Ephebophilia



Ephebophilia or Hebephilia has been defined as the primary or exclusive sexual attraction to adolescents. In everyday English, the term pedophilia, strictly meaning sexual attraction to children, is also colloquially used to refer to attraction to adolescents.

The term comes from the έφηβος (ephebos) variously defined as "one arrived at puberty", "a youth of 18 who underwent his dokimasia and was registered as a citizen (Athens)", and "arriving at man's estate"; and φιλία (-philia) "love". Despite this classical etymology it is a term of modern coinage, created by German scientist Magnus Hirschfeld in 1906. It has been used by Dutch psychologist and pro-pedophile activist Frits Bernard as far back as 1950, reprinted in 1960 in the gay support magazine Vriendschap under the pseudonym Victor Servatius, also crediting it to Hirschfeld though giving no exact date.

The term has also been used by the Frenchman Felix Buffiere in 1980 and described at length by Tariq Rahman in 1988 who argues that it should be used in preference to 'homosexuality' for describing grown men's aesthetic and erotic interest in adolescent boys (See Pederasty) when classical literatures in Persian, Turkish or Urdu are under discussion.

Ephebophilia is not listed as a paraphilia in the DSM-IV.

Characteristics


Attraction to adolescents is not generally regarded by psychologists as pathological except when it interferes with other relationships, becomes an obsession which adversely affects other areas of life, or causes distress to the subject.

Sexual desire that includes adolescents, as well as older individuals, is common among adults of all sexual orientations; this is not labeled "ephebophilia" because the attraction to adolescents is not exclusive. In some cultures, such as those in which adolescent girls are routinely married to older men, it is considered normal for adults to include adolescents among their sexual interests. In these cultures an attraction to adolescents is not necessarily thought to require an essentialist classification in terms of abnormality, deviancy or mental health, but is seen as a possibility or a taste. In certain Middle Eastern and South Asian cultures, as reflected in literature written in Turkish, Persian and Urdu, the expression of love for attractive adolescent boys is found in classical literature. In Urdu, for instance, it may be a metaphor for the mystic's quest for an immanent deity; a lover's desire for a woman who, being a veiled lady or a courtesan, is impossible to own; or in some cases, boys who take the place of women in gender-segregated societies (Rahman 1989). This attraction of men to adolescent males is not seen as effeminate or regarded as homosexuality, per se, but is usually considered sinful (Rahman 1988). Nonetheless, an open attraction to adolescents may still be ridiculed or disparaged as inappropriate or unhealthy; an attraction to adolescents is something one is expected to "grow out of". These cultural assumptions have come into contention with the advent of modernity and the resultant exposure to cultures with different views.

In fairy tales, adolescent girls are sometimes made the object of romantic attachment by older men. While suggesting it, this is not ephebophilia since the males do not have exclusive sexual preference for young girls. Some fairy tales that are alleged to contain ephebophilia are Rimsky-Korsakov's opera version of the Snow Maiden, Vasilissa the Beautiful, and Sadko. These themes are sometimes correlated with gerontophobia.

Legality
Ephebophilic relationships are against the law in many countries and jurisdictions, depending on the location's age of consent legislation, which typically asserts that a person below a certain age is not legally capable of consenting to a sexual act. In the US, for example, the adult in such a relationship may be subject to charges of statutory rape, regardless of whether the younger partner agrees to—or even initiates—the sexual activity.

Some reasons given for this legal distinction include:
 * Some adolescents are unable to understand the physical, emotional, and social consequences of sexual activity. According to the August 2006 issue of Scientific American, the neurological development of late adolescents is not yet complete, leading to deficits in their higher cognitive functions including judgment, attention, and response to crisis situations. However, late adolescence also includes people over 18, since neurological development is still not complete at this age (by this definition).
 * Adult sexual relations with adolescents can be an abuse of power, using psychological coercion.
 * Sexual relations with adolescents can lead to pregnancy and parenthood, for which adolescents may not be prepared emotionally and/or financially.

Relationships between adults and adolescents that do not include sexual activity are generally legal, assuming no other laws regarding child welfare are violated. For example, a romantic relationship with an adolescent below the age of consent is generally legal, especially when the adolescent's age is above the age at which their parents could consent to marriage. In other jurisdictions, this may be illegal.

Endnotes, references and sources

 * Ames, A. & Houston, D.A. "Legal, social, and biological definitions of pedophilia." Archives of Sexual Behavior, vol. 19, 1990, pp. 333-342.
 * Dynes, Wayne R. (ed.) Encyclopedia of Homosexuality.  New York and London, Garland Publishing, 1990.
 * Percy, William A. Pederasty and Pedagogy in Archaic Greece, Urbana and Chicago: University of Illinois Press, 1996.
 * Rahman, Tariq. "Boy-Love in the Urdu Ghazal", Annual of Urdu Studies, Vol. 7 (1990), pp. 1-20.

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