Acts which may in themselves be regarded as either perverse or bordering upon perversity may, however, be considered permissible if they conduce to better reproductive sex between married couples.
1. By choosing the "wrong" sexual object.
2. By choosing the "wrong" sexual activity.
For example, a male was sexually "perverted" if, instead of choosing a nonrelated female of his own age, he chose
himself (autoeroticism),
another male (homosexuality),
two or more females at the same time (troilism),
a close relative (incest),
a child (pedophilia)
an old woman (gerontophilia),
an animal (zoophilia or bestiality),
a dead body (necrophilia),
a statue (pygmalionism),
an inanimate object (fetishism),
Needless to say, these "perversions" became aggravated when they appeared in combination, as for instance when a young man chose a boy (homosexual pedophilia), or when he chose the dead body of an old woman (gerontophilic necrophilia). However, even if a man chose the "right" sexual object, he could still prove to be perverted if, instead of engaging in simple coitus, he derived his sexual satisfaction mainly from
observing nudity and sexual activity in others (voyeurism), people in yahoo chat use web cam for this.
exposing his own sex organs (exhibitionism),people in yahoo chat use web cam for this
rubbing his body against that of his partner (frottage),
engaging in oral intercourse (oralism),
engaging in anal intercourse (analism),
hurting or humiliating his partner (sadism),
being hurt or humiliated by his partner (masochism),
wearing clothes of the other sex (transvestism),
stealing something (kleptolagnia),
setting fires (pyrolagnia),
playing with his own or his partner's urine (urolagnia),
playing with his own or his partner's excrement (coprophilia).
Again, these perversions were aggravated in combination, as for instance when someone preferred anal intercourse while inflicting pain on his partner (sadistic analism), or when he liked to be insulted while playing with his partner's urine (masochistic urolagnia).
By the same token, the height of sexual perversion was reached when someone preferred the "wrong" sexual activity with the "wrong" sexual object. This was the case, for example, when a man engaged in oral intercourse with several women at the same time (oralistic troilism), or when he publicly masturbated into the soiled diapers of his baby daughter (exhibitionistic coprophilic incestuous pedophilic fetishism). Finally, all of these perversions and possible combinations of perversions could be rendered even more serious by an "excessive" sexual urge, called "satyriasis" in males and "nymphomania" in females, or "erotomania" in both sexes.
These observations finally suggested that sexual perversions were not bizarre special diseases, but rather exaggerations of "normal" tendencies, i.e., matters of degree. Therefore, more and more psychiatrists came to believe that only exclusive or nearly exclusive wrong sexual choices deserved to be called perverse. Someone who chose the wrong sexual object or activity only occasionally, and who otherwise remained capable of enjoying "healthy" coitus, was not a true pervert. As a matter of fact, some psychiatrists demanded a drastic reduction of the old catalogue claiming that, even in their exclusive forms, such behaviors as "autoeroticism", "homosexuality", "troilism", "gerontophilia", "oralism", "analism", and "transvestism" were not perversions at all. They could perhaps be described as narrow personal habits, but they were clearly outside the province of medicine.
compulsive,
destructive, or
distressing to the individual.
Clearly, any sexual activity that distresses those who engage in it deserves to be changed. Destructive behavior, quite apart from its subjective effects, can become harmful to other people and must therefore be stopped. Sexual compulsions, even if they harm no one else, lead to unhappiness and frustration.
Another question is the criminal prosecution and punishment of destructive behavior which has harmed unwilling victims. Legal protection against sexual assault in all its forms is one of the elementary duties of government. (Whether convicted offenders can or should be treated by psychiatrists is a complex issue beyond the scope of this book.)
By the same token, unconventional sexual behavior without clearly identifiable complaining victims should not be criminalized. Persons with otherwise harmless specialized sexual interests can reasonably demand to be left alone by the police. Their persecution is unfair and ill-advised. (For details, see "The Sexually Oppressed.")