Sign Up Now
Get instant access to over 1 million+ study documents
OR
Already registered? click here to login
By creating your account, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and student honor code.
Pornography: Anatomy of a Term
According to Walter Kendricks The Secret Museum, the term pornography initially simply meant writing about prostitutes (Kendrick 1). The term has grown to reference increasingly taboo subjects over the centuries, though as late as 1857 was defined in the Oxford English Dictionary as writing about prostitutes for the purposes of public hygiene (Kendrick 1). But in the later Victorian era, pornography gradually began to have more and more of a morally pejorative term as something degenerate, the leer of the sensualist (Kendrick 187).
The greater frankness in the ancient world about prostitution, and tolerance of sexuality (at least of adult males) was reflected in the anxiety and shame which accompanied the resurgence of interest in ancient artifacts, resulting in curiosity about and condemnation of lascivious frescos found in the ruins of ancient Pompeii (Kendrick 6). The sights of such ruins were not seen as fit for the consumption of women and children, and only permitted to adult men who were considered cultural and intellectually astute enough to appreciate it, without being corrupted by the sight.
Pornography: The Secret History of Civilization describes how a statue depicting the god Pan having sex with a goatan artifact casually found in the ruins of a venerated civilizationwas profoundly disturbing to a 19th century European society that saw the ancient world as pure, cerebral, and elevated, and had given birth to the greatness of modernity. The image...…ages and the social value of ancient texts and art (Kendrick 202). Kendrick notes one of the learned scholars who first came into contact with the ruins of Pompeii could not bring himself to believe that the Romans spent their days amid a forest of phalluses (Kendrick 9). This underlines the extent to which modern standards influence views of sexuality. In other words, Victorian scholars could not believe that the ancients had such a radically different view of sexuality. Ancient cultures frankness about sexuality was incomprehensible to the Victorians. But even today, where sexuality is displayed much more openly than in an era where even displaying a womens ankle in public was concerned daring, there is a division between the pornographic and…
Works Cited
Kendrick, Walter. The Secret Museum. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press.
Pornography: The Secret History of Civilization. YouTube. 21 January 2021. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sT-AhDbwX4U
Pornography/The Internet Today, technological and Internet advances have brought about some severe consequences, including the rise and exponential growth of online pornography sites. One effect of this has been a high level of exposure and even addiction to such sites. Consequences have included depression, loss of work, social withdrawal, and the like. Since it is unlikely that Internet pornography will disappear, individuals and groups need to focus on mitigating addiction, unwanted
Pornography remains one of the most contentious issues related to the freedom of expression. The definition of pornography and the parameters of the First Amendment must be taken into consideration when determining what, if any, types of pornography are protected as a First Amendment right. The First Amendment does have its legal limits, in theory and in legal precedent. As Lowey points out, the Supreme Court has consistently ruled that
National Public Radio. Retrieved on March 8, 2013 from http://www.npr.org/templates/story.php?storyId=125382361 Blessing, M. (2013). The theory of extramarital affairs. eHow: Demand Media, Inc. Retrieved on March 9, 2013 from http://www.ehow.com/info?8689747_theory-extramarital-affairs.html Eberstadt, M. andLayden., M.A. (2010). The social costs of pornography. The Witherspoon Institute: Princeton New Jersey. Retrieved on March 7, 2013 from http://www.internetsafety101.org/upload/file/SocialCostsofPornographyReport.pdf Fifes, S.T. And Weeks, G.R. (2007). Infidelity/extramarital sex. University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Retrieved on March 8, 2013 from http://faculty.univ.edu/fife2/pdf/InfidelityandExtramaritalsex.pdf Fong, T.W. (2006). Understanding
Pornography & Children There is considerable research evidence that pornography, especially child pornography, results in adversely affecting the psychological development of children, with far reaching consequences in terms of their ability to function well as adults. Since children are the future of any society, it is critical that adequate measures be taken to ensure the healthy and well-rounded development of children in order that they grow up to be productive, humane
This is what creates confusion in the minds of young and vulnerable people." (p. 1) Concerning this vulnerability, our research suggests that upon entering an adolescent age, individuals who are not yet emotionally or intellectually prepared for the responsibilities of sexual engagement are yet beginning to experience emotions hinting at this impulse. Schwartz warns that encounters with explicit and potentially deviant materials such as those which may incorporate violence, exploitation,
Pornography It is often said that pornography is in the eye of the beholder. Material that was considered pornographic a few decades years ago are considered acceptable today. These changes illustrate the shifting notions of what material constitutes pornography or obscenity. This paper argues that while anti-pornography activists have valid concerns regarding pornography's exploitative nature, to censor pornography would be an assault on free speech and the freedom of expression. Therefore, any