Re: Porn, or Erotica?

Josh Baugher (jbaugher@vt.edu)
Wed, 1 Sep 1999 18:13:16 -0400


* Joseph S. Barrera III <joe@barrera.org>:

> Can anyone explain to me the difference between "Porn" and "Erotica"?
>
> In Politically Correct speech, "Porn" is bad and "Erotica" is good:
> E.g. porn exploits women, whereas erotica is protected free speech.
> But how do you tell one from the other?
>
> I ask this question somewhat ironically, but I'd love to hear a
> serious answer.

In an Ethics course I took recently, this was the distinction that some
authors gave:

Erotica is a depiction of sexual things. Pornography is erotica with
violence and degradation displacing some of the sexuality.

This makes me want to rethink calling things like Playboy pornography --
seems that erotica would be a much better title.

-- 
Josh Baugher <jbaugher@vt.edu>
<URL:http://www.acm.vt.edu/~jbaugher/>