since men are visual creatures, if an older woman has kept herself in good shape and still appears to be younger than her chronological age, men will be more readily attracted to her than a woman who is younger but does not have the same physical attributes. i think that the 'cougar' label is a negative stereotype of a sexually aggressive older woman. it's interesting that there isn't a similar term for the many older men who pursue younger woman with the same kind of fervor.

I dunno. Most of my student worker women just say "Perv".

The old term for the older man chasing the younger woman was Satyrism. A bit more refined than a case of the raging cougars.

Actually, it used to be "wolf," didn't it? Though it didn't have to refer specifically to an older man chasing younger women, the dominating & predatory connotations are there.

of course, a good portion of the men back in the day they would have called "wolfs" would nowadays be referred to as "rapists;" though most of them would have gotten off the hook on the clauses of "Boys will be boys" and "Look at how short her skirt is, she was asking for it." Shit like that reminds me how far attitudes have changed.

Personally, I have no problem with people using one another for sex, as long as there's consent from all involved parties. Play-acting predatory is ok as long as "no" still means "no."

'Wolf' wasn't age specific though, just the general term for predatory wankers.

Hmm. Old goat?

There's one for the non-predators, though it's connected with the devil.

Is "satyrism" really age-specific? I've never gotten that connotation from the word.

edit: Online dictionaries say:

quote:

satyrism -->
satyriasis
Immoderate venereal appetite in the male.
Origin: L, fr. Gr. See Satyr.
Source: Websters Dictionary

quote:

satyriasis
Pronunciation: sat′i-rī′ă-sis
Satyromania; excessive sexual excitement and behavior in the male; the counterpart of nymphomania in the female.

Synonym(s): satyrism

[G. satyros, a satyr]

It was generally applied to older men, as it describes what was considered normal behaviour in young men. Who always get a pass in such matters. Boys will be boys etc.

Right, right.

Satyriasis was in several medical dictionaries... definitions sounded dated, not sure what to think about it. Think I'll just spread a diffuse layer of general outrage over the entire subject. ;P

... ooh, damn, they've taken nymphomania out of the DSMMD, but not satyriasis? Double standard much? Of course, the term "nymphomania" would have been subject to double standard itself, I've heard where they'd just slap the diagnosis on any female patient exhibiting any level of sexual behavior... some families found it easier to call their daughters a nutcase than a slut. Given the kind of baggage that's on the word I'm not really surprised they'd cut it out, but if they were going to do that they should have cut both & replaced them with a single gender neutral term.

searching now to see if there's actually a different term in use...

This message has been edited. Last edited by: VegaRiad,

ok, no, they're both out. According to Wiki, they've been replaced in the DSM-IV with "hypersexuality." wiki here.

quote:

Originally posted by BeeZee:
I dunno. Most of my student worker women just say "Perv".

"perv" is a good one. I hear that a lot, too.

There's also the term "Sean Connery." Less inclusive, but no less vile.

Sean Connery and i share the same birthday.