My thoughts with whether sexually transmitted diseases (STD's) can be equated with immorality, promiscuous behavior and low social status has to do with quantity issues than character issues. Call me old-fashioned, if you like, but I believe in having a monogamous relationship, till death do you part. That would be one mate for life. Look at the definitions of these words. Immorality means wickedness and evil (Dictionary.com, 2011). This does not equal disease. Promiscuous means having sexual encounters, numerous times on a casual basis. Medically it refers to more than one partner (Dictionary.com, 2011). Behavior means a way of acting (Dictionary.com, 2011). Bingo! If one engages numerous times, with various partners, the odds of getting an STD has risen dramatically. It is all about the numbers. Social status refers to classes of people and whether one is high, low, or middle has no bearing in this discussion.
So what does one mate for life look like? Well, in a perfect world, it means that one boy and one girl will wait until marriage to have intercourse. They remain in that union and not stray outside of it until they grow old together and pass. But the world is not perfect in most cases. What if one of the spouses dies prematurely and re-marries? What if initially one mate is a virgin and the other is not? What if neither are virgins, but have committed from the wedding on to be monogamous with each other? STD's are diseases spread through sexual relations. The more sexual relationships one has with various people increases their chances of contracting a disease whether it is a cold, the flu, or a STD.
References
Dictionary.com. (2011). Dictionary.com. Retrieved from http://dictionary.reference.com/
I definitely agree with you that risky behavior heightens the chance of becoming ill with an STD. Carelessness and promiscuity, in my opinion, can be directly linked to STD's. I also can see a link between low social status and STD's. Those who are from a lower social status tend to be less informed about preventative measures, and also tend to have less access to the necessary health care facilities.
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