Uncle Tom's Cabin

Long

ENG 110-21

Mr. Payton

29 November 2004

A Decline in Modesty

Modesty is quickly declining in the world today. Due to this, along with peer pressure, the media, and an overall greater acceptance, there has also been a rise in teenage sexuality. Pop stars such as Britney Spears, Christina Aguilera, and Madonna have reinforced the idea that revealing and tight clothing is fashionable. Because of these 'sexy' women, teenage girls believe men find immodest women desirable. This is unfortunate, because society is beginning to develop the idea that modest people are not cool. As modesty grows more unpopular, teenage sex is becoming more accepted. As a result, not only are more teenagers sexually active, but there are more unwed mothers being produced in society.

Everyone has heard the story of Adam and Eve and how clothing supposedly originated. Thus, fig leaves became the first forms of clothing and the concept of modesty was born. But, taking into consideration those who don't believe the creation story, why were clothes really invented? Well, there are many theories that involve cold, rain, and many other weather-related conditions. But, when questioned, all of the reasons failed. Many native tribes did not make warm clothing even though they lived in cold climates. Tribes who lived in warm climates still wore clothing, there were no devices invented to really help with weather condition. The origination of clothes cannot be pinned down to one specific incident. But, there is one reason that people keep returning to, modesty. "Until recently-less than a hundred years ago, perhaps-it was almost universally agreed that the primal and fundamental reason for wearing clothes was modesty" (Lavier 1).

Modesty, as defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, is propriety in dress, speech, or conduct. So, as societies expectations change, so does modesty. Specific rules about modesty change with the styles. In the 17th and 18th centuries and well before that, women dressed very modestly. Most wore long dresses with long-sleeves and high necklines. Every part of their bodies were covered. That was a time when French women would not bare their shoulders, Chinese women were shy about their feet being exposed, and native women of Madagascar would rather die of shame than expose their arms (Kappelman). But, now that we have celebrities dressing in barely-there tops and bottoms, we have seen a great difference in what the public wears. People imitate that which they think will make them look cool. Girls as young as ten can be seen wearing these tiny outfits. Since famous people are barely wearing clothes, that's what society has deemed as sexy. Real modesty, however, is a constant and desirable quality. It is not based on fashion but on appropriateness. A well-mannered and self-respecting woman avoids clothes or behavior that are inappropriate for the situation. However, real modesty is very hard to find. "We may sum up by saying that modesty is an inhibitory impulse directed against either social or sexual firms of display" (Lavier 7).

Besides being a social acceptance point, modesty has a great deal to do with sexual interactions. Sexual modesty is sexual reserve, or the communication of non-availability for sexual interactions (Lefton 120). Many women send messages that tell men that they are not expected to behave like gentlemen. Women give men an open invitation to stare at and treat them like objects by wearing short skirts, and shirts revealing midriffs with necklines plunging lover than ever before. This, however, is not the kind of attention women truly seek. Respectable men will be attracted to respectable women. So, what is the sense in dressing trashy?

Acts of immodesty can take form in either verbal or non-verbal communication. All forms of immodest communication radiate boldness and a lack of inhibition (121). "Non-verbal communication is usually broken down into two categories, a display of body or bodily functions and other forms of erotic overture" (121). There are many ways to show modesty and just as many ways to be immodest. "Concerning language, if there always exists a limit to verbal expression as regard sexuality, one remarks that modesty is never felt in reaction to the representations or the ideas which we kept to ourselves. One never makes oneself blush. On the other hand, modest inhibition seizes somebody as soon as he intends to express these ideas" (Morenon). The age of those making the decision to be actively immodest and the ways in which they are expressing themselves, are rapidly changing.

The age at which children are becoming sexually active has dropped dramatically. Fifty percent of boys loose their virginity by age 13 or younger, while the highest percentage of girls loose their virginity at approximately age 15 (Coles 73). To put that into perspective, the average 13 year-old boy is in seventh grade, still in middle school. It is absolutely unbelievable that children so young can possibly know enough about sex to practice it. But, sadly, it is actually easy for children to learn about sex. Most sexual education programs start in fifth grade. The group of children sit in mixed company while they learn about sex, sexually transmitted