you took the words outta ma mouth..
All excellent questions. Sexual arousal can begin long before puberty, sometimes as early as 6-8 years old. This does not mean a six year old understands what is happening, nor how to engage in sex or masturbation. Sexual arousal is produced by the body releasing adrenaline, endorphines, dopamine and testosterone. These cause an increase in heart rate and blood pressure, leading to an erection. The feeling of "arousal" - not just the erection - is also due to the release of these. They can be released for any number of reasons - fear, excitement, sexual excitement, etc. - and at any age.
Shirotani is approximately 8-10 years old here. A child that age is aware of gender differences and they can be aware of feelings of "attraction" without understanding the sexual nature of that attraction. If a child is exposed to the concepts of sex, they may then equate that "attraction" they feel, to it's sexual nature. In other words, Shirotani felt an "attraction" to his father. This "attraction" held no sexual connotation for Shirotani until he saw his father engaged in sex. At that moment, the "attraction" then takes on it's sexual nature.
Children as young as 6 can sense differences about themselves in comparison to others - I'm a boy, she's a girl, I like playing with girls more than boys, I like playing with trucks more than dolls, etc. By age 8-10 (Shirotani's age) concepts like, "boys play with trucks and girls play with dolls"; "seeing a naked body is embarrassing/shameful"; "wanting to see or touch your naked sibling/parent is weird/wrong"; "touching yourself while thinking of your sibling/parent is weird/wrong", have all been picked up through interactions with their peers and elders (teachers, parents, relatives, etc.). So, yes, Shirotani is old enough to know how he feels for his father is considered wrong, even if he doesn't understand the specific concept of incest.
Sorry for writing a novel. Your questions were really excellent and show, not only your intellect, but also your desire to know the real facts. I hope that I've helped, even a little.
Oh wow...it's you again =))) It's nice to know people like you are lurking at this site. I think you clarified everything.
It at least makes sense now. The biggest influence on his guilt and shame came from his interaction with that highschool girl who told him his actions were disgusting. At that pivotal moment where he first felt sexual arousal for his father and he, to some extent, didn't understand what was happening to him, the girl just told him that he was disgusting.
You got it. Children at this age can be made or broken by their experiences, and it happens in the blink of an eye. One word turned Shirotani into the man he became at 30. Undoing 20+ years of self-inflicted torture is no easy task. That is why the seme (can't remember his name), no matter what he does, is my hero. There is no doubt that he is getting his own satisfaction from his actions, but his goal is to show Shirotani that sexual desire is normal and nothing to be freaked out about. That is also why he keeps such a cool demeanor when Shirotani flips out. If the seme got upset too, the idea that sex and sexual desire is stressful and bad would be reinforced.
This is one of my favorite manga, because there are so many deeper meanings to every chapter. Not to mention, it's really HOT!
I really enjoyed seeing your questions in your original comment. Not many people take the time to get more information before forming their opinions. I specifically tried to leave out any reference to the girl who called Shirotani disgusting, in my comments, so as not to influence your opinion with my own.
I know there are some people knowledgeable about this topic, but is it actually possible that a kid like Shirotani would understand the concept of sex, and would be aroused by it at such an age? Can a child really have such sexual desire for a father instead of familial desire? Can a child who may not understand the taboo of incest, really feel guilty about it?