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 An A-Z of Child Sexual Abuse.
   Foreword.
   'An A-Z of Child sexual abuse is in no way intended as condoning the
acts involved, but simply as a brief literary browse into the paedophile
sexuality.  It may indeed be useful to researchers or those working in
child-care, or simply for those aiming to better understand one of the
great taboos of our time.  A word is chosen for each letter of the
alphabet, which bears relevance to some aspect of sexual abuse of a child.
This is somewhat different to my A-Z of `paedophilia', as the slant here is
towards the concept of `abuse' rather than merely `sex with children'.
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   ATTACK.
   Often, and sometimes it seems excessively, an instance of sexual
molestation of a child is referred to as an `attack' in reports.  This is
even if violence as such was not used, but the actual contact was done
gently.  An example may be a teacher, having the child alone, who slips his
hand into her knickers and gropes her bottom.  It did not `hurt' the child
in a physical sense, but nevertheless is enough to bring about legal
proceedings and for it to be referred to as `the attack'.  Unfortunately,
many cases of child-sex unequivocally are `attacks'.
   BOYS.
   Whilst girls certainly outnumber boys as sexual abuse victims, it is
absolutely not uncommon for boys to be victims.  A striking proportion of
paedophiles enjoy boys.  This is perhaps because a man who would not
normally be interested in fellow males can find a young boy attractive. 
The boy himself may well not be gay, therefore this in addition to his
young age would make him a victim indeed.  Having his penis sucked may not
be terribly traumatic for him, but being required to suck the adult could
be, and buggery often has severe mental and physical results.
   CORRUPTION.
   This refers to corruption of the child's outlook on the world.  It is
often expressed as loss or destruction of innocence.  It is deemed to be
the psychological effect of being initiated or forced into sexual activity
before she is mentally and or physically ready for it.  If pain involved in
such things as penetration does not leave her with negative feelings, then
the intimacy alone of such things as exposure to semen and witnessing
orgasms of the abusers are believed to leave her badly affected.  Some
would argue, however, that these effects are not always necessarily
intrinsically `bad'.
   DISTRESS.
   This would seem to be one of the irrefutable signs that sexual abuse is
taking place, as opposed to ethically acceptable `sex'.  If the child is
exhibiting signs of distress during the process, then a legal opinion is
hardly needed on whether the sex is immoral.  Typical examples are that she
may whine or sob at being made to suck a penis or endure penetration
attempts, or display obvious expressions of disgust and bewilderment at
semen in the mouth or on the face.  Conversely, the absence of clear
distress encourages the notion that the child may actually `not mind' sex.
   EXAMINATION.
   Examination of a medical nature often determines whether a child has
been sexually abused.  Professionals have knowledge of what to look for,
even where the physical signs are not obvious.  The two most common parts
of the child's anatomy which are inspected are, naturally, her vagina and
anus.  In the case of boys, the penis may also yield evidence of abuses. 
The mouth or throat, to a lesser extent, may also show evidence (ie
infection).  Typically, the examination would look for inflammation or
fissures (small tears) in the genital or anal area.  Traces of semen would
be irrefutable proof.
   FORCED.
   Much of the time, and in many cases of adult sex acts with children, the
child will have been unequivocally `forced' into doing them.  This is to
say, they were not things she or he would want to do, nor even imagined
doing.  More force still may be necessary, from the viewpoint of the
abuser, if the child has already been subjected to some of the deeds.  This
is because she has learnt what to expect, and may dread it.  The force may
not necessarily be particularly `aggressive', though, for a young child can
easily be made to do things.
   GROOMING.
   This is a key word in legal parlance, referring to the process by which
a child is sexually abused.  It is apparently extremely common, perhaps in
part due to an inherent ambiguity in its very concept, and constitutes the
majority of cases which are not outright force.  The process involves the
befriending of the child, sometimes over patient long periods, in order to
develop sexual elements in the relationship.  Many of the details in the
process are things which can constitute `normal' affection, however, and it
can be debatable whether the adult intended the sex all along or whether a
mutual affection simply `grew'.
   HANDLING.
   Much of what constitutes `sexual abuse' in the eyes of the law are
things which are done merely with the hands by the adult.  For example,
touching a girl's vagina, or things as tame as rubbing her chest or
stroking her hair.  Many subtle ways in which a man handles a child may be
deemed as sexual molestation or intent to molest.  A bottom smack could
very well be `innocent', but not if done with too much force or for sexual
pleasure.  Whether gentle or not, it is deemed sexual abuse if the man
gains erotic pleasure from it.
