Stripping Spectacle

By: Jonathan Seidel

The art of stripping: professionalism absent intimacy (Barthes, 84-85)

Strip clubs are hangouts for desperate men seeking validation. A night on the town for an enjoyable evening to splurge. A way of entertaining the spectacle of undressing. Near naked women dancing for the audience’s delight. Yet it is the middle of undressing without intimacy. A professionalism that solely observes without touching. The ideal is desiring the nakedness without seeing it. A moment of gradual build up that never pops. Keeping the mystery at arms length, keeping the excitement rolling. 

Historically stripping can be found on cave paintings. Ancient Sumerian myth tells of Inanna the goddess of love who in her descent into the underworld removed an article one gate at a time. Stripping was originally designated for fertility. A striptease was a measure of elevating the libido of a potential mate. Arousing the interest of the male. A theatrical movement that encourages excitement from the male counterpart. The male’s gaze fixated on the female’s body. Her once clothed self is erasing. Her covered cleavage is showing. Her modest demeanour shaken with sexual fire. Slowly she undresses, unveiling the secret of her sexuality. Her nude body protected by clothing. A modesty of enshrined purity. Her adorned body is pure flesh bare vulnerability of her selfhood. The personal exploitation of the self. Opening up to another at the core of self consciousness. Hesitating removal in fear of takeover. Calmly undressing in gradual faith in the other.  

She is exposed but in doing so influences the desire of the male mate. Each article of clothing represents a layer of defence. A layer of mystery and reproach. She divulges her body one rose pedal at a time. A process of engaging the body. Intoxicated by the desire for her sexuality. The more revealed the deeper the sensation. The male libido rises with each revelation. The slow subtle removal hypnotises the desired connection. The libido is confounded by emotional overload. Her actions permeate his mind. Filling his brain with sexualised doses of obscurity. Her vulnerability invites him in. She undresses to gage his readiness. To indicate to him of her desire for him as well. A mutual effort induced by flirtatious apprehension. He is seduced into her bodily revelation. Marked by her beauty and her desire to procreate. Her striptease is a call to invite him to partake in the experience.     

Her body is idolised. Her beauty is pinpointed and gazed upon. Clothed she is solely another female but as she undresses she imparts a divergence from other females. She is deviating in routine. Her beauty is becoming more apparent as the tattered clothes binding her are removed. Her smooth skin is clear to the ogling observer. He can’t but stare hypnotised by her beauty. With each article discarded his gaze becomes more fixated. He is marvelled by her beauty seduced to her increasing angelic form. Bare is to be purified from the toxic coverings hiding the truth. Exposed she is free and graciously elegant. Objectified in the seductive refraction. She has positioned herself as an object of concentration. The gaze only strengthens, popping out of their sockets. Beholden by her beauty subjected to her theatre. Her wish is for his encroachment to swarm her. Endorphins secrete as the sensation thrusts him toward her urging him to grab her. Yet he holds himself back wishing for the play to persist.

Theatrical uses in Ancient Greece and Rome play a different role than the fertile aspiration or brothel enjoyment. It is crystallised into a form of art instead of art form. Fertility desired male initiative. A flirtatious expression to wound up the observing male. To gather his attention and cast him under her spell. By alluring him with her impulse. Inviting him into her sacred space. A place of secrecy only for those who are awarded such permission. Disrobing is close contact theatre. Watching a play unfold in real time. The audience is in on the action. He is an actor in the play. Riveting in its proximity. Feeling the emotional pressure overwhelm his mind. He is locked into the performance. His eyes target her movements. It is for the entertainment. For his heart to skip as his endorphins heighten. His emotions bouncing in jolly excitement. Her beauty unfolding in front of his very eyes. Encapsulated by the wonder beholden to the unknown. 

