In order to understand pornography we must first understand the effects that it has on the human mind. This will enable us to understand why the pornography industry is ever expanding at an alarming rate. It is a proven fact that pornography can be addictive. Just like a person can get addicted to alcohol and drugs they can in a similar way get addicted to pornography. When a person starts viewing pornography a certain part of the brain gets stimulated. This stimulation is translated as pleasure. Thus as a person continues viewing more and more porn they get more and more pleasure out of it. It reaches a point where the person finds pornography to be soothing. Pornography starts being the embodiment of solace for that particular person. The more the person continues watching pornography the more their brain gets stimulated (Morgan, p.90). Thus when a person stops watching pornography this stimulation ceases and in turn the feeling of pleasure associated with this stimulation also greatly reduces or ceases completely. In order for the person to get their sense of stimulation and pleasure back they have to continue watching pornography. This thus brings into perspective the addiction aspect of pornography. It can clearly be seen how people can get addicted to pornography. Like other addictions pornography has its own withdrawal symptoms. Withdrawal symptoms of pornography may include but not limited to a low sex drive and a general feeling of unease. Sudden deprivation of pornography can leave a long time viewer quite edgy just like in the instance of alcohol addiction and cigarette addiction. Pornography can become so severe that a person searches for all available opportunities and avenues to gain access to pornography. The addiction is particularly strong because it is attached to perhaps the most basic human emotion which is sexual orientation.
According to evolution all living organisms are categorized as either males or females. Even the plants are categorized in terms of the sexes with some being males while others are females. Thus sexuality is an inherent and integral part of not only human beings but all living organisms known to man. Thus sexuality has a unique influence on all living organisms and especially on human beings. This is because human beings are the most evolved creatures in terms of their mental faculties and mental abilities. Thus human beings are able to synthesize their thoughts and emotions faster and at a higher level of sophistication than all other living organisms. This also means that the inherent emotions that are particular to a given species are also more magnified in human beings than they are in other creatures. This is to say that human beings experience their inherent emotions and urges more strongly than all the other living organisms on the planet earth. With sexuality being the bottom line as far as special evolution is concerned it is thus clear why human beings are more inclined towards sexuality and pornography than other living organisms. In the animal kingdom the animals adhere to a strict schedule of mating seasons and mating periods. To the animals mating is not casual. It is a duty owed to the entire species and it must follow a certain schedule and procedure. The human race is however very different (Marcus, p.72). Due to the higher sense of evolution in human beings people have come to the realization that sex and mating do not have to follow a certain procedure or trend. They are a casual aspect of life that can be engaged in at the behest of the person. With all creatures being subject to their instincts it is very easy to understand why pornography has become an integral and pivotal part of mainstream life. The strongest human instinct of all the instincts is sexuality. Despite the high placing on the evolutionary ladder human beings are more subject to their sexuality than they could ever imagine. Being subject to ones sexuality is not by choice but by evolutionary design. Deep down all human beings have rather strong sexual urges. This clearly explains why pornography is on the rise. I also explain why despite the entire stigma attached to pornography deep down all people have an urge to watch material that is pornographic in nature or pornographic in its orientation. Instinct is the key word in this regard. All creatures are instinctive and human beings are by all means no different (Morgan, p.107).
It is very important in this discussion to clearly define pornography. There are certain forms of eroticism and erotic material that society deems acceptable. It is very important to ensure that these accepted forms of eroticism are not mistaken for pornography. The word pornography is derived from two Greek words. The first word is prone which means prostitutes and harlots depending on the context in which it is used. Basically it means any woman who is unfaithful and uses her sexuality to earn a living or get favors especially from men. The second word is graphein. The word graphein means to write or to describe something by writing it down again depending on the context in which the word is used. Direct translation of the word therefore means to write about prostitutes or to describe prostitutes in form of writing. Thus this material has one primary purpose and that is to ensure arousal of whoever comes across the material. Thus pornography is any material which when produced the producer had one primary goal and that was to evoke erotic emotions in the consumer. Pornography can however be differentiated from socially acceptable forms of criticism though by a very thin line and a barely visible one at that unless of course someone focuses. The main difference between pornography and socially acceptable forms of erotica is that pornography portrays unequal powers in terms of sexual relations while the acceptable forms of erotica portray equal powers in terms of sexual relations.
