Reasons somone might grow to like being naked.

Same expected reaction you would have of any pre-pubescent boy. Curiosity or not caring.

So what do you think would be his reaction to being told by his mer friend "That's wet's suit probably going to slow you down, better just take it of"?

May I suggest trying to think of all the answers to the questions you've asked yourself? It might prove surprisingly fruitful.

It would probably depend on the kid whether they'd believe the merperson about skinny dipping. Some kids don't question anything you tell them unless it gets in the way of having fun or contradicts something they believe is true, some kids won't question anything told to them by someone "smart" or authoritative, some kids insist on asking "why?" until you've explained why the sky is blue and and the meaning to the cosmos and life and everything and will be terribly annoyed by anything they perceive as lies to children (especially if they are more of the science-loving type... other kids seem perfectly fine with fairies doing everything), and others are some combination of the above. And some kids are more responsive to agreements of "try it, and you can stop if you don't like it" while others won't try stuff even if you tell them they only need to do it once if they think it's a stupid idea.

edited 31st Mar '11 9:15:45 AM by Kaxen

Also we are animules if he was not exposed to cloving he might see it as un nacharul.

He was raised in a western culture for his first ten years, does that affect much?

Zolnier, you're a black hole of questions. The next time one of these question occurs to you, how about you don't post it straightaway and spend some time thinking about it yourself first?

Zolnier, unless your work is illustrated, there isn't any real need to get into any kind of depth with this. Frankly, the kid is far more likely to be worried about adjusting to a fundamentally different society, and for that matter different world than he is to be about bare-chested women (females?). At that age, he might giggle about it a bit in the earliest stages, as long as nothing was trying to eat him, but there's a reason peer pressure is strong- if his friends in that setting see nothing odd about it, he won't be pointing it out much beyond the initial time or two.

As far as his own personal nudity went, bluntly, he'd adjust. As I mentioned earlier, he's likely to have much bigger worries in the beginning, and in all probability he'll be long over whatever minor issues he might have had with nudity by the time those get even partially sorted out- kids that age often (at least when they're in a situation where they feel they can 'get away with it'- where they won't be 'punished' by authority figures, peer mockery, or environmental factors such as getting cold) don't have much in the way of nudity taboo.

The only significant exceptions to that that I've encountered are where personal beliefs (and yes, children can have them) hold strong taboos against nudity- for example, if he'd been raised as a devout Muslim- or where his own self-image/body image had been so badly damaged that he was ashamed to be seen unclothed. That's actually something that's a distinct possibility for a half-human hybrid raised in a hospital- if he's a test subject, he'd likely have been made to feel like he was a freak for most of his life.

Of course, a simple solution to get around all that if he actually was a test subject is that he was never given clothes in the first place. Nothing to get in the way of research, and he'd be perfectly used to being nude all the time.

However, like I said- if this isn't illustrated, then him being naked might be worth a throwaway line, but unless there's some special plot reason to focus on it, you really don't need to worry much about it.

I just read through this thread and other ones you've made, Zolnier, and I get the feeling that you want other people to do your brainstorming for you.

I'm sorry, but getting a fountain of questions in your head after deciding on something is kind of a normal result of brainstorming. You're the one who knows your work, your characters, and your world better than anyone else on this forum. Try thinking of answers to these questions yourself. Results may or may not be immediate, as answers to questions about characters, my world, and my plot have hit me over a week later. Who knows, you may even rediscover why you wanted to write about a boy being adopted my merfolk in the first place.

It all depends on the character. I imagine that his reaction to the breasts would all depend on his own upbringing. Plenty of kids that age are interested in women, plenty aren't. His reaction also varies depending on his upbringing. Was he raised by a strict Catholic Republican? WBC Member? Or was he raised by a more liberal person or even a hippie? Everything varies. If the first two (or anything like them), clearly he'll have a major problem with it. If he's been raised by someone who disagrees with the "Shame Culture" that the media often creates about the human body then he'll likely be fine with it. You decide. If you don't want to, he's a nudist. There.

Their large elephantine breasts are not constrained by human clothing.

edited 20th Apr '11 9:52:31 AM by HelveticaScenario

Mermaids probably aren't incredibly busty.

See? Now you're coming up with your own shit. Keep going.

edited 20th Apr '11 10:09:09 AM by MisterAlways

Think this would squick a kid out? The mermaid who's suggesting he try skinny dipping, he's just found out she's his half sister.

No, IMO. The implication wouldn't occur to him.

He eventually grows scales, would it make sense for fabric to irritate them?

Maybe because he likes a healthy breeze around his privates, thanks!

Decide this for yourself. The blind reliance on the opinions of others is what cripples too many artists. If you can't decide for yourself if something is good, drop what you're doing and smack yourself in the head. Then write what you want to write without questioning every little thing.

The best thing to do is to just start writing, and ask about these things later. Nitpicking won't get you anywhere.