Philosophy Talk: The Blog

Comment on Pornography by Rae Langton

We invited Rae to guest blog, and she graciously agreed.  And unlike many who agree to guest blog for us, she actually followed through on her intention.  But somehow the technology didn't work for her.   So we're posting this on her behalf --Philosophy Talk.  

John says, first, it's only fantasy, and second, outlawing is always 'a losing strategy'. 

Well yes, it might be fantasy or pretend: someone is being paid to pretend to be bound, and paid to pretend to enjoy it. The viewer is joining in with the pretence. 

But (i) note that even fictions are told and experienced against a backdrop of presupposed claims about the real world. For example, the Sherlock Holmes stories make claims about a fictional detective, against the backdrop of real world London. What does porn say or presuppose about the real world? That many real life women enjoy being bound and gagged, and that women who say no don't mean it. That's why, on the social science evidence, many consumers actually get their beliefs changed (see e.g. Donnerstein et al, the Question of Pornography). 

And (ii) as 'one of many' points out, even if consent is there, the woman's pleasure may not be; and rehearsing even pretend violence can 'stay in that man's mind' to shape how he looks at other women later. There is a lot of psychological literature now about how our 'off-line' imaginings and pretendings can influence our 'on-line' behaviour. This can be a good thing when it means that rehearsing your tennis strokes, just in imagination, can actually help you play better! But bad when it's shaping your responses to real people. 

Furthermore (iii) it's naive to assume that there is always consent, on the part of the actors, in the first place. Sara raises some excellent points about the real life conditions of many in the industry, for example in South East Asia, effectively the conditions of appalling sexual slavery. Consumers using pornography made in this way are effectively sex tourists, using virtual brothels in South East Asia. Possibly they are even the same consumers who would think twice about buying sneakers made with sweat shop labor.

Strategies: Why so pessimistic about the law? Most people think the law can and should be used to restrict or make actionable some sorts of pornography, for example, in the US, child porn; and in the UK now (legislation pending) 'extreme pornography',  that eroticizes life threatening attitudes and behaviours such as necrophilia and asphyxiation. (This follows the porn-inspired murder of a school teacher by Graham Coutts, who was addicted to this sort of porn.) 

 I also agree with Michael that other strategies should be pursued—I would say, 'as well', not 'instead'. Yes, more and better sex education please! Otherwise porn will be the default sex educator of the next generation. But also: education for us all about porn itself: the conditions under which it's made (thanks again Sara!), and what it can do to people—to women, and to men too. It's naive, though, to think it will go away because it will just fail in the marketplace of ideas. People don't have their truth filtering brains switched on when they consume porn: they aim for pleasure, not knowledge. But it changes their minds all the same, just like effective advertising does. 

And then in addition to education, a consumer boycott too. For the same reasons you might boycott sneakers made with sweat shop labour. Or for the same reason you might choose not to own a gun, even if you think you have a 'right to bear arms'. Why exercise that right, if it's more likely to damage you yourself—or those who are, or could be, closest to you?

Pornography: Open Thread

posted by Ken Taylor

Blogging has been light around here as of late -- what with our gang's various and sundry  summer travels and the fact that we were often not in the studio this summer.  But it's time to kick this blog back into at least moderate gear.   For the upcoming season,  I plan to blog more regularly -- at least weekly, I hope.   (Daily is way more than I can manage.)

Not going to make an elaborate entry this morning, before the show.  But I thought I'd give you a taste of what we're going to talk about today,   Here's a little dialogue, between Joe and Blow,  that sets up some of the issues we'll talk about today. 

JOE:     I was thinking about the nature of pornography and I got stuck on the problem of definition. The late Supreme Court Justice, Potter Stewart, is famous for having said that pornography he couldn’t define pornography, but that he knew it when he saw it.  Seems like he's right.   Or do you think you can do better?

BLOW:   Well,  try this definition on for size.    Pornography is the graphic depiction or description intimate sexual acts,  with an intense focus on sexual organs,  for the express purpose of causing sexual arousal in the viewer, listener, or reader.

