stand by my post and think it’s a combination. The byproducts of our bodies and of sex can be unpleasant under some conditions. Certainly our noses have a lot to do with when and how we decide what’s something to be ashamed of.
It would be odd to have the notion of nudity emerge full-blown in the human mind without some additional cultural baggage, yes. And in modern society cleanliness, just as in ancient times, aesthetics, have to be a part of that.
Then there’s that whole thing about self-protection and the ways a nude body could keep a person from being able to protect themselves adequately. In a warrior culture that would be shameful, I think.
A woman giving birth is helpless in the event of a fire or other natural calamities. How might the superstitious mind in some cultures have interpreted that as the bad luck to get pregnant at the wrong time and die because of it? Maybe shameful?
I suspect all these things are in the human beaker of sexuality and tumbled, jumbled together throughout the cultures and time.
ETA:
Ninja’ed by cmyk!
Mmmm… burkas… hawt.
You said it. ALL women look hawt under a burka. They should be banned.
There’s also the function of display. We don’t avoid nudity because we hate skin; we do it because we love clothes. Clothing is a means for humans to display their wealth and status.
Example: Yap.
(Warning: NSFW pictures if you scroll down. Unless, of course, you’re in Yap . Then they are SFW.)
Which is why I wear bowties.
There have been many, many cultures over the years where non-sexual nudity for at least one sex was common, from ancient Greeks to Australian Aboriginals.
Fighting nude (for men) seems to crop up fairly often.