Erotic Dance Styles — and Why Your Body Reacts Before You Think
You’ve watched a dance.
Witnessing it, your body starts reacting.
Only after all that, you start creating justifications for it.
Don’t play dumb.
You know exactly what I’m talking about.
You did not plan on responding emotionally. You stood there passively.
And then all of a sudden – you know exactly what I’m talking about.
So can we stop pretending like this is about something such as “Art vs. vulgaritly”, “culture”, or “taste”?
It’s about how the mind processes quickly moving things. Specifically, bodies.
And I’m saying this because I’m high up in the books, in an institute, in Rehovot, writing this.
Particularly, in a place where I have a lot of EEG charts, and a very strong, uncomfortable sense of self.
And no. This isn’t how I expected my historiography to go.
If this is the sort of thing that pushes your buttons, no pressure, just scroll the main page of the site. I built this particular site with this one thing in mind – to make you think, all the while creating an active emotional response.
That’s me.
- A neuroscientist. Glasses. A quiet, soft talking person.
That pause?
It’s the cortex of my mind catching on to what the limbic of my mind is doing. The limbic mind is what drives the motivation. The cortex is what does the complex thinking. First to go, and worst to catch up.
First. Dances. Yes, different styles do matter.
This is more of a report than an essay because of how boring it is. But I have to do it. I am writing this while sitting at a desk with my notes open staring at a screen I don’t want to look at. The report is about how a striptease works on a delay? I guess my clothes don’t matter as much as how I feel about the situation — the anticipation. That’s because the motor cortex acts out everything simulating the movement. Slow reveals feel more impactful than even nudity.
I find that pole dancing showcases the more scientific side of dancing.
There is a balance of strength and grace that seems to mess with people’s stereotypes about pole dancing. In my opinion it is out of control. When people’s brains register the control and balance to pole dancing the response is an impressive spike in testosterone. The dancing also seems to keep people from thinking of submission.
I also have to mention that a lap dance involves dancing to a closed dance partner. It is a frustrating experience for the nervous system.
There is a section that lights up because the brain is preparing for contact that is never fully realized. It’s also worth noting that the absence of touch is also an irritating experience. The brain thinks contact is about to occur. I guess this is the brain preparing to ‘dance’.
I guess this is the brain preparing to ‘dance’..
There are also many dances to choose from.
This plays with the boring dance and the pointless compliment.
I guess this is the brain preparing to ‘dance’.
In my head and alone.
It is frustrating how people don’t like the next part because it involves arousal. Arousal is not the same as consent. It’s not morals either. In fact it is simply a reflex to visual motion. To put it in simple terms and in an order it goes like this: amygdala, hypothalamus, and an autonomic response are what I would call the meaning and it comes last.
What do you think about when you see an erotic dance? Is it something you think you could control? No. There’s something happening in your head and your body’s saying we want something.
In your brain, it happens like this.
It’ not just a bunch of erotic dances though.
In a study about dance and mirror neurons, we see this.
Yes, it is a real one.
I was not looking at the screen. Adjusting my glasses and smiling maybe a bit shy.
“Definitely not awkward situation, right?”
“Your amygdala is just responding faster than your cortices”I sarcastically said to no one,
And it was right.
I think it is annoying.
Your mirror neurons do not let you stay neutral in the situation.
When you see a body moving with a purpose, it looks like there’s a body system in your head doing the same thing.
When it’s a still image, it doesn’t feel the same.
Your empathy and prediction goes into the movement.
It’s not about the dancer creating heat with their movements, nor is it about the their hips.
It’s your aching nervous system from the anticipation.
Let’s take a break.
-How about some coffee?
- No thanks.
- Some tea?
- Maybe.
Now about cultural filters.
When erotic dance is performed, some people feel empowered, some see exploitation, and some think of it like art.
It really doesn’t matter what your brain thinks about it.
In the background, a system was feeling something.
After this, they start feeling something.
Justification is not the same for a system to begin feeling something.
This is also one of the reasons men get confused.
This is also why women feel like they are being watched even if they’re not being touched.
Same problem. Different social costs.
Nearly 3 prevalent misconceptions.
“It’s about nudity.”
No. Movement is more important than exposure.
“Only some men have this reaction.”
Untrue. The differences are more about inhibition than wiring.
“If this happens, it means something.”
Nope. It means some neurons just fired and that’s the end of it.
Why is it that I can’t fake being neutral on this?
While I’m writing this, I’m very aware of my body and how it is responding to what I’m studying.
And I’m not acting on it, or giving into it.
I’m just observing, and this is harder than you’d think.
You look away from the screen, take a breather and wait for your cortex to take control again, and that moment is what matters.
There’s this one unusual detail.
The hallways in the institute always have this faint scent of cleaning alcohol and oranges.
Always.
I can’t explain why that matters. It just does.
This is a Q and A. People love to ask these.
Q: Is that why erotic dance feels hypnotic?
Yes. When a prediction is made without a resolution, it keeps people’s attention.
Q: Is it possible to reduce the reaction through training?
You can’t remove the reflex, but you can delay the reaction.
Q: Is it different for women?
The general pattern is the same, but social expression is different.
In short, erotic dance doesn’t cause arousal.
It shows how quickly your body makes decisions before your mouth even utters a single word.
Last one, and please, pay attention.
Knowing this doesn’t make you invulnerable.
It makes you truthful.
You can appreciate dancers and acknowledge that your nervous system is responding.
You can examine passion without being its slave.
That equilibrium — between feeling and understanding — is where true adulthood actually resides.
And if you have ever pondered why your body responded to a question you hadn’t even posed yet?
Now you have the answer.