JOE:       My first reaction is that seems too broad.  That definition would make things that are romantic, artistic and erotic count as something base and pornographic.

BLOW:  You’re making the  pretty common, but mistaken assumption that pornography is, by definition, a bad thing.   Do yo really think it's an analytic truth, as philosophers like to say,  that pornography is a bad thing? 

JOE:      Definitely,   pornography is a bad thing.  It debases and objectifies  woman; it  promotes the sexual exploitation of children; it glorifies sexual violence.

 BLOW:   Are you deliberately being obtuse, Joe?   I don't doubt that  some pornography is bad.  And probably some of it is bad in just the ways you say.   But that's not what I was denying.  I was denying that  pornography is bad by definition.  

JOE:  I'm not being obstuse.  I get that you're suggesting that we shouldn’t define pornography in value-laden terms.    I just disagree -- that's all. 

BLOW:   You want to try and settle the moral issues about pornography by appeal to definitions?  But that's a mistake.    We have to look at how pornography actually works – at its  real world social, and psychological and economic effects.  

JOE:     I hate to appeal to the authority of dictionaries in philosophical arguments.  But if  you go looking in the dictionaries you get conflicting data. The Merriam-Webster online dictionary defines pornography as  “the depiction of erotic behavior (as in pictures or writing) intended to cause sexual excitement.  That’s a value-neutral definition.   But at dictionary.com you find a more value-laden definition,   “obscene writings, drawings, photographs, or the like, esp. those having little or no artistic merit.” 

BLOW:   I’m with Merriam Webster, obviously.   But however we want to define pornography, we’ve got the same problem.   The real question is which, if any depictions of sex organs and sex acts, are morally problematic and which are not?  And what distinguishes the morally problematic ones from the ones that are not morally problematic?

JOE:      The morally problematic ones are the ones that debase woman, that exploit children,  that promote sexual violence.  

BLOW:   Can we agree to set aside child pornography?    That has no defenders.   But are you suggesting that certain representations of sexual acts are intrinsically or constitutively morally problematic?

JOE:       I am indeed, suggesting that.   I more than suggesting it,  I'm outright claiming it.       There’s just something plain distasteful about pictures of naked women in bondage.   Such representations treat woman as if they were mere things,  mere tools.   Woman are not and should not be represented as tools.  Don’t you agree?  Don't you find that sort of thing just disgusting.  I know I do. 

BLOW:   You sound like you're trying to legislate tastes,  Joe.    But tastes vary and should be allowed to vary.   Some people like that sort of thing, obviously.  And some people don’t. 

JOE:     I don't think we're talking about matters of taste.  I think we're talking about matters of morality.   There  is something intrinsically morally wrong with pornographic representations of woman in sexual bondage. Anybody ought to find such representations distasteful.    It's a perversion of taste that some men find the objectification of woman aesthetically pleasing.  So I might not want to  call someone who likes that sort of thing evil.  But I would call them perverted.   And I take perversion to be a term of moral condemnation. 

BLOW:   Perversion is in the eye of the beholder.   What you call a perversion may for another person be a supreme and sublime erotic experience.   Look,  I'll grant you this.   Some people can’t handle explicit sexual representations.   It might lead them to sexual violence or other untoward behavior toward woman.  But some people can’t handle explicit violence in the movies either.    Perhaps we should keep pornography out the hands who people who can’t handle it.  But otherwise leave it alone.  That's about as far as I'm inclined to go in morally condemnation of pornography. 

JOE: Look,  I gotta run, Blow.  I wish I could stay and talk you out of your silly views.  But my favorite radio show,  Philosophy Talk,  is about to air and it just so happens they are doing an episode on  Pornography,  with Rae Langton --who has written a wonderful book about the subject.   I wouldn't miss it for anything, 

BLOW: That sounds cool.  Mind if I come along and listen too?

JOE: Not at all.  I'd like that.  Maybe you'll learn something.