She dances to focus his gaze toward her body. Her movements are styled and choreographed to perfection. The dance coveys a story with emotions sprouting from angelic sidestepping. Communicating messages to the audience. Her seductive messages engulf the audience in the spectacle of sexual desire. The dance is nonverbal, swaying her hips as his eyes further fixate on her elegant figure. Her dance spells professionalism. This dance is a performance. It is restricted access. Gaze and ponder at the beauty. Enjoy the production. So close to the action and yet so far. Hypnotised into the spectacle of her dance. Captivating his mind in the process. Communicating her information over to him. For him to sit back and enjoy the show. The climatic insurance is the absence of touch. Her dance is on the stage. Her exposure is to longed for. The mystery though steps away is worlds away. She is an object of mystery that is lusted and enjoyed. 

Private endeavours allow touch but one way. For the stripper to control the event. For the audience to enjoy the dance and movements. She is touching him but he cannot touch her. He is to relax his body with his eyes concentrated on her every move. Yet at times his emotions overwhelm him and he reaches to grab her body. His desire compels his egregious sin. Her objectification of mystery is perceived as his for the taking. His out of bounds action, his ruthless selfishness is akin to breaking the boundary between professionalism. He has been overtaken by his insidious thoughts. Her mystery is even more desirable. She has stripped but there is more. She controls and he desires to regain the authority. To proactively gather her into his arms. The nefarious action is an incitation taken too far. A drunkard with a control complex. The dancer is allotted protection from overwhelmed audience members unable to hand the striptease. Overcome with desire of the classic taboo. 

Interest in the striptease is in its lacking nudity. Nudity is the climax and the momentarily end to the mystery. The continuous unveiling of clothing is the excitement. The more cleavage the more curiosity. Yet with all clothes off, the beauty is there but the mystery is gone. The wonder fades into awe but normalises in time. Nudity will raise men’s hearts to the bare beauty but there is something missing. It is the almost nude that has the greatest success of endorphin release. Sexuality is at its peak in underwear. What do her boobs look like, is her vagina shaven. Covering up these places only spells mystery to the observer. Removing each covering expands the wonder. The first deduction is false maybe it is this way. The unknown increases the emotional investment. It is with the minimal covering that seeks to inspire more desire. She has nearly exposed herself but relinquishes that possibility. She keeps the mystery hidden. Retaining her purity in her professionalism. Sexualised up till her moment of cessation. There is a moment of persisted inquiry. He must know but once he knows that is it. The emotional investment has reduced. 

It is called a tease for a reason. It attempts to provide a considerable detailed possibility without revealing the answer. All the hints without the solution. Estimate, guess, only heightening the emotional engagement. A moment of lacking clarity. A murky wonder confounds the mind. Regressing to the bare animal is seductive in its aspirational intent. The tease is the absent intimacy. The relation is strictly professional. Even if a lover’s striptease is a performance. Do not intervene just observe. The object of concentration is disrobing and unveiling her truth. She is touched once her body is naked. Once she has revealed it all can she be touched. The foreplay is intentioned to raise the libido. To arouse the excitement. A lover who has seen her naked body is still aroused by her disrobing spectacle. He knows what to expect. The mystery is no more but the gradual unveiling is still impactful. It still fixates his eyes and motions his brain. Hypnotised ever again. 

Intimacy is the moments following the nude. It is the realisation of the sexualised. The climax in her underwear fuels his passion. He wishes for her to become nude to reveal the mystery haunting his memory. Wishing to grab at her clothes and tear them off. Yet he patiently awaits her action. Calming himself to enjoy her control. Prioritising the connection over the function. The connection is fraudulent, a hoax. A way of enthralling the male mind for a tease. To chase her around the park for her to show him what is in her palm. Finally tackling her she opens her hand and there is nothing there. The tease is a stage of indeterminacy. Hope for more but forbidden. The tease is a latent distraction for potentiality. A desire menacing in its compulsion. The lover undresses subtly hinting to nudity but reaching there on her own terms. The lover incites his investment holding out for his passion to reach its climax. Her objectification lasts as long as she has yet to unveil the mystery. Tarnishing her sanctity to the mundane.

Her performance is lauded. A desire for something he can never have. He watches from afar holding himself back. In awe of her beauty his libido rising with each step to nakedness. She is objectified and fixated. He cannot tear himself away. Placing himself in an illusion of aspired emotional interest. A sexualised pursuit cut short by climaxed hope. A mystery to remain hidden. To tease the possibility of sexualisation only to keep the audience guessing. Pondering of her true figure of her bare beauty. A mystery professionalised and produced in a spectacle of excitement.

