Chapter 1
LOOK ALIVE!
The young boy glanced behind him nervously to reassure himself that he was alone, then resumed peeping through the small break in the translucent glass of the bathroom window. It was early morning, he had just returned from servicing his paper route with the morning edition and the two women in the apartment across the wide areaway were engaged in the usual morning routine of preparing for work.
The lad's excitement mounted with a rush as one of the two casually opened her robe and began to struggle, with suggestive motions of her body, into a tight girdle. His senses received an added fillip when, once into the garment, she reached down to cup herself between the thighs, snugging and adjusting the tight elastic. Dropping the robe, she next proceeded to massage, briefly but somehow caressingly, all the while facial expressions and lip movements indicated that she was continuing a running and, evidently, casual conversation with her apartment mate. All the boy could see of the latter was her legs, encased in her robe, stretched in relaxation, ankles crossed, on an ottoman. Occasionally a hand would enter the picture, gesturing or managing a cigarette over the ash tray on the table beside her.
The girdled woman sat down and carefully began to draw on long, sheer nylon hose, taking care to stretch and snug them to her legs. This was the moment the lad had been waiting for. Unfastening his slacks, he withdrew his erect organ and, excitedly began the ritual of heated and vigorous manipulation. Swiftly then, to his disappointment, she quickly stepped into her high heeled pumps and disappeared from view. As the peeping boy's eyes stayed glued to the window across the way, she returned, her former partial nudity concealed in a full length slip, then pulling her dress on quickly. She vanished from his sight as the boy's excitement subsided. The other woman got out of the chair but got into her clothing out of sight of the young peeper.
Restoring his clothing, he idly watched until the two of them appeared at the front of the apartment building to get into a cab and drive off. In order to see them emerge, he had left the bathroom and gone into the living room of his parents' apartment.
This was almost a morning ritual with the lad. Since moving into the apartment with his mother and father some months before, he had discovered the peep hole and the two women. He had, over the months, been treated to a wide range of vicarious thrills in his watching and had lost no opportunity to gratify his desires.
One morning, the woman he'd just watched dressing herself, had been alone with a man in the apartment across the areaway. Evidently, the other woman was away. When she'd started dressing, the man, dressed only in his shorts, let her get as far as her undergarments (that morning she hadn't put on the girdle) and when she was clad only in panties, hose and shoes, he got up from the chair to take her in a close embrace, freeing his shorts quickly to expose his erection.
The boy could detect that the woman was protesting but not vigorously. As he watched in breathless excitement, the man kept kissing and caressing the woman; then moved her toward the bed. He removed her panties and the watching boy almost choked as he knelt between her gleaming limbs, brandishing himself, boastfully. The boy could hardly suppress his own cries of excited sensation as he moved his hand, watching the man's naked body move forward over the woman on the bed; seeing her legs and arms wind around him in avid co-operation.
During the length of time the participants were obliviously engaged in their vigorous thrusting and writhing, the young lad attained two orgasms....
Tony Y., a nineteen-year-old first year college student, hurried from the subway entrance toward his place of employment. During his summer vacations, he was being given the opportunity to learn his uncle's business-shoe manufacturing-and had been doing so since his fourteenth birthday when he started as a helper in the shipping department. Now he was engaged in helping as he learned in the cutting room and this hot, July morning, was striding quickly along the crowded Manhattan street, his light suit coat carried over his arm.
Tony had a busy eye. As attractively formed and dressed young women (as well as older ones) flowed by him on the sidewalk, he was quickly and happily noting outstanding and exceptional conformations. A proud bust here-a tiny waist and the impudent thrust of rounded thighs beneath the short skirts-a saucy pair of legs there with an enticing curve to the instep. Now and then, he paused, unobtrusively to look (or pretend to look) into a shop window in order to get a rear view of an enticing set of legs and enjoy the enticing movement of firm, agile buttocks....
