There is a lot of adultery going on these days; you only have to turn on your television to see it. It can be in the form of characters in a storyline or real life celebrities. I think Mad Men would be a thirty minute show if all the adultery encounters were removed. But adultery doesn't seem to really be the "A" word like it was in the days of Nathaniel Hawthorne's writings.
Today, sexual unfaithfulness of a married person is softened up by use of such terms as "a minor indiscretion" or "wandering eye". And for real hard core adulterers we have the good Doctor Drew to the rescue, ready to treat and counsel the offender for his sexual addiction. We never seem to read about women suffering from this condition, I wonder why that is?
Times have changed, the world has changed, and we now live in a world where an indiscretion of any type is but a tweet away from everyone knowing about what is going on. More than one US President carried on affairs, known about, but not covered by the media. Times had changed by the time President Bill Clinton had his in the White House encounter.
If I don't care for the offender I can use the offense as fuel to fan the flames of my dislike. If I have a neutral position I usually let the incidence pass like water off a duck's back. But when the offender is someone I admire and who has become an icon for all that is admirable and good, I become very disappointed in this person.
Yes, adultery is a personal issue, deeply affecting the family involved, but somewhere fame and celebrity blurs the line between private and public and we end up involving ourselves in this private issue. I had the idea that maybe we should bring The Scarlet Letter back and force the adulterer to have to wear this letter. On second thought, there probably would be so many "A" letters worn it would become a fashion statement.
I AGREE. LOU
ReplyDelete