Lascivious behavior is

sexual behavior Human sexual activity, human sexual practice or human sexual behaviour is the manner in which humans experience and express their sexuality. People engage in a variety of sexual acts, ranging from activities done alone (e.g., masturbation) ...

or conduct that is considered crude and offensive, or contrary to local moral or other standards of appropriate behavior. In this sense "lascivious" is similar in meaning to "lewd", "indecent", "lecherous", "

unchaste Chastity, also known as purity, is a virtue related to temperance. Someone who is ''chaste'' refrains either from sexual activity considered immoral or any sexual activity, according to their state of life. In some contexts, for example when mak ...

", "licentious" or "

libidinous Libido (; colloquial: sex drive) is a person's overall sexual drive or desire for sexual activity. Libido is influenced by biological, psychological, and social factors. Biologically, the sex hormones and associated neurotransmitters that act upo ...

Legal usage

In American legal jargon, ''lascivious'' is a semi-technical term indicating immoral sexual actions and in certain cases, words or thoughts. It is often used in the legal description of

criminal In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...

acts in which some sort of

sexual activity Human sexual activity, human sexual practice or human sexual behaviour is the manner in which humans experience and express their sexuality. People engage in a variety of sexual acts, ranging from activities done alone (e.g., masturbation) ...

is prohibited. The legal definition of the term varies greatly across jurisdictions, and has evolved significantly over time, reflective of current moral values as they relate to sexuality. For example, in 1896, ''lascivious cohabitation'' referred to the now-archaic

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a State (polity), state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definit ...

of living with a member of the opposite sex and having

premarital sex Premarital sex is Human sexual activity, sexual activity which is practiced by people before they are Marriage, married. Premarital sex is considered a sin by a number of religions and also considered a Sexual mores, moral issue which is taboo i ...

with him or her. In 2015, the laws of three states of the United States (

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

and

Mississippi Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...

) still considered "lascivious cohabitation" as a crime. In 2016, Governor Rick Scott of Florida signed into law SB 0498 which no longer makes "lascivious cohabitation" a crime. In the 2000s, the term is often used as one of several adjectives to describe

pornography Pornography (often shortened to porn or porno) is the portrayal of sexual subject matter for the exclusive purpose of sexual arousal. Primarily intended for adults,

, solicitation for prostitution, and indecent acts, such as the exposure of one's

genitalia A sex organ (or reproductive organ) is any part of an animal or plant that is involved in sexual reproduction. The reproductive organs together constitute the reproductive system. In animals, the testis in the male, and the ovary in the female, a ...

in public (e.g.

indecent exposure Indecent exposure is the deliberate public exposure by a person of a portion of their body in a manner contrary to local standards of appropriate behavior. Laws and social attitudes regarding indecent exposure vary significantly in different ...

). In

American law The law of the United States comprises many levels of codified and uncodified forms of law, of which the most important is the nation's Constitution, which prescribes the foundation of the federal government of the United States, as well as va ...

, mailing lascivious matter is prohibited thus:

Every obscene, lewd, lascivious, indecent, filthy or vile article, matter, thing, device, or substance ... declared to be nonmailable matter and shall not be conveyed in the mails or delivered from any post office or by any letter carrier.

"Lewd and lascivious" behavior has varying definitions across jurisdictions. Indecent exposure, for example, generally refers to the exposure of one's "private parts", which, as noted in a 1992 court case, depending on the jurisdiction, may or may not include one's buttocks, female breasts, or even pubic hair. At that time, 22 states prohibited only indecent exposure of genitalia; "only three States (Indiana, Iowa, and New Mexico), would treat as indecent the intentional exposure of the genital area or pubic hair, and these jurisdictions do so by means of legislation which is explicit in its terms. It thus appears that the term 'indecent exposure' lacks a 'commonly understood meaning', when considered with respect to parts of the body other than the genitalia."

Lechery

Lechery is a

behavioral pattern In software engineering, behavioral design patterns are design patterns that identify common communication patterns among objects. By doing so, these patterns increase flexibility in carrying out communication. Design patterns Examples of this t ...

that includes: * Inordinate indulgence in sexual activity * Unrestrained and promiscuous sexuality * Immoderate indulgence of sexual desire * Lewd and

lustful Lust is a psychological force producing intense desire for something, or circumstance while already having a significant amount of the desired object. Lust can take any form such as the lust for sexuality (see libido), money, or power. It can ...

behavior Lechery is not the same as

lust Lust is a psychological force producing intense desire for something, or circumstance while already having a significant amount of the desired object. Lust can take any form such as the lust for sexuality (see libido), money, or power. It can ...

. Lust is an interior psychological state, the ''thinking'' about sex, the desire for it. Lechery is an outward behavior, a physical manifestation or behavior pattern of an interior condition of lust. Lust does not necessarily result in the action of lechery.Pope John Paul II, Mutual Attraction Differs from Lust. L'Osservatore Romano, Weekly Edition in English, 22 September 1980, p. 11. Available at http://www.ewtn.com/library/papaldoc/jp2tb39.htm

References

{{Sexual abuse American legal terminology Sex laws

Legal usage

Lechery

See also

References