This young man enjoyed his voyeuristic activity. It was a ritual with him. Since his first employment at his uncle's plant (always in summer) he had enjoyed the parade of women in their light, summer garb and the feeling of excitement it roused in him as his eyes cut and darted to encompass it all. Some lucky mornings, the sun silhouetted the outline of thighs through the thin material of dresses and he always got an extra sensation of excitement out of this-as though he'd stumbled upon a fleeting treasure.
Tony liked girls and they liked him. He took the relationships he established with them in stride, shrewdly aware that the girls were husband shopping-and Tony was nowhere near ready for taking a wife. He enjoyed the game of sex, the acts of it, and he enjoyed looking at women: attractive, exciting, vivacious, or demure. His eyes brought him myriad, fleeting pleasures as he walked the few blocks from the subway to his job....
These two situations delineate the scope of voyeurism-the first is the extreme or consciously spying or peeping upon others in a recurring situation. Actually, this is best (and most widely) described as the action of a peeping Tom. Tony's case is at the other end of the scale: casual, fleeting, enjoyable. In the case of the young paper boy, spying on the women in the adjacent apartment, here is involved a breach of the law-just as in the case of one who lurks in-likely areas after nightfall, seeking targets of opportunity for his spying. The peeping Tom is an offender against the established customs of the social order. The casual devotee of girl-watching on the streets is participating in a completely innocent or socially-acceptable activity.
The latter type of voyeurism is indulged in, to some extent, by both males and females. However, voyeurism, as we shall see, is pretty largely restricted to the male of the species. The female, because of her difference-especially in sexual response-is little affected by it.
The sexuality of women, briefly, is so much a basic component of their total entity that the superficial does not attract her. Though it may sound difficult to believe, sex means almost two entirely different things to the female and the male. It has been said that love is a woman's whole life. Being made as she is: bearing the responsibility and possessing the physical investiture which charges her with the responsibility for the reproduction of the species, the female seldom takes a casual view of sex; nor is she much impressed with its peripheral manifestations. Thus, peeping is not, usually, an attraction for her. She is, herself, a sex symbol if she needs to look at one ... a true voyeur is one who can become excited to the point of enjoying orgasm while watching others engaged in the act--few women may be placed in this category.
Voyeurism is a little-understood manifestation of the complex sex make-up of the human species. In the lower animal forms it varies in its appeal. Instances have been cited of dogs being excited to attempt or initiate sexual activity, inspired by the spectacle of two other dogs, so occupied. Conversely, the eruption of copulative activity in the center of a herd of cattle seldom produces any sympathetic excitement in the surrounding animals.
Voyeurism is, thus, almost totally a human ability, depending not alone upon the eye as an extension of erogenous zones, but also dependent upon the exercise of the imagination concurrently with the act of looking or peeping.
The casual voyeur, checking the shapes of the girls who pass him on the street, will now and then encounter one who meets his standards of sexual desirability. He will simultaneously enjoy a fleeting run-through of fantasy in connection with her. The animals of lower order-not being equipped with mentalities capable of fantasy-are not impressed, probably, by images the eye gathers. In the few instances of animals who do respond to sexual activities of their kind, the senses of smell and hearing are most likely responsible for their imitative reaction.
Brian L., an unhandsome young man in his mid-twenties, although possessed of a normal sexual drive, had never been adept at getting along with girls. Through childhood, school and work years, he had failed to attract associates of the opposite sex. Brian's appearance, while unprepossessing, was far from repulsive but he never developed the knack of making the best of his physical attributes. Brian was undoubtedly burdened with an unfavorable mental image of himself; consequently he was never at ease with girls and could not get on any sort of footing with them which was attractive to them and satisfactory to him.
His sexual gratification was achieved through self-manipulation with "girlie" magazines, which he chose selectively. Brian's standards of attraction were high and he had many words with store owners and clerks over his minute examination of those that were offered for sale. He told one store owner who chided him about the length of time he spent in looking over the magazines:
"Look, Mister Clayton, if I'm gonna pay a buck V a quarter or two 'n' a half f one, I don't want pictures uh pigs-who needs 'em?"
