After answering Miss Sumie's comment on the one problem area with Caledon's entry for SL5B, I thought I'd do a little digging.
I started here with the operational definition of PG as restated by Shay Sunnyside:
[17:53] Shay Sunnyside: Under the definition of PG some of but not limited to the following will be prohibited: Nudity: Exhibits must not contain Mature content, if you are unsure of the rating of some of your content please contact a Coordinator. Ropes and Chains, graphic images or exhibits showing someone being bound will not be allowed, this also includes other content that may represent someone being bound in a sexual way.
Let's take that further.
The official PG definition from the MPAA:
A PG-rated motion picture should be investigated by parents before they let their younger children attend. The PG rating indicates, in the view of the Rating Board, that parents may consider some material unsuitable for their children, and parents should make that decision.
The more mature themes in some PG-rated motion pictures may call for parental guidance. There may be some profanity and some depictions of violence or brief nudity. But these elements are not deemed so intense as to require that parents be strongly cautioned beyond the suggestion of parental guidance. There is no drug use content in a PG-rated motion picture.
Canadian theatre and entertainment regulations list PG this way:
Parental Guidance (PG): Film is not suitable for all children and parental guidance is therefore advised for younger viewers.
I had difficulty finding UK film ratings, but Terramedia had this reference:
PG (or Parental Guidance): parents are advised that some scenes may be unsuitable for young children.
Now, I realize this is media-inclusive; the problem here is there really aren't ratings for other forms of art and media. There was at one point a rating system proposed for fan fiction, but it doesn't have very clear categories:
Fiction K+ rating: Suitable for more mature childen, 9 years and older, with minor action violence without serious injury. May contain mild coarse language. Should not contain any adult themes.
Fiction T rating: Suitable for teens, 13 years and older, with some violence, minor coarse language, and minor suggestive adult themes.
Well, I'm actually a bit wrong--there are music ratings, but they're slippery (though George Starostin's ratings list deserves more notice). They pretty much consist of no rating below age 17, and a Parental Advisory sticker for music with 'mature' themes.
[Note from the Editrix: Sir Edward Pearse comes to the rescue by tracking down the Australian media ratings which are as follows:PG: Parental Guidance recommended. The content is mild.
[So there's that one too.]
This is unhelpful.
So we default back to film ratings, and what the film ratings from the three countries listed for PG tell me is:* Some profanity is allowed;
* Parents are instructed to pre-judge content as it may not be suitable for all ages;
* Brief nudity (generally in a non-sexualized setting) is allowed;
* Brief violence is allowed if integral to the plot;
* Drug use is not allowed to be shown.
Unfortunately, the Labs deliberately complicate this general understanding. From the SL Wikia site:
PG (parental guidance) is a simulator rating. Used in a similar fashion as the movie rating "PG". Nudity, sexual content (even paintings), and profanity are not allowed in a PG sim. However violence, such as damage-enabled land and weapons are allowed. Actual parental guidance is not required, but the familiarity with the rating makes it a good choice for easily knowing what is and is not allowed in that sim.
So, from this, one could infer that the 'familiarity' with PG ratings means little; what they're actually saying is:* No nudity of any kind is allowed;
* No sexual content (even in the form of paintings) is allowed;
* No profanity of any kind is allowed;
* Violence (including virtual death) is allowed;
* Actual parental guidance, in the form of RL parents of the RL 'child' in question is not required, as all 'children' under 13 are prohibited from entering the adult grid.
Miss CodeBastard Redgrave says that the "Boudoir Rouge" series is meant to honor and show appreciation for those exceptional women who've helped her in her SLife. While I think this is laudable, and do not disagree with its intent, I'd ask again--women in lingerie are PG?
And once more, not to single out Mairead Fitzgerald--if there's anyone who can take all the varying aspects of Gorean life, and make them shimmeringly lovely, it's her--but this is, to me, a woman bound into pose, and--by dress--seemingly someone's slave. Maybe it's just me, but that doesn't strike me as PG.
But then, again, PG, it's so slippery, as I've said. And, for all of me? Given the choice any day--given the choice even involving flesh-and-blood, actual children--of exposing them to sexual content over violence? Bring on the sex. I'd much rather children see sexual imagery than bloodspatter and guts on the floor.
But again, that's just me. I'm not a Linden.
