Critique of Dressed Reason: A Skeptical Nudist Manifesto
by Fabio Hernán Guarnizo Reyes
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I. Introduction: The Body as Forgotten Truth
We live in a society that dresses the body not only with fabric, but with ideas. From childhood, we are taught that the naked body is shameful, dangerous, inappropriate, or even criminal. But is this an objective truth, or a historical and cultural construction? This "dressed reason" is a form of reason that has forgotten the skin as the origin of identity and has replaced it with a layer of artifice, control, and fear. This skeptical nudist manifesto is not a call to provocation, but to coherence. It does not seek to scandalize, but to remind us: the human body is nature, not a threat.
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II. The False Dilemma: Modesty or Provocation
One of the most common prejudices against nudism is its confusion with exhibitionism. But exhibitionism seeks to provoke a reaction; nudism, as I live it, seeks for **no** reaction at all. My goal is not to be stared at, nor to scandalize or be admired: it is that nothing special happens. That my body, free of clothing, be as unremarkable as any clothed body. Being a nudist is not about wanting to be seen, it’s about not needing to hide for being naked.
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III. The Body as an Act of Coherence
I live practically my entire life naked. I cover myself only in specific situations—not out of shame or fear, but as a conscious way to help others control the discomfort that a natural body might still awaken in them. I do not wish to provoke, but I do not wish to hide either. I prefer to offer calm even in the midst of prejudice, and little by little, open the space for normalization.
Nudity is not, for me, a goal, a pleasure, or a rebellion. It is a way of being in the world with coherence. Just as others choose clothes that represent them, I choose the absence of them as a silent affirmation of freedom. I am not covered by fabric, but by truth. I am not protected by modesty, but by the dignity of not betraying myself. This choice does not arise from whim or radical theory, but from years of living in my body as a space of reconciliation—especially after a spinal cord injury that redefined my relationship with it.
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IV. Doubt as a Motor: Undressing Ideas
The nudist critique is also philosophical: why do we believe what we believe about the body? Who decided that skin is obscene, but not violence disguised as fashion? Why are the excesses of sexualized clothing tolerated, but not the serenity of the natural body? Skeptical nudism dares to ask questions that dressed reason avoids. It suspects that many of our values about modesty are built from fear, control, and the need to dominate other people's bodies.
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V. Nudism Without Mysticism or Fetishism
Being a nudist is not about living an Eastern philosophy, or seeking invisible energies, or idealizing the perfect body. Nor is it about falling into the fetishism of skin as an object. It is about inhabiting the body as it is: imperfect, alive, and enough. It means accepting that we need nothing more than air, light, and respect. It is not about romanticizing nudity, but about **normalizing** it—without guilt, and without excitement. The body, in its simplest form, is already dignified.
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VI. A Silent Political Gesture
Being naked is not a private act when done in spaces where modesty is still expected. But it is not a violent act either. It is a silent gesture that challenges mental structures without attacking anyone. Every time I go out to the balcony with nothing on, every time I roll along the beach with only my bum bag and no clothes underneath, every time I return naked from the gym, enjoying the fresh morning breeze, and take my clothes out of the car, fold them, and place them over me—covering only what is legally required, not out of shame, but out of respect for those not yet ready to see a free body—I am saying: "I have nothing to hide, and that should neither frighten nor offend you."
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VII. Conclusion: I Am Not a Provocation. I Am a Presence
I am not an exhibitionist. I do not seek to provoke. I want people to stop reacting as if a naked body were something extraordinary. My nudity is not a cry for attention, but a quiet affirmation. Dressed reason has made the body a problem. Skeptical nudism only wants to remind the world that the skin needs no justification. It only needs space.
And that is what I am building, day by day, with every free breath.
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VIII. Epilogue: Skin Is Not a Crime
I invite those who read me to think beyond custom.
To those who have felt uncomfortable in their own skin, I say: you were not born to hide.
To those who look suspiciously at free bodies, I say: there is no threat in skin, only fear in the mind.
And to those who already live this freedom, I say: we are not alone. Every step without fabric is also a step without guilt.
> **Skin does not need permission.
It only needs respect.
And that begins within.**