Wordless Wonder

By: Jonathan Seidel

Speech is the mechanism to communicate but is the exoteric expression for the deeper esoteric experience. Speech is that veil that aids the experience. It supercharges mutuality while voiding the true nature of the mutual experience. Speech is regulated and absolved of its deeper purpose. 

The a priori encounter is the experience. It is the sublime sensation latching onto man. The loss of wonder and fascination necessitates speech as that medium. Speech is the second level. It is necessary but not for experience. A genuine encounter is silent respect. Dignity to the other in joy. Smiling to one another without a care in the world. No words no comments. Just being present with one another. The tranquility of presence unities the mutual effort. A comforting tone to the mood.     

 

The presence is assured in beseeching camaraderie to the encounter. The unity in relational acknowledgement furthers the experience. It is the moment of realisation. A recognition of the other in the spatial proximity. Communication reaches new heights in the primal realm. A realm so long ignored and rummaged through. People move straight to talking before even marking the primacy. The experience is the moment of encounter but it quickly muddles into conversation. Conversation breaks the experience with jargon. The encounter isn’t at its peak of connection. Dialogue takes away from the linkage between the two sides. 

Speech is a distraction from the genuine encounter. Yet it may also do the opposite. Speech brings two closer through deep questions. It may bring about the deepest intimacy but there is a special experiential primacy. The level of a priori experience is not on the intimate level but it is on the connecting phase. The formal invite is through acknowledgement. The experience is the silent reflection of the mutuality. The spark of connection is relishing in each other’s presence. The surface level presence is not shallow but personal dignity. Speech overtakes this dignity and pushes through to the logos. To speak to overcome the dreaded silence. To make noise in a voided atmosphere. 

There is a difference between the intimacy felt after conversation. The knowledge attained churns into an emotive closeness but this misses the experiential marker. The point is facing the other on neutral ground. A lack of closeness does persist without further knowledge. It is not the goal of every encounter. The technological advancement has placed knowledge consumption at the forefront of requirements. To sit silently comforted by the presence of the other. With no compulsion to break the stillness. A moment of serenity, temporary but beautiful. A meditative focus on the other in its elevated ethos. Knowledge is secondary to the experience. It is the concentrated effort to fully acknowledge the other. 

It is an a priori ethical basis to being. The other is across the table. The genuine experience is the wondrous encounter with the other. The awe of this moment encourages the gathering of knowledge. Yet the experience alters the trajectory of knowledge attainment. It is to have a good time, to enjoy the encounter. The experience heightens the fascination with meeting others. It transcends the limitations of the other for a serene measure of concentration. Emotional standing is empowered by this meditative silence. the point of connection is the experiential link. It is not just finding similar hobbies but the emotive spirit linking the two conversationalists. The moral accord perceives the equal being in tandem. 

The experience is even greater in post-knowledge encounters. After the intimacy is sparked the experience is not over. Knowledge leads to a feeling but it is lacking in the absoluteness. The experience recognises the other separated from and  with the knowledge. Knowledge parts the significance of the experiential encounter. It creates biases and categories for others. It places people in boxes. Knowledge is a quasi-enemy to knowledge. There is though an elevated experience with an advanced feeling for the other. The silence succeeding intimate exchange bolsters the encounter. The experience is heightened by a preconceived knowledge that need time to reflect. The presence with the other is particularly powerful in the moment of emotional connection. 

Knowledge is not always a hinderance. The logos is measurable to the experiential focus. It adds to the relationship between the two but it is not the primal figure of connection. Speech takes over as a necessary method. Speech need not become a one-man-band. There is a time to talk and a time to hush. Silent during the encounter reverberating the experience. The experience can only manifest with intentional feasibility. The duration of speech overtakes silent internalisation. It is an endless motor. A boxing match jab for jab. The depth encounter is a result of quiet connection. A bold stillness and focus externally. Talk to connect not to mumble.