Perversion
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
Illustrated by the head of Elagabalus, one of the five "mad emperors" of ancient Rome
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- The action of perverting someone or something; humiliation; debasement.
- The state of being perverted; depravity; viciousness.
- A sexual practice or act considered abnormal; sexual deviance; immorality.
- An instance of such abnormal activity or behaviour; rape.
Perversion is a term and concept describing those types of human behavior that are perceived to be a deviation from what is considered to be orthodox or normal. Perversion differs from deviant behavior, since the latter refers to a recognized violation of social rules or norms (although the two terms can apply to the same behavior).
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Etymology
Originating in the 1660s a pervert was originally defined as "one who has forsaken a doctrine or system regarded as true, apostate."[1]. The sense of a pervert as a sexual term was derived in 1896, and applied originally to variants of sexualities or sexual behavior rejected by the individual who used the term.
The verb pervert is less narrow in reference than the related nouns, and may be used with no sexual connotations.
It is used in English law for the crime of perverting the course of justice which is a common law offence.
Modern usage
Modern use of the nouns perversion and pervert reflects their nineteenth-century psychological application, inasmuch as they tend to be used with reference to sexual rather than religious behavior. The first refers to behavior and the second to the person. They are generally derogatory and in psychological literature the term paraphilia is now used instead, (though this term is itself controversial).
The concept of perversion is somewhat subjective, and its application varies depending on culture. As a psychological term it was originally applied especially frequently to homosexual behavior. However, homosexuality is no longer treated as a disorder in mainstream psychiatry.
The verb pervert is less narrow in reference than the related nouns, and is more frequently used with no sexual connotations. One might say, for example, that a modern film version of Romeo and Juliet "perverts" Shakespeare's version of the story.
Catholicism
In a similar sense, the term was also used in the pre-Vatican II era by some Roman Catholics to describe the process of converting from Roman Catholicism to Protestantism. Whereas a Protestant who joined Roman Catholicism was described as a convert, a Catholic who became a Protestant was called a pervert (see Religious conversion). The phrase is no longer used by mainstream Catholicism, though traditional Catholics occasionally still use it.
Slang
In the last sixty years, the term "perv" has taken off as both a noun and verb. The noun is used as an abbreviated version of "sexual pervert", while the verb is used to describe the action of ogling or hitting on someone.
Examples:
- Noun: "Mikey tried to lure me into his apartment. He is such a perv."
- Verb: "Yo, you can't just ignore me just because I perved on you a little bit."
See Also
Namesakes
- Female Perversions by Louise Kaplan
- The Pervert's Guide to Cinema by Zizek
- The Perverse Countess by Franco
- Idols of Perversity and Evil Sisters by Dijkstra
- The Dedalus Book of Russian Decadence: Perversity, Despair and Collapse
- The Angels of Perversity by Remy de Gourmont
- The Imp of the Perverse by Poe
