Perversion

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"Pervert" redirects here. For the 2005 film, see Pervert!.

Perversion is a term and concept describing those types of human behavior that are perceived to be a deviation from what is considered to be orthodox or normal. Perversion differs from deviant behavior, since the latter refers to a recognized violation of social rules or norms (although the two terms can apply to the same behavior).

1 History of the word
2 Modern usage
3 Catholicism
4 References
5 See also

[edit] History of the word

Etymologically, the word pervert implies "turning aside" from something.^[1] It was first used in English in the context of religious beliefs: a pervert was one who had forsaken a doctrine or system regarded as true.^[1] In the late 19th century, however, it acquired a psychological sense that was explicitly sexual.^[2]

[edit] Modern usage

Modern use of the nouns perversion and pervert reflects their nineteenth-century psychological application, inasmuch as they tend to be used with reference to sexual rather than religious behavior.^[3] The first refers to behavior and the second to the person. They are generally derogatory and in psychological literature the term paraphilia is now used instead^[4], (though this term is itself controversial).

The concept of perversion is somewhat subjective^[4], and its application varies depending on culture. As a psychological term it was originally applied especially frequently to homosexual behavior.^[1] However, homosexuality is no longer treated as a disorder in mainstream psychiatry (see Homosexuality and psychology).

The verb pervert is less narrow in reference than the related nouns, and is more frequently used with no sexual connotations.^[3] One might say, for example, that a modern film version of Romeo and Juliet "perverts" Shakespeare's version of the story.

[edit] Catholicism

In a similar sense, the term was also used in the pre-Vatican II era by some Roman Catholics to describe the process of converting from Roman Catholicism to Protestantism. Whereas a Protestant who joined Roman Catholicism was described as a convert, a Catholic who became a Protestant was called a pervert (see Religious conversion). The phrase is no longer used by mainstream Catholicism, though traditional Catholics occasionally still use it.^{[citation needed]}