"I don' wanna run business away, Brian-but why doncha go out an' getcha self a girl-that's what you need!"
Brian only shrugged. He earned a living income in a routine job and kept to himself almost entirely. His only emotional outlets were his sessions with his magazine pictures, highlighted by a rare sight of a girl (who met his standards) on the street. Sometimes he would change his direction to follow one of these, eyeing her hungrily as he noted the movement of her limbs and body beneath her clothes. Then, he would hurry to his room and lock himself in to masturbate with the recollection and fantasy centered upon her....
Thus, voyeurism covers the entire spectrum of optical activity in its relation to things erotic. Some question has been raised, in obscure areas, as to the validity of the term as one which should be applied exclusively to sexual considerations. The word comes from the French verb voir, which translates "to see," the form voyeur meaning one who sees, the implications of its Gallic origin, plainly, adding the dash of spice which gives the meaning "one who looks." Opposing the use of voyeur are those who insist that, on the face of it, the word might just as well designate the individual who enjoys all optical delights-the fanfare of color in a spectacular sunset-the rolling motion of waves breaking on the sands-a masterpiece of painting or sculpture.
However, it seems that the proponents of this meaning for voyeur are ranged on the losing side.
For one reason-and this is not said to be entirely facetious-the word is most often pronounced with a tacit 'accent leer'-which would dispose of the former contention.
Webster's New Twentieth Century Dictionary(1962) defines a voyeur as "a person given to voyeurism; a peeping Tom"; following with a definition for voyeurism as: "a perversion in which sexual gratification is obtained by looking at sexual objects or scenes." This information leaves something to be desired. To classify a voyeur as a Peeping Tom and voyeurism as a perversion is, certainly, an inaccurate statement versus popular usage. While a voyeur's activity may offer no offense to socially acceptable practices, this cannot be applied to the actions of a peeping Tom.
Further, the statement that "sexual gratification is obtained by looking" is certainly far wide of the mark if gratification is accepted at its usual face value, accorded the term in matters touching the area of sex. It is apparent that the term voyeur has been absorbed into that considerable segment of the American language containing words which are nebulous or foggy in their definition. Small wonder that the difficulties of communication continue to grow, with our own tongue working against us in this way.
Professional men are no less obscure in assigning terms to the activity of looking or peeping. The Greek verb scopeo-"I look," and phileo-"I like," have been combined to variously produce a term which means "I like to look." The variety is encountered in the fact that some like it "scopto-philia," while some prefer "scotophilia." It has, in origin, no sexual flavor nor implication. More definitive in this area, however, is the term "mixoscopia" assembled from (again) scopeo and mix is the latter term meaning both "mingling" and "intercourse"-producing a word which means "I like to look at intercourse."
It appears that the judicious course then, with the existence of some evident disagreement (in addition to the previously indicated confusion) which exists in the attempts to define the activity of looking for titillation's sake, is not attempt to label it but to stick to the procedure of describing it. A more laborious process, to be sure, but it is effort dedicated to clarification.
Probably the world's most famous sexologist, Havelock Ellis, says of voyeurism: "To a certain extent, this tendency is absolutely normal; that manifestation of it should be considered shameful is due simply to the rigid secrecy which convention attaches to the naked body. Many respectable men have, during their youth, sought secret opportunities to surprise women in their bedrooms; and more than one honorable woman has looked through the keyhole of a man's bedroom, though she would not, today, be prepared to admit it ... landladies and servants put their eyes to the keyholes of rooms where there were couples they suspected of being in love ... These manifestations have sometimes attracted the attention of the police, notably in Paris. Women I know have discovered that men were looking at them through the openings in the roof of the toilets in the Tuileries Gardens."
