Pornography and the Society

By: Hilda Monica Cao-Naval

“Porn is theory. Rape is the practice.” 1

Pornography. It is an age-old problem; not merely a 21st century thing. In fact in as early as the 19th century, historians have found such obscene materials usually in the form of picture books and pulp novels in some parts of the globe. From that moment on, this thing has invaded the human society so fast that by the 1980’s it has evolved dramatically into many other forms. In point of fact, the so-called adult theater and sex-oriented magazines were mass circulated and has become a fixture of the American society. As of the current time this has become part of some other person’s “ordinary” life—thanks to the ever-accessible internet!

But what exactly is pornography? Its etymology is simple: it is derived from two words porne and graphos which literally translates as “the graphic depiction of prostitutes or female captives.” But although its word origin seems to be straightforward, it doesn’t necessarily define what pornography means for the reason that people have found ways to define it operationally or, in other words, creatively. Its scope and limitation per se is something really unknown; there is no defining trait that separates what is porn from what is not. As an understatement, it is a very vague concept and it only gets vaguer as time passes by—most especially when men always come up with innovative ways to rationalize things for their own purposes.

As porn morphs and develops by producing many other varieties and subtypes, its definition does not. After all, it is not much of a person’s concern to define it for they are more particular on reaping the benefits of what they consider as a gift. Yes you heard that one right a gift—not a curse. For not everyone would consider this a mere nuisance to mankind. In this issue, there are (at least) two sides of the story. If there are anti-porn groups (say some Feminists groups) who believe that sex is a manifestation of the gender inequality system in our society, there are those who see it as a propaganda that doesn’t objectify women but rather something that empowers them. If the Conservatives would say that pornography is all about violence and moral degradation, there are those who’d say that it encourages individuality and personal freedom for it is a free speech that encourages guiltless eroticism and sexual variation.

 

Evaluation: What goes beyond merely seeing two sides
“A society that values sex primarily for pleasure or self-expression runs a risk of promoting narrowly body-centered, technique- and performance-type of sexuality that is potentially demeaning and undermining of sexual intimate bonds.”
Steven Seidman, “The Social Construction of Sexuality.”

Now that we have heard both sides of this controversy, what then do we say of it? Is it morally, politically or socially wrong, or is it not?

That is a question which is hard to answer. In a world of post-modern time wherein relativism and existentialism are among the dominant ideologies, it is illegal and utterly sinful to say something is wrong. Instead, virtually everything is permissive so long as you won’t hurt anyone. Opposing people bluntly will insult their pride, so it is greatly discouraged. Undeniably tolerance is the most important virtue, and so is respect for other people’s opinions. It then literally implies that whenever you are faced with two contradicting arguments, don’t assess. Commit mental suicide and throw your brain outside the window by embracing both phrases and regard them as equally true. On the process you also violate the (Western) logic’s most primary assumption.* Improper? Well that’s the trend. And it’s a trend I would always love to oppose.

As for me, I see that this thing gives our race more loses than gains. Pornography gives people the impression that any sexual activity is free of worries, and that it’s merely a physical involvement not something that entails our metal faculties, reasons, and emotions. It gives us an illusion that being impulsive and having multiple sexual partners isn’t wrong not only on the moral aspect but also on the physical aspect—particularly one’s health and his/her well-being. Without a doubt, it has never mentioned anything regarding physical pain during sexual intercourse whenever violence and brute force becomes a part of it, and the agony of undergoing treatments and surgeries whenever someone got “unlucky” in one of his/her sexual encounters. On a movie director’s (or a writer’s) point of view, that is of course anti-climactic so it needs to be omitted in the story. Sadly that omission makes everything regarding this whole matter inaccurate. Honest to goodness, an overly-active and polygamous sexual lifestyle and the painful outcomes of it (like the high risk of acquiring Cervical Cancer and other diseases) are like two sides of the same coin. The two are therefore inseparable and are highly correlated.

Pornography gives a very unjust representation of the pros and cons of sex as a whole. More often than not it implies that STDs aren’t that harmful and people are overreacting if they think of it every time they have sex with someone whom they have just met. This is exactly what pornography does to our society; it changes our point of view of sex entirely by making us view it as a mindless matter—a decision that doesn’t need so much thinking. And as it is continuously propagated by the media and patronized by people (male and female alike), it might make us view sex as a purely enjoying pursuit with anyone or anything under the sun. The idea of the fatality of AIDS would never be taken seriously, and as it is constantly being downplayed common folks might end up considering it as a myth. Still, it is a possibility that we’d end up escaping reality way too much by saying that this deadly disease, like all other diseases, is by no means caused by irresponsibly engaging in sex.

That is of course a lie. It’s totally ridiculous!

Footnote(s)
* When two arguments are contradictory, it’s either one of them is wrong (consequently the other is right), or that both of them are wrong.

Sources:
1.Seidman, Steven. “The Social Construction of Sexuality.” NY:WW Norton and Company Inc, 2003.
2.Bhattacharyga, Gargi. “Sexuality and Society: An Introduction.” USA, 2002.
3.Plummer, Ken. “Telling Sexual Stories.” London: Routledge 1995.
4.Lolarga, Elizabeth and Sarabia, Anna Leah (editors). “Telling Lives: Essays by Filipino Women.” Quezon City Circle Publications, 1992.