Pornography! What is it?

[Chris Goddard]

Just a bit removed from the bear subject perhaps? But certainly a question that needs asking and debating I feel!!

May I just impart something about which I read a long time ago? I believe it was in the SUN when the page 3 girls first started to bare there chests, (Bring back Jackie Jones I say!!) and there was a bit of debate going on about "PORNOGRAPHY" and the dictionary (Oxford I believe?)definition at that time was "Pornography Something which may offend the onlooker be it in writing or a picture or an act." (or something like that!)

That to me ment that I may find something pornographic which the next man may not, or to put it a little more simply (As the SUN did!) Pornography is in the eye of the beholder!! I believe this to be true now and always!!

Porn seems to totally attributed nowadays to naked flesh or acts of a sexual nature and the portrayal of it?! What about a picture of a fully clothed adult who is pictured wetting his self?? Is that porn?? Not if you believe that porn is simply about naked peole and the like. Yet a lot of peole would find that picture totally abhorrent!! And possibly?? Pornographic!!

What do you think??

 

Chris

[kendo]

Basically you said it pornography is in the eye of the beholder.

[Guest Ferret1959]

I have had this out on another forum.

All they could come up with that it was a family forum and no 'porn' was welcome.

My next question was what sort of family used a family forum???

Was it a Fred West, Ozzy Osborne or Partridge family? was my final question.

Funny thing was I didn't get any more replies.

 

I carried on posting my 'humourous' stuff and nothing more was said about it.

[Newt]

I think there is a tendency to confuse unsuitable writing and pictures with pornographic material.

 

Pornographos, from the Greek, literally means writing about prostitutes but has been broadened to usually include any published material (writing, pictures, voice) whose main purpose is to arouse sexual excitement. Still some fuzzy edges but fairly clear meaning.

 

Unsuitable is strictly a contextual matter so that what might be suitable one place could be completely unsuitable and offensive in another.

 

The US practice (quite legal by the way) of taking large carp with bow and arrow comes to mind. Pro-bow discussion or photographs on AN would be completely out of place while in a bow hunting forum, they should be fine.

 

I think most of our arguments over the years have been suitable vs. unsuitable. I doubt that will ever go away.

[chesters1]

crumbs so danish people in love with dogs would actually describe Crufts as a porn show such as the Red Windmill

or a sheep shearing contest in reality a strip show for the Welsh

blimey it makes you think

[Lid]

My modern Collins combined dictionary and thesaurus says this:

 

Dictionary : indecent literature, films, etc.

 

Thesaurus : dirt, erotica, filth, indecency, obscenity, porn, porno, smut.

 

My much older Oxford Concise dictionary says :

 

description of manners etc. of harlots, treatment of obscene subjects in literature, inflammatory literature.

 

Clearly language changes over the years, and sometimes the use and meaning of a word can change very quickly.

 

Whilst I agree that the boundaries are open to personal interpretation, I think the word pornography now usually means pictures or writings depicting or suggesting the sexual acts.

 

Naked girls breasts are not usually pornography, but close up shots of female and male human reproductive organs normally are classed as pornographic. Again in the case of medical pictures there could be some debate, but any pictures or writings that show the detail of sexual acts involving humans is pornography, whether the purpose is erotic or educational.

 

[ 20. February 2004, 10:08 PM: Message edited by: Lid ]

[corydoras]

Newt:

The US practice (quite legal by the way) of taking large carp with bow and arrow comes to mind. Pro-bow discussion or photographs on AN would be completely out of place while in a bow hunting forum, they should be fine.

Newt, have you got any links to this kind of stuff? You can PM them if you prefer. I've heard that they get up to this kind of fishing in Australia and New Zealand too. It has got to beat bivvies and boilies

 

[ 26. February 2004, 02:56 PM: Message edited by: corydoras ]

[Scapanapper]

According to my son they have quite a few pornographic cards up at the Job Centre.

He says they are full of foul language such as W**k and J£b and Emp&%ym$nt.

Disgraceful

 

Resting

Scapa

[corydoras]

Newt no need to post anything. A quick Google for 'carp bow arrow' gave me a whole weeks worth of reading material. You probably know this but in some states you can 'fish' for 'gators using this 'method'.

[Newt]

The interesting thing to me is that you can use a bow & arrow but not a crossbow - unless you are disabled and in that case, you are allowed to use a crossbow.