Ellis, notably, does not assign any blame to such activities; further evidence of confusion as to sharp definition of areas of permissiveness vs areas of offense is provided by the colleagues of the Kinsey institute for Sex Research, FOUNDED BY ALFRED C. KINSEY. IN THEIR BOOK, "SEX OFFENDERS," CHAPTER 16, titled "Peepers," begins:
"Peepers are adult males who, for their own sexual gratification, looked into some private domicile or into some area or room reserved exclusively for females with the hope of seeing females nude or partially nude, the observation being without the consent of the females concerned. The term peeper, as thus defined, is not quite synonymous with the term voyeur, which is broader. A voyeur is a person who, according to the dictionary ". . .attains sexual gratification by looking at sexual objects or situations." Thus, a lounger on the street watching passing girls, or a person watching a strip-tease act could qualify as a voyeur, or so could the peruser of "cheesecake" magazines. One might say the peeper is a voyeur who has no legal right to be at the location from whence he observes, but even this definition is imperfect since a man has a right to be on a public street at night, but is liable to arrest if he stands on the sidewalk looking into the window of the adjacent apartment house." So much for confusion.
Dr. George Henry does the best job of "sorting out" the basic facts to define the various facets of voyeurism. In his book, "All the Sexes," Dr. Henry notes:
"The impulse to look at other persons for the purpose of appraising sexual qualities and propensities is a universal experience. Response to this impulse is found in the desire to be admired by others, in the display of the body and in the use of adornment. Peeping, or scotophilia, or voyeurism is just as common as exhibitionism and is indulged in equally by both sexes. Inspection is a part of all amorous engagements, but it is often regarded as immoral when it is obviously sexual, and it is illegal when it invades the privacy of others in the form of peeping.
"Scotophilia is really a counterpart of exhibitionism. Both tendencies are often closely associated, and both are manifestations of insecurity and narcissism. A man who places himself in a position to view the partially clad or nude body or the genitals of a woman is often one who has been unable to satisfy himself sexually by closer contact, and who would be embarrassed if he had the opportunity. like exhibitionism, scoptophilia is a juvenile form of sexuality the purpose of which is self-gratification.
"Exhibitionism and scoptophilia obtain free expression in nudist camps under the guise of pursuit of health through exposure to the sun. An apologetic explanation is given that public nudity lessens sexual attraction. The approximation to nudism at bathing beaches and swimming pools constitutes a major attraction to those who come to display themselves and to look at others."
There would appear to be a tacit agreement among psychologists, and medically qualified experts that the sense of sight operates as a normal source of stimulus in matters sexual. Nudism, scanty attire at bathing beaches and swimming pools, clothing which is designed to emphasize rather than conceal-all these are indications that voyeurism and corresponding exhibitionism are a widely-accepted factor in our daily lives....
"Man, they drive me out of my mind," said William O., a nineteen-year-old service station attendant. "Girls and women drive in here all the time with their dresses up so high, I've begun to think it's a deliberate tease. Oh, I know it's not true with all of them," he frowned, reconsidering, "I guess it's just so common it seems that way to me. You ought to come to work with me sometime and perch on my shoulder-you'll see what I mean.
"There's one woman who's a regular customer. She's a blonde, about thirty-something-early thirty, I'd guess-and she's a divorcee. She comes on like crazy-at least to me. I've never seen her standing up, but she must have a figure out of this world. Nearly every time she pulls in, I start to experience an erection. Not always, though; sometimes it's so busy in here there's no time to do anything but go, go, go. She'll pull up to those side pumps where there's the least traffic and when I go up to the driver's window with my big smile, the hem of her skirt usually hits her halfway between the knee and the hip. Man! she has beautiful legs and my eyes just bounce around like ping-pong balls. After I get the pump running, I have to clean the windshield-and this is where I get my big jolt. When there's a good pair of legs under the wheel, I always start on the other side of the glass and work over, to save the best for last.
