Over the summer I was an intern in the gardens at an intentional community called Heathcote. Intentional communities are essentially communes but the members do not have a shared income or business, so the members have outside jobs. I instantly felt at home with the members, a group o
f older radicals and hairy second-wave feminists. One Saturday evening the community was hosting a hot tub party in their handmade cob hot tub that sits over a fire. Although I was not interested in getting in, considering it was the middle of the summer and extremely hot, I was interested in attending the party to enjoy some conversation and vegan marshmallows. The party was taking place about a 10 minute walk through the woods from where my room was. As I approached I started to notice something was odd, everyone in the hot tub was naked. I was stunned. These people I had gotten to know so well through everyday interactions were now baring it all in front of me. Going into this internship I was not expecting to see my boss, the intern coordinator, naked. My own reaction to the nudity of the community members was surprising to me. I needed to analyze why I felt so uncomfortable about this.
My first thought was that I felt uncomfortable because no one has warned me in advance that clothing was optional, and perhaps they should have. But, what was the real reason for my discomfort? The human body itself is simply raw material, however it is also packed with meaning given by society. The body is sexualized; society has created a framework in which certain body parts are not to be shown to the public. Even in more enclosed and safe environments, like the one I was in, to many is thought to be eccentric. Sexualized body parts are labeled with words like “private” and are expected to stay that way unless that are being used for arousal.
Something many young people rarely see is a naked average-sized body, imperfections, cellulite, and all. When “plus-sized” women are shown in the media, like in the Dove Campaign for Real Beauty, the images of the body are distorted with airbrushing, thus creating a false idea of what a “real” body looks like. Because of my instilled sexualized associations and my lack of experience in seeing what real naked bodies look like, my experience at the hot tub party was an awkward one.
Unruly Bodies 
I agree with society shielding us from seing anyones body part but our own is shocking esspecially if we are not notifies sooner. the human body to me is considered a temple were many are suppose to be forbidden to see. but to these people obviously feel as though it is right be become naked and show everything, maybe to them it is a sign of freedom from the real world or showing that everybody’s body is different and beutiful and one must show it off. if i were you in this situation i would be completely shocked like you were but then i would realixe that many people feel this way and i must not judge but embrace their way of life, that doesnt mean that i have to do what they are doing it simply means that i have to accept and not judge.
My friends and I would be the folks naked in the hot tub, so hear your perspective being on the other side of the spectrum. I think we have been socialized to view our bodies as sacred and while I do think the body is sacred, I believe that sometimes the intense sexualization linked to the sacredness of the “private parts” of our body can be extremely detrimental because it reiterates this sacredness. In a sense, hiding these parts of our body could be reaffirming said socialization. However, I think what you are saying makes a lot of sense, especially in relation to your discomfort. Because bodies are sexualized in such an intense way, it can be hard to feel comfortable “baring it all” because you may be unsure if your body will be unwantingly (and possibly unintentionally) sexualized (not to assume that that was how you were feeling). In situations like these, I think it’s important to communicate that clothing is optional in order to assure that it is a safe space for everyone.
*so it’s interesting to hear
I can understand why you would feel uncomfortable in this situation.I am not quite sure how I would have reacted had I have been in your shoes. When I think objectively about it, I see no problem with people having their bodies on display. Unfortunately, the media which so strongly influences our society, seems to only portray the naked body in terms of sex and sexuality. This in my opinion skews our view on any situation where the body in its most raw and pure form is shown. Though I think the openness in the display of each body is perfectly okay, it may have been a bit much to assume that this would be within your comfort zone. Just as certain websites make you consent to proceeding any further because of the “adult content” that may be seen, perhaps a heads up or a warning about the “dress code” of the hot tub party would have made all parties involved a bit more comfortable. Chances are if you felt uncomfortable, someone else did as well.