In other news, StarGate Worlds has announced they're seeking beta testers. Go sign up if you want to.
Also? The Japanese need better translators:
And yes, that is a giant mushroom on top of the booth.
I'm not sure if I want to risk SL5B again, but if I do...I'll let you know.
is Bitter there? I'd rather talk to her than Disappointed
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
11 Comments:
Why in the hell are you advertising on my blog?
Not only that, but you had to be human enough to post this, and you still didn't think it through.
Tch. Kids these days.
The internet is full of idiots Em. You should know that by now :-)
While I'm at it, here's a link to the Australian Office of Literature and Film Classification who also classify any video games that are sold in Australia: http://www.classification.gov.au/special.html?n=291&p=134
For comparison the Australian MA is equivalent to a US R
So I don't think the LL "PG" is PG by anyone's definition of the word (except maybe LL).
Thank you! For the life of me I couldn't track down anything for Australia.
And no, I'm not sure that the classification of "PG" means "PG" to all the Lindens (nor all the SL5B organizers).
First, I'm a her. Secondly, even if i'm on the org committee for SL5B, I also managed to get censored. Lingerie is PG okay, but some of the pictures had see through lingerie and i had to remove those from the display.
If you ask me about that PG rating anyways, I think this is a load of... Last year it was mature and we didn't had to play the cops for the Lindens. This year is different. But what shocks me a bit more, is that the giant 5m shlong on that David statue is considered academic and PG, while my Vargas style pictures are considered borderline because of a few nipples.
I admit, while 'Bastard' is not gender-inclusive, I did let the word lead me towards an inaccurate gender identification, and for that I apologize--gender in SL, with naming conventions, is somewhat tricky on occasion.
Personally, I remain in favor of a Mature-rated celebration, not to per se allow things like pseudo-gambling establishments, poledancers and the like, but to appreciate that everyone on the grid is, at least in theory, eighteen or older.
It's not just you, either. Uccello Poultry put an image of Botticelli's Venus into her build for the Isle of Lesbos, and she was told she had to remove the nipples, or not show the picture. So she took the original into PhotoShop, airbrushed the nipples away, and showed it again. She was approved.
Then SL5B opened, and she saw the sculpted David, and she's been boggled ever since.
No apologies needed, my name is gender ambigous on purpose, I was merely stating it.
Just wanted to tell you that I generally agree on your stance, last year was mature and we didn't get much pole dancers or gambling spots. Having a PG rating anyways on a grid that is for adults only is hypocritical and stifles artistic freedom. The Lindens came to us 3 weeks before the event started and imposed the PG rating. So we had to compose with it. Apart that statue of David, nobody got favors, including me and my good friend Mairead. We all got infringement notices and had to self-censor. The lesson? Shlongs, good taste and artistic. Nipples, hide the children!
Reminds me of how hypocritical and conservative America can be. Nipplegate anyone?
Hee--"Nipplegate". And yeah, I'm still wondering about that myself--what makes the sculpted David, with full frontal male nudity, acceptable, and even partially covered female nipples not?
But then, that's something I wonder about America frequently. Justin Timberlake "accidentally" revealed Janet Jackson's nipple at halftime, and half the nation went mental. And I never understood that either. Everyone has nipples. Most of everyone was either breast-fed, or understands that Mommy comes with nipples. What the hell is the big deal?
Double standard.
Remember, the PURITANS settled here, and I do believe some of that is influencing things even today.
And might as well delete the spam post, no point in giving free advertising or google ranking to the morons. :)
You make a damned good point. Deleted!
And I know, I know, it's just weird? Because usually the standards for female nudity are lower than the standards for male nudity--as in, you can see female breasts in six films before you'll see a bared male butt in one, for the most part.
I don't get it, I just don't. Da Vinci's Vitruvian Man--fully nude; Michaelangelo's David, fully nude; but you can't have artfully covered female breasts, and you can't have Botticelli's Venus on display.
Might be wrong for the children to see. The children who don't exist anyway...
Won't somebody think of Teh Children!!!!
I'm wondering how many of the Lindens are actually members of the Republican Leadership Council?
You live in a country of FREAKS I tell you!
You're not wrong, there's a lot of moralistic yahoos in this country who want us all to go back to the days when women worked in the home, men worked to earn a living wage, and gays didn't exist.
Save, those days the moralists so long for? Never existed either.
Post a Comment