   INCEST.
   Frequently, a child's sexual abuse occurs within the home, perpetrated
by older family members.  In order of proliferation, this will typically be
the father, an uncle, elder brother, mother, cousin or elder sister.  No
matter if the sexual interactions are gentle or even welcomed by the child,
the fact of the underage sex coupled with the incest taboo mean it is
deemed `abusive'.  Despite this legal viewpoint, cases can range enormously
in tone from mutually good-humoured and affectionate (common with
father-daughter) to sadistic torment.  Implications are life-long, since
blood ties are permanent and feelings of attachment persist into adulthood.
   JUSTIFICATION.
   The adult will often find reasons for why he `deserves' sex with a
child, or why the child deserves having it inflicted, or may believe that
the child wants it.  All these are ways in which the adult may seek to
justify his actions.  Sometimes this is clearly self-delusional nonsense so
he can enjoy sexually abusing his victim, yet there may be mitigation in
his thinking.  Certainly children possess `curiosity', and certainly older
children are capable of vanity, and certainly men are often sex-starved and
may love and relate to little girls better than he does adult females.
   KIDNAPPING.
   Of course the act of kidnapping a child is a crime in itself, and likely
to be distressing unless done subtly or by a person well known to her. 
Furthermore, a common intention of kidnappings is sexual gratification.  It
is, therefore, a likely scenario where a child may endure sexual abuse. 
Instances range from opportunist, with brief (but possibly violent)
durations, to carefully planned and long-lasting.  This further implies
that the abuses are likely to be comprehensive.  In an extreme example, a
girl of, say 9, may be imprisoned and `enjoyed' for years, and be made
pregnant when she comes of age.
   LICKING.
   An action on the part of the adult which can virtually always be looked
upon as `abuse' as opposed to proper affection is any instance of licking
the child.  This could be a lick of her cheek, instead of a little kiss,
which a witnessing normal adult would find strange.  The child herself may
sense something wrong too.  Face-licking may become more obsessive and
unsettling to the child.  Most obviously sexual of all are licking of the
chest (even if she has no breasts), genitals or bottom.  The latter two
will particularly strike her as `rude', taking away her innocence.
   MILD SEXUAL ABUSE.
   In the modern climate, many would argue that no sexual abuse can be
`mild', and that any sexual act with a child is appalling and indefensible.
This, however, is to ignore the vast range of things which can come under
the umbrella of sexual interaction or sexual exposure.  Perhaps the mildest
intimate act a man can perform on a girl is to gently stimulate her
clitoris with finger.  The girl may enjoy the sensation.  Although not
traumatised, has she been fundamentally `corrupted'?  Similarly, a gay
paedophile may masturbate a boy who attains orgasm, if old enough.
   NUDITY.
   One of the most debatable things of all is whether nudity itself should
be deemed as child abuse.  If a child sees an adult, such as father or
older brother, naked there is perhaps nothing wring unless she sees an
erection.  Conversely, at what point is it abusive for a child to be
exposed naked to an adult?  A girl being bathed at 10 years old by her
father seems excessive, but what of the scenario where an underage girl
wanders amongst men in a legal nudist colony, where some of those men very
likely enjoy the sight of her?
   ORAL SODOMY.
   The broad definition of the word `sodomy' includes both anal penetration
and mouth penetration by penis.  The latter is colloquially known as
`blow-job' if participated in willingly.  However, since a child is legally
seen as incapable of consent to such intimacy, the act has by definition
been forced upon her/him.  As such, the abusive phrase of `oral sodomy'
seems better fitted.  Indeed, a preteen child may very well have no
understanding of what is required of her, and is a passive and bewildered
party as she is made to suck adult penis possibly all the way to
ejaculation.
   POWER IMBALANCE.
   This concept is at the heart of deeming adult-child sex as `abuse'.  The
adult has a natural authority, by virtue of his age, family relationship or
perhaps professional (teacher) relationship to the child, his greater
knowledge and not least physical stature.  The child will often simply
`trust' and obey the adult in any request, and may even enjoy discovering
aspects of eroticism.  She/he, however, cannot truly understand what is
happening and certainly cannot read into the deepest intentions of the
adult.  The child is deemed as the `submissive' in the relationship, easily
exploited for the adult's gratification.
   QUANTITY.