"This blonde will just sit there, thighs relaxed, and all the time I'm standing over her, I can identify what she's wearing next to her skin. She doesn't try to close 'em up or cross 'em. I always wear these real dense sun shades and she wears dark glasses, too. I've glanced up several times to catch her eyes fixed on mine. I bet she's trying to see me looking, but I don't think she can. Not as heavy as the tint is in my glasses and under the shade of the overhead.
"Then, when I come around to the window again to collect her credit card, she always checks the crotch of my jeans. Most of the time I don't disappoint her-and her eyes go there, every time. She doesn't make with any conversation; she never makes a pass-she just sits there and lets me look up her skirt-and then checks me for a reaction. It's screwy. I'd like to make it with her, but she's so stand-offish, I'm scared to make a move. So, I treat her like she was the president of the company-except when she sits there with her dress up and those beautiful thighs spread.
"Lots of girl and women drivers will close their thighs and turn in the seat while I'm working on the glass. But you'd be surprised how many don't. Once in a while, I'll hit double bingo-two of them; both gabbing away, paying no attention to me, but sitting there with most of their goodies on display. I get a pretty good check on underwear. With these short skirts, most of the gals who come in are covered from the hose up. But, I'd say about a fourth of them still stick to the old open-bottom girdle. Some wear pants-but some don't. That's when the going gets rough-man, I really have to watch my step. If the boss ever caught me trotting around with an erection, he'd probably crack my head; but I can't help it. They just turn me on and it never happens less than a half-dozen times a shift..."
Asked if he managed to make any sexual contacts with the female customers, William was reluctant at first but finally admitted he did.
"Usually, the most outgoing are the younger ones, a little younger than me, but they're mostly conversation. I look for the signs in the older girls and let the kids alone. Now and then, I get a real warm smile and explore the situation. I've never hit a score the first time out. It generally takes four or five visits into the station before we can get on a kidding basis. Then I can move, and generally find I haven't made a mistake. I've developed some conversation to go along with it-and it always leaves me an out. If I see one start to cloud up over something I've said, I just keep on talking-but, from then on, it leads clear away from a proposition.
"I like the older models best, really. One of these days I hope that blonde gives me just a teeny-weeny opening. Man I dream about those thighs..."
Sex is more and more emphasized in visual manifestations in our culture. Clothes for both men and women seem to reveal rather than conceal, although there are many who are aghast at what is revealed. Brief skirts for females can be quite alluring-if the wearer has pretty legs. Otherwise, it seems a hopeless cause. Too, the current fashions in footwear more and more resemble aboriginal primitive and, should a female be possessed of attractive extremities, the footgear quite often destroys its effect.
However, the sheath dress, the split skirt, daring d'colletage all play a part in acceptable exhibitionism, as do the extremely snug trousers for males, which cannot help but bulge at the crotch.
In both male and female dress, then it must be conceded that voyeurism and exhibitionism are an accepted and expected thing in the American mores. With more and more overt resistance being shown to long-standing taboos with regard to sex, it is logical to believe that a change is in progress. Whether it may be of a dimension to justify calling it a "revolution" is difficult to know, at this point. Certain it is, that the rapidly-increasing incidence of higher education carries with it an increasing resistance to the secrecy, the forbidden character of anything touching on sex. If this trend continues, what we witness today in opposition to the behavioral codes bequeathed us by antiquity, is only the action of the advance elements. With each new class of college graduates which enters the socioeconomic picture, the resistance will stiffen and spread.
In many ways, ours is a society in a condition of flux. In such a state, constant change gives rise to confusion because it seems that time-honored standards with regard to sex are being violated ... and this is always distressing to many who feel that it presages a collapse of cherished institutions. Not so. "I don't know what things are coming to" has been the cry of the middle-age generation in every century. But, it's only change-the thing man resists most-and the force that moves him most.
The pace of life is speeding; the effect of life is more exciting; the rewards of life are richer. Much of it is due to taking our repressions out of the closet. The human race is looking at life with a bolder, braver eye, generation by generation. This is voyeurism in stereo, living color, wide screen....
It's a brave new world. Be a latter day voyeur.....
Look alive!