Incest/Taboo Question

[Carnevil9]

Literotica has a story category called Incest/Taboo. Okay, that's fine, I understand what Incest is. But what is "Taboo" other than Incest? I'm having trouble thinking of something that is NOT incest, but still qualifies as "taboo" on a site where just about anything goes. Conceivably extramarital sex or gay sex or group sex might be considered as taboo by some folks, but they have their own categories. So what is supposed to go in the "Taboo" category besides incest?

Any thoughts? Thanks!

 

[Hypoxia]

Literotica has a story category called Incest/Taboo. Okay, that's fine, I understand what Incest is. But what is "Taboo" other than Incest? I'm having trouble thinking of something that is NOT incest, but still qualifies as "taboo" on a site where just about anything goes. Conceivably extramarital sex or gay sex or group sex might be considered as taboo by some folks, but they have their own categories. So what is supposed to go in the "Taboo" category besides incest?

Any thoughts? Thanks!

Cultures may have taboos that don't deal specifically with blood-kin fucking, but with clan and moiety structures. Let's say Jay is adopted into a moiety where Kay is a member. Jay is mad for Kay; they are in no way related genetically; but the social rules make their joining taboo. (Heinlein handles this in CITIZEN OF THE GALAXY.)

Step-kin may face similar barriers in many cultures, especially if the relationship is long term, like step-sibs raised together since infancy, or a lifelong stepparent-stepchild pairing.

Incest is biological. Taboo is social.

 

[oggbashan]

It applies to contact between differing castes in India.

Taboo can also be sex between people of different faiths e.g. Muslim/Christian, or sects e.g. Sunni/Shia Muslims.

In Northern Ireland, sex between Catholic/Protestant can be taboo. During the Troubles, that could be a fatal breach of taboo.

Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet is an exploration of taboo - love crossing boundaries of family enmity. A modern version (West Side Story-style) is love between people whose families are in different gangs.

Some societies have cultural taboos about marriage with those who are not virgins, or widows, about marriage with people with obvious physical defects, about marriage between mentally challenged people - all those are taboos.

Some societies see a woman marrying without her father's consent, or, even if she is an adult, marrying someone her father disapproves of - both taboo.

Breaching a society's taboo can lead to complete rejection by the society and effective exile, or even to death for offending family 'honor'.

I can think of a number of plotlines that explore Taboo, BUT because it is linked to Incest, any story solely about Taboo will disappoint most who read the Incest/Taboo category. They expect incest between close relations and anything else isn't exciting enough.

 

[Trip_Dalton]

Sex with a priest, a horny nun, a threesome with a couple deacons, you get the idea

 

[RejectReality]

As far as the bulk of the readership in that category is concerned: Nothing.

If you're speculating for academic purposes, or shits n' giggles, that's one thing. If you're actually thinking about posting in the category, forget the "taboo" part entirely. That's the incest category, and the readers will remind you of that rather pointedly if you post something without at least a hint of family shenanigans.

They may not be quite as nasty as the LW crowd, but if you try to drop a non-incest story there, they can be just as quick to leave a negative comment and a 1-bomb as our most infamous readership.

 

[sr71plt]

Agree with RR. The category has become so dominated by incest that, if you put something there that doesn't involve incest, you'll be inviting comments and voting to that effect.

 

[Tio_Narratore]

Cultures may have taboos that don't deal specifically with blood-kin fucking, but with clan and moiety structures. Let's say Jay is adopted into a moiety where Kay is a member. Jay is mad for Kay; they are in no way related genetically; but the social rules make their joining taboo. (Heinlein handles this in CITIZEN OF THE GALAXY.)

Step-kin may face similar barriers in many cultures, especially if the relationship is long term, like step-sibs raised together since infancy, or a lifelong stepparent-stepchild pairing.

Incest is biological. Taboo is social.

No, Hypoxia, Inbreeding is biological; Incest is socio-cultural. Incest is having sex with a relative you're prohibited from having sex with in your culture or society, and relatives are socio-culturally defined. Inbreeding is based on degrees of genetic relationship. An adopted child, for example, having sex with an adoptive parent would be committing incest in Western societies even though there is no biological relationship. A marriage (including sex) between the offspring of two brothers is proper, and not at all incestuous, in many Arabic societies, but does involve a close degree of biological relationship. Where I live, having sex with anyone related to you through great-great-grandparents (three degrees of cousinship) was incest until the 1960s. Now it's perfectly acceptable for second cousins to mate, and first cousins only need genetic counseling to get government permission to legally marry (and mate). Nothing changed about the biological relationships; only the relatives socially proscribed changed.

 

[oggbashan]

Agree with RR. The category has become so dominated by incest that, if you put something there that doesn't involve incest, you'll be inviting comments and voting to the effect.

Most Taboo subjects mentioned in this thread could be posted in other categories - not Incest/Taboo - and get a better reception. The Incest/Taboo readers expect Incest and nothing else.

The conflicts facing lovers who cross cultural taboos can lead to interesting plots in many categories.

 

[Carnevil9]

Thanks for the thoughtful answers, gang. No, I wasn't planning to write anything, I was just curious what would qualify.

It seems that to find a non-incest taboo, one would need to select either a historical, or foreign, or totally fictional society where such things exist. Our own modern western society seems to have an almost "anything goes" attitude. Cole Porter was ahead of his time!

Actually, I can think of two other activities, other than incest, that still would be considered taboo in modern western culture. However, they are so taboo that they are both explicitly forbidden at Literotica!

 

[ishtat]

Possibly the very close modern association of incest/taboo is a result of the very well known porn flick of the 70's/80's titled "Taboo," starring Kay Parker. This dealt with a mother son relationship.