In Search of Vices
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Send to a friend by YMAuthor: Alessandro Nicolo
A commentary on the not-so unique modern sensibility.
Jenna Jameson once said, "get with the 90s," regarding the resistance by some about the mainstreaming of porn - and no you may not ask how I came up with this quote. As if it's a healthy progressive move forward. Each decade thinks itself better than the last. Then again, we do tend to lament the lost golden ages of past eras.
Her quote nonetheless got me thinking about the Ancient Romans.
In my only Classical History course I took in University, I bring to you a Roman quote that challenges Jameson's quote of 'getting with the 90s.' "Quod licet lovi, non licet bovi." (What Gods may do what cattle may not). Only aristocratic Romans accorded themselves the right to 'free love' and orgies. "One of the most notorious aristocratic sluts in history," (as author Jon Solomon put it) Messalina could challenge Jameson's assertion indeed. She once challenged Rome's most decorated prostitute Scylla to an all-night sex competition. Scylla, realizing the depravity of her actions, stopped around 25 lovers while Messalina, free of such self-imposed moral constraints, forged ahead well into the morning. A Gangbang Star was born.
As we evolved through the ages it became somewhat ethical to keep your sexual prowess under control and out of the public realm - the Victorian age brought this notion to great heights. Still, at least Roman whores used sex as a manipulation tool for political ends. How is that any different than today exactly?
Not anymore. You've got to go public now. It's where the media and money is (see Paris Hilton). If Messalina felt the right to act with such immorality as an aristocrat those class walls have been removed in the 90s - maybe this is what Jenna meant. Just look at the many scantily dressed young girls who litter our sidewalks and malls - they come from all walks of life. God bless freedom and forward progess. They have quickly amended the aforementioned Roman quote by removing the word 'gods' and inserting 'agnostic middle-class.'
Subtle beauty and elegance is way out of our modern day sensibilities. Andie McDowell is nothing next to Pamela Anderson in this context. I watched 'Rear Window' and still can't get over Grace Kelly's, well, grace. And they sure don't make 'em like Jimmy Stewart anymore. Anyway, we don't have the time to get to know people given our societal frenetic paces and unsatiable demand to have our penises perked up with the cover of a magazine. What matters most is the immediate first impression. Tattoos help if you want to gain someone's superficial eye. Gotta be unique - for its own sake of course.
It's not just about sex. Now we have the poker channel for opera-crying out loud - gee, I thought golf was the new anethesia. Everything is a ridiculous niche now. The allure of the NFL is part glitz and all gambling. Most people who watch could really care less about the essence and history of the sport so long as the team they bet on covers. We can go on and on.
Vices and virtues are the ying and yang of our moral compass. Some decades the weight falls one way and other periods the other. There is no doubt we are entering a period in human development where negative forces -I define negative forces as those which prevent us from personal meditation that allows the possibility of human achievement to move forward as a civilization - are pulling ahead. And as the Romans showed, we ain't all that special despite being 2000 years older.
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