Sex Violence

Read my discussion below and answer the question posted below. You send your answers to my email account at bonsky123@gmail.com. Please be guided accordingly.


What is ‘pornography’?

The 1986 Attorney General Commission on Pornography defined pornography as material that is “predominantly sexually explicit and intended primarily for the purpose of sexual arousal.” (cited from the article of Kerby Anderson entitled: The Pornography Plagued)

There are two types of pornography mainly; Hard core – it is sexually explicit in the extreme and devoid any apparent content or purpose and the soft core- a mild pornography since depiction of sexual violence is not too harsh.

Another important term that is closely associated to pornography is the definition of obscenity. According to the Miller case, one of the landmark cases which had opened the issue on pornography, the material is obscene if all three of the following conditions are met (Anderson):

a. The average person, applying contemporary community standards, would find that the work, taken as a whole, appeals to the prurient interest.
b. The work depicts or describes, in a patently offensive way, sexual conduct specifically defined by the applicable state law, and
c. The work taken as a whole lacks serious, artistic, political or scientific value.

Forms of Pornography

Pornographic materials could be found and/or shown on the following types:

1. Adult magazines – these are primarily directed toward an adult male audience. Popular examples are playboy and penthouse. In the country, FHM and Pinoy Playboy could fall under this classification. However, this can be distributed legally in all paper stands in the market. If you think this is a pornographic material, then why is it allowed by the government?

2. Video Cassetes- these are rented or sold in most adult video rent houses. People who would never go to the theater to watch pornographic material will get a copy at the video rent house or downloads these materials at the internet. They usually play these materials at the confines of their home for private reasons. Usually video displays a high degree of hard core pornography and illegal acts.

3. Motion pictures – videos or movies which contain extreme sexual activities are shown in theater. The MTRCB classifies this type of movies into “X-Rating” which means only adults or 18 above are allowed to view this film.

4. Television – the most restricted medium in terms of showing intense sexual activities. However, TV is not totally spared from the depiction of highly intimate sex scenes which easily could be viewed by the children. Some programs are not suitable to children, thus, the station flash an advisory message prior to the airing of the program. This is to forewarn parents or guide their children from exposing obscene acts.

5. Cyberporn – hard core pictures, movies, online chat, and even live sex acts can be downloaded and viewed by virtually anyone through the Internet. What was only available to a small number of people willing to drive to the bad side of town can now be viewed at any time in the privacy of one’s home.



Psychological and social Effects

It is believed that brief exposure to violent forms of pornography can lead to anti-social attitudes and behaviors. Male viewers tend to be more aggressive toward women, less responsive to pain and suffering of rape victims, and more willing to accept various myths about rape.


Activity 5

Question: Do you think pornography can lead to some undesirable effects in human such as committing the crime of rape? Cite one study in the web that can attest or affirm to your answers.

Activity 6

Berl Kutchinsky, a criminologist at the University of Copenhagen, is the most famous proponent that pornography can lead to violence. Find in the web the theory that was presented by this person. What are the flaws or drawbacks of his research?


Note: Do not practice the copy-paste syndrome. Try to analyze to the meaning emphasized by the author and relate this to your own understanding.


In the essay written by Irving Kristol titled Pornography, Obscenity, and the case for censorship, he emphasized varied points and ideas whether we shall take against pornography or legalized it. He cited two school of thoughts: the radical minds whose view towards pornography is that it is a healthy practice in a democratic and civil society and the conventional thinkers who obviously contradict the former’s ideas saying that it demean or debase the moral fabric of our society. According to the libertarians, there is no way for the government to suppress individual minds from writing or doing something. This is in reference to the issue that showing nudity or expressing in their literary works what is said to be a ‘normal’ human activities of copulating or having sex is indeed a no big deal issue. That is why they called their piece as an ‘art’ rather than ‘obscene’. Meanwhile, these contentions were castigated which relied mostly on its moral aspect – its ethical or metaphysical justifications. For one thing, pornography as D.H Lawrence puts it, “an attempt to do dirt on sex…It is an insult to a vital human relationship. Furthermore, pornography differs from erotic art in that its whole purpose is to treat human beings obscenely, to deprive human beings of their specifically human dimension. It was also reiterated that sex – is both an animal and human activities – meaning it’s really normal. However, in the context of human being making love is a sacred thing just like marriage; it has sentiments and ideals involved in this kind of activity. But when sex is public, the viewer does not see- cannot see- the sentiments and ideals. He can only see the animal coupling. And this really what set us human apart from animals.

Activity 5:

1. Make a 500-word essay any topics that deals with pornography. You may get one of the following titles:

a. Child Pornography
b. An Obscene ‘Art’
c. The Value of Parental Advisory
d. What Went Wrong?
e. Cybersex: It’s growing popularity to youngsters

These are just examples of the title of your essay. You can formulate of your own but focus the body of your essay on the topic at hand.

Criteria for Grading:

Originality – 30%
Composition (Grammar, coherence and clarity) – 50%
Source reliability (facts citation) – 20%



Note: Deadline for submission is on January 20, 2010. Late papers will no longer be entertained.