Pornography is not just a personal affair. It is not constrained to the individual anymore. In the past few years pornography has taken a more social approach and point of view. This can be argued in terms of the relations between a man and a woman. Men have a tendency of bragging about their unmatched prowess in sex. A lot of men discuss sex issues with each other and more often than not every single man puts up a very strong argument or rather assertion that he is the Alfa male as far as bedroom affairs are concerned. The most embarrassing thing for a man is for him to admit in front of his male friends that he has problems in the bedroom. This can be equated to social suicide and an end to his relations with all his friends. As a result of this social pressure there is an urge in every man to perfect his sexual skills. Every man wants to be the show stopper as far as mattes of the bed room are concerned. The fastest way for anyone to perfect their sexual skills is of course to do research and where else to do research than to invoke the use of pornography. It is thus very clear how and why social issues involving men have led to the rise of pornography. It has reached a point where pornography is no longer a forbidden source of pleasure but a basic necessity not much unlike air or food or water. This is because men are always looking for new ways to perfect their sexual skills. They do this so that their social status can stay intact and so that they can earn the respect of their peers as well as the respect of their spouses.
Analysis of the trends of pornography reveals that there are very large gender differences in terms of pornography. Men are more likely to get addicted to porn than women. There are also more men who are active subscribers of pornography than there are women. This is because of the way pornography portrays men in comparison to the way it portrays women. In all pornographic portrayals men usually stand out as the stronger sex. Pornography puts men on a pedestal in terms of their sexual prowess. The women are brought out as the weaker sex. They are subjugated and are basically an element to be used by the man. All pornographic portrayals are centered on the men (Marcus, p.81). This means that men are the center of attention as far as pornography is concerned. Sex in pornographic portrayals revolves around the man and how he uses the woman as a source of pleasure. Pornography is degrading to women to say the least. It involves women being weak and basically instruments that men can use for pleasure in some manners that are to say the least very demeaning in terms of the self-esteem of the woman. This thus explains the gender rift in society as far as pornography is concerned. It explains why the majority of the clientele as far as pornography is concerned are men. Women do engage in viewing of pornography but not nearly in the same capacity and frequency as men. When women watch pornography for example it lowers their self-esteem and they therefore lack the urge to watch pornography over and over again. When men watch pornography the reverse happens. It raises their self-esteem and they get this urge to watch pornography over and over again. As a result more men engage in watching pornography than women (Gorman, p.27).
Sexual scripting is also very important in understanding human sexuality and to a very large extent the concept of pornography. Sexual scripting is a theory that delves deeper into the meaning of sex and sexuality and by extension pornography. Sexual scripting assists the importance of attached meanings and in some instances hidden symbols in human sexuality. According to this theory sexual scripts associated with human beings exist in three dimensions. The first dimension of sexual scripting involves cultural scenarios. The second dimension of sexual scripting involves interpersonal relations and the third dimension as far as sexual scripting is concerned involves intraphysic scenarios. This theory is of the opinion that sexual feelings do not just happen in the body. These sexual feelings need meaning (Gorman, p.56). They also need symbols that act as cues and these cues are clues that enable feelings of sexuality to develop and manifest themselves physically. Cultural scenarios can be used to explain the concept of pornography. This is because cultural scenarios are linked to historical time periods. In this historical time period pornography is on the rise. This leads to more and more people being acclimate to the concept of pornography and slowly accepting it as part of life. Intraphysic scenarios can also be used in the explanation and disambiguation of the concept of pornography. This is because intra physic scenarios focus primarily on the way and methodology in which personal sexual preferences or in other words turn on and images develop and grow. This means that it deals with the particular sexual preference of every person on earth. This is evident in the pornography industry. Currently pornography is one of the most diverse fields on the planet. I mean there are all kinds of pornography. Every human being is catered for. Every sexual preference that a person can think of is catered for in bulk thus everyone is served.
People may not want to admit this in public but pornography has become part and parcel of modern life. Pornography encompasses all aspects of life. It reveals the sexual trends of the population. It also reveals gender roles in particular societies and how these roles are manifested through sexual behavior. Pornography can also be used to analyze and explain the psychological state of an individual or a particular group. The prominence of pornography in modern day life can be attributed to social relations, evolution, psychology and sociology.
Works Cited
Day, Gary, and Clive Bloom.Perspectives on pornography: sexuality in film and literature. New York: St. Martin's Press, 2010. Print.
Gorman, Carol. Pornography. New York: F. Watts, 2005. Print.
Marcus, Steven. The other Victorians; a study of sexuality and pornography in mid-nineteenth-century England.. New York: Basic Books, 2007. Print.
Morgan, ThaïsE..Pornography. Bloomington, Ind.: Indiana University Press, 2003. Print.
