There is something special about a beautiful pair of lips on a woman, isn’t there? At first glance, they are so soft and inviting, but then again they can be fierce and commanding. Their softness and expressive movements make us associate them with kissing and this association can quickly convey passion and desire.
What is it about lips that make them the ultimate symbol of sensuality and desire? Let’s uncover the secret behind the allure of lips and explore the connection between lip fetish and culture, psychology, and biology.
What is lip fetish and where does it come from? Have you heard of partialism?
Partialism is a sexual fetish with an exclusive focus on a specific part of the body other than the genitals, and lip fetish is a prevalent type of partialism. Unlike general physical attraction, partialism focuses on one particular part of the body, in this case, the lips.
There are many erogenous zones on our bodies, with the main one being the genitals, both for males and females. This is not the case when it comes to partialism, and lip fetish specifically. If lips are your fetish, then your strongest erogenous zone might be the lips, as all attraction revolves around them, their shape, texture, and size.
Lips are one of the first things we notice when we meet a person and as we start becoming attracted sexually to them, we often focus on their lips. Lips remind us of kissing, and kissing is associated with bonding and pleasure in our minds. But it’s not all straight-up sexual, is it?
How many times have you heard someone say they like a person’s smile? This comes as a result of the movement of the lips as someone smiles, or perhaps pouts, heightening their appeal. This type of non-verbal communication is able to evoke desire in us. Similarly, when someone looks at you and bites their lips, you would likely interpret this as attraction towards you.
The American Psychiatric Association’s Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) classifies partialism as a “fetishistic disorder” if it’s not focused on genitals and if it causes significant psychosocial distress for the person with partialism like that associated with a lip fetish. Beyond this characterization, there is a decided lack of research on this topic.
There are a number of fetishes that are far more common than a lip fetish, even when it comes to partialism specifically. For example, foot fetish is well beyond the popularity of any type of lip fetish we might find in society. With that said, there is enough anecdotal evidence to suggest that lip fetish enthusiasts are far from rare, however. Perhaps with further research, we will gain a more clear picture of how prevalent this type of partialism truly is.
Not only is there little written academically, but there’s little to be found online when you look up “lip fetish”. There are variations of this fetish that are popular, including lipstick fetish and smoking fetish, where the smoking fetish is definitely the most popular fetish connected to lips.
On the other hand, even if there is not much evidence of a lip fetish in academic books or online, the reality is that we are surrounded by lips everyday. They are a symbol of beauty and sensuality in art, media and fashion, so perhaps there’s more to it than meets the eye.
Historically, lips have long been associated with sensuality and femininity. Ancient civilizations understood the allure of lips and considered them a beauty standard. For example, ancient Egyptians used to crush minerals so they could tint their lips red; for them, this was a symbol of status and allure.
Not much has changed as, even today, bold lip colors (particularly red) are associated with confidence and sex appeal. Perhaps we have become used to it and are less likely to notice, but lips are represented in all media. In movies, music videos, commercials – you name it, lips are a centerpiece of attraction.
There are countless companies selling products that highlight and enhance lips, such as lipsticks, lip glosses or lip plumpers. Our society is fascinated with lips, especially if they are plump and glossy. To achieve this societal beauty standard, more and more people are having their lips augmented through fillers and injections.
It’s possible that this trend has been influenced by social media, as everything else these days seems to be. Apps offer a number of filters that enhance lips or add gloss, demonstrating to us that society is most certainly obsessed with beautiful lips. Naturally big, plump lips, as well as augmented lips, are inherantly connected with desirability and status.
Lip fetish is an example of partialism, meaning that sexual arousal is focused on a specific part of a body, other than the genitals. If this focus on lips causes significant psychosocial distress, psychology considers it a “fetishistic disorder”. Although the allure of lips and obsession with them dates back to ancient civilizations and remains noticeable in today’s society, this definitely remains an underexplored topic, leaving us thirsty for more knowledge and information.
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