   Child victims of sexual abuse range from one-off incidents to regular,
systematic abuses.  Both ends of the spectrum can contain the mildest or
severest acts, but those with a high `quantity' of abuses are unlikely NOT
to have experienced the extremely intimate.  The quantity in itself is
likely to be part of the severity, implying long-term ordeal for the child
and wholesale destruction to her/his childhood.  Children in a paedophile
ring particularly are likely to have had many things done to them, many
times by many men.  The fact many of these are strangers makes it more
frightening and thus `abusive'.
   RAPE.
   The sexual abuse a child is subjected to often, but by no means
inevitably, comprises penetration of the vagina or anus by the man's penis.
No matter how gently (or even willingly) this is done, it is deemed rape on
account of her not being legally regarded as capable of consent.  Whilst it
is a fallacy to envisage it always as a child weeping under a violently
thrusting man, most would also regard it as a fallacy that she could enjoy
penetrative sex.  The majority of `rapes' of children are tentative and
cautious events, abusive basically only by their intimacy.
   SODOMY.
   This is a common form of sexual abuse of a child, whether it be boy or
girl.  It is a grim fact than many paedophiles crave penetrative
consummation with the anuses of children, and this is indeed often carried
out where opportunity arises.  It is of course the only possibility of
lower penetration with a boy, but even a man who is attracted only to girls
may actually prefer to `do her anally', since he finds her bottom so
pretty. The act may well be performed as gently as possible, with extremely
limited penetration, but is nevertheless a profound intimacy.
   TRAFFICKING.
   Although this commonly applies to adult females, it is by no means
unusual for underage girls (and boys to a lesser extent) to suffer sexual
abuse through being `trafficked'.  This means she has been systematically
moved into circumstances which enable adults (usually men) to have their
sexual way with them.  Money may or may not be involved, but often is. 
Since the phenomenon is purposeful and organised, and involving strangers
of the child, the abuses tend to include all the profoundest in nature and
be regular - exposure to semen, rape of orifices - although not necessarily
aggressive.
   UNDEVELOPED.
   A fundamental reason why sex with children is regarded as `abuse' is
because he/she is undeveloped in body as well as mind.  The body aspect is
obvious in a girl: absence of breasts, a non-haired vulva without the onset
of menstrual bleeds, and a vagina apparently far too small and delicate for
an adult penis.  On top of this, she has no `urge' for sex, although may
display curiosity of a kind.  The lack of development of the psyche is
arguably the greater prohibition, since the clinical fact of penetration
can be attained without damage with as young as 7.
   VOCABULARY.
   The choice of words and subject matter with which a child is spoken to
may in itself constitute sexual abuse.  Certainly a preteen child is not
expected to use words such as `cock', `cunt', `fuck' or `blowjob' nor
witness their use.  If she hears them accidentally, her curiosity would
probably require an explanation, and this is a grey area.  Less ambiguous
is if the adult purposely uses these words and concepts with the child.  A
very young child who is heard to speak of such things as `sucking cock' may
well be displaying evidence of actual abuse.
   WILLINGNESS.
   Despite the prevalence of `nasty' sexual abuses of children, an apparent
willingness is displayed by them in many cases.  This opens the door to
controversy, as some paedophiles argue that the child can indeed be
`willing' and that no harm is done to her/him.  Sometimes, particularly in
a family context, a little girl may enjoy and even ask for the `kisses on
her special place'.  She may be fascinated by penis, and even grow used to
giving fellatio and swallowing semen, and this could be construed as
`enjoyment'.  It remains contestable whether all underage sex results in
bad life-effects.
   XPOSURE.
   `Exposure' to sexual matters is also seen as a form of sexual abuse of a
child.  This can mean anything from merely being shown pornographic
pictures or videos (not necessarily child pornography, but any sex) to
being allowed or made to watch two adults engaging in sex.  This applies to
any `child' below the age of legal majority (for example 16 in the UK). 
There are grey areas, such as merely seeing an adult nude, which some
parents may even deem healthy and educational.  Most would agree, though,
that a young child ought not to see an erect penis.
   ZENITH.
   A word rarely if ever used in relation to child sex (but `z' is a hard
letter to cater for!).  Literally, it means the high point or culmination
of something, and is often used metaphorically.  We could regard the moment
a child is first exposed to sexual activity as the `zenith of her
childhood'.  Strictly speaking, if unmolested, this point would naturally
be the onset of puberty.  The transformation on her mind and emotions into
adult awareness would develop steadily from around this time.  Early sexual
experience, however, precipitates this and is often regarded as bringing
her childhood to an end.
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   I invite feedback and discussion in email to ep1968@hotmail.co.uk.  I am
particularly interested in the reader's moral outlook and opinions and
fantasies.
  
An A-Z of Child Sexual Abuse