We are writing because we feel that it is our obligation as upperclassmen to inform you of a crisis overtaking the Bowdoin community. It is not something to take lightly and it is surely not something to cast aside as trivial or irrelevant. If we are to overcome this ailment, we must articulate it in order to understand its full and enduring implications. What we are referring to is the sexual culture of Bowdoin College...or lack thereof.
At this point, whether first year or senior, we have all perceived the impoverished sexual culture of Bowdoin College. Perhaps, the most telling symptom of this situation is the lackluster embrace of casual hook ups. Bowdoin students are far too reluctant to indulge in their fleeting college years. We all hear stories from our friends at other colleges or universities of their Dionysian embraces of debaucheries. Of how our friends lost in the fires of passion, transcending the petty restraints of our ancestors' Puritan austerity, grab the night in its pulsating ecstasy.
But for some reason, here at Bowdoin we persistently deprive ourselves of this rejoice. It is not that we are unable to move beyond the so-called propriety of casual interaction; rather, it is that we choose to limit ourselves. And in so doing, we have forsaken our best sexual years in exchange for foolish reputations, which we all know everyone would shatter for just one memorable night of good sex.
And this brings us to our next point: Bowdoin relationships. We understand that people may actually encounter another whom they consider significant. Emotional and maybe even spiritual connections do indeed happen. But come on: Let us be honest with ourselves, if only for a moment. For the most part, these relationships' main cohesive factor is the one thing that our community has ostensibly shunned: sex. These relationships are as hollow as the pretensions they build themselves upon. Braving semesters abroad and summers apart, Bowdoin couples seem completely unwilling to embrace singlehood, as if life would be too scary without constant reassurance. As many of us will spend the majority of our lives married, it seems silly and even careless to throw away the short time we have to explore and develop our individual character.
While many reading this will probably have an adverse reaction to the notion of loosening the reigns a bit on our otherwise stifled sexual culture, what we are calling for is something far more noble and honest. Embrace your sexual selves, and transcend this unnecessary veneer of propriety that you so tenuously adhere to. You are an adult, and you are a liberal arts college student. Experiment with what you are, or all is indeed lost, for you have wasted these years in their most precious opportunity.
Jordan Browning and Claudia Paz are members of the Class of 2008.