Pornography and Female Body Image
Occasionally, I’ll meet people on the Internet who has some great things to say about sex, society, and sex in society. Here is a guest post by a friend about pornography and the female body image. Let me tell you, the article is awesome because it blows away the stereotype that it is only the males of our society who view porn. This is so not true, I don’t even know where to start. Anyway, I hope you enjoy the article and tell me your thoughts in the comments section.
Pornography and Female Body Image
In the broader sense, the way in which pornography invites the viewer to see women is not a new subject of discussion and there is as much controversy surrounding this topic today as there was when pornographic material was just starting to become available. Interestingly, whilst there has been an almost endless amount of conjecture, discussion and tussling between the pro and anti porn lobbies, there have been very few studies that seek to directly question the buyers and users of pornography about what they feel adult material brings to their perceptions of women.
Recently, in one of the most complete and objective studies to date, an academic paper commissioned by the Australian House of Representatives and published on the website of an Australian adult DVD shop, surveyed 320 porn users to gauge how their exposure to adult material influences their perceptions of sex, sexuality and women. The results are somewhat surprising.
Firstly and significantly, it is not only men who buy porn; 1 in 5 of the survey respondents were female and they report buying porn both for themselves and for their partners, with whom they enjoy it as a couple. That wasn’t even thought about a few years ago, it was simply assumed that virtually all porn is purchased by men. Now it appears that women are not only watching pornography in significant numbers but they are buying it themselves and are relaxed enough about this fact to discuss it in a survey. Something of a renaissance for sure and a fact the anti porn camp finds rather difficult to deal with without demonising female porn fans.
Secondly, the report seems to confirm what common sense tells us in that whilst many men report using adult material mainly for simple sexual gratification, a much higher percentage of women use both porn and softcore erotica, to safely explore new areas of their sexuality, often tentatively trying out new ideas before launching into real life encounters that ultimately enrich and expand their sexual world. This is particularly true in areas of sexual interest that are not easily, comfortably or safely explored in real life. Examples of this range from S & M, a sexual interest that requires an extremely high level of trust in your partner, to themes based around bi sexuality which again is not always easily accessible at least in the early stages of exploration.
Now despite the rumbling concerns of numerous anti porn pressure groups, can the use of porn by women for sexual exploration really be that bad? It does seem unlikely. Whilst this is a very positive start to extolling the benefits of porn for women, there is more, quite a lot more in fact.
When questioned about their attitudes to female body shape and what constitutes a sexually attractive woman, a huge percentage of porn buyers, both men and women, said that their interest in adult films had helped them accept a wider range of body shapes as being sexually attractive. The huge variety of adult DVDs and downloads now on offer allows people to explore sexual concepts that would not have been available to them previously and this exploration exposes pornography users to female body shapes that are far removed from the stereotypical porn star figure one would encounter in more traditional top shelf magazines.
Now this is certainly a surprise for many people but surely anything that promotes sexuality as having a myriad of different forms must be positive for the adult industry and its customers. However, more importantly than that, offering people the opportunity to gain sufficient exposure to different types of body shape that they arrive at the conclusion that women can be sexually attractive without being 50kg and having large breasts is an unexpected but most welcome benefit of pornography that could have far reaching consequences in mainstream society.
Whilst a watchful eye must always be kept on the messages adult films convey and women’s rights within the adult industry must continue to be protected, if women are increasingly involved not only as producers of adult material but as a growing and powerful consumer force, there is at least some hope for balance and a chance for porn to be a positive influence in people’s lives.
Like this post? Buy me a coffee so I can write more!Possibly Related Articles:
4 Responses to “Pornography and Female Body Image”
Leave a Reply
Please read about leaving a comment before leaving a comment
I am a writer. I write a variety of things including articles, short stories, and novels. I’m a big fan of science fiction and fantasy but I also enjoy reading and writing erotica, some of which you will find on my website. I write mainly for pleasure but I do hope to eventually get published. [
Well, nothing new there… women have been buying porn for decades, as Susie Bright – among others – could tell you. And it’s true that in its “polymorphous perversity” porn embraces just about every physical type you can imagine (and probably a few you can’t). But this piece is WAY too positive, even for a porn enthusiast like me: much of the material remains horribly exploitative and misogynistic (and that, sadly, includes some stuff produced by women), not to mention insulting to basic intelligence and degrading to humanity in general. Porn as a positive influence? I’d like to think so, but we’re a long, long way from that being the case.
Hi Alice,
Sorry I didn’t respond earlier. I agree that a lot of porn out there is still sexist, but I think that’s mostly because the industry panders to men. Like it or not, many human sexual instincts are misogynistic. So to sell porn, that’s what they focus on.
You are totally right about the exploitative nature of porn and some of it is degrading. But the other side of that is, there is a market for that crazy stuff, so what does that say about us as human beings?
I think a lot of the problems with porn would be alleviated if it was legitimized. But the stigma that is still attached to porn scares away the really talented producers and directors who would make decent stuff. Hopefully, that will change in the future.
Hi Alice,
I wrote the article for Daria’s site and I’m always interested when someone who is clearly well informed and engaged has a comment. With regard to the piece being too positive, on reflection I think you are right, although I did try to support what I see as positive steps in the right direction, rather than suggest all is absolutely fine and there is nothing bad out there, which is clearly not the case.
I think the problem I have when considering material that can be perceived as misogynistic or exploitative is that it is such a subjective judgement. We could list a number of sexual acts or perceived attitudes that a lot of people (and film censorship boards) would feel fit these two categories but I know there are many women and couples who enjoy such activities as part of a loving, balanced relationship.
For me the key element is how the adult actress (or indeed actor) felt when they were performing for this type of film. Anything is OK if you are genuinely comfortable with it yourself and nobody else has the right to judge. By the same token, if people want to watch such material we should perhaps at least reserve judgement if we believe everyone has their right to sexual diversity as long as it isn’t at the expense of someone else’s basic human rights and also acknowledge the inherent fantasy element of viewing porn.
Unfortunately, as someone not involved in porn production, I find it difficult to gauge the level of exploitation and coercion female performers face and I feel this is a key point. I also feel that the best way to reduce it is to have women involved in porn production and have a solid female customer base that wields ever increasing consumer power. The points Daria made about porn production simply reflecting inherent human desires and that the marginalized nature of the industry does not help improve the quality of its output are both significant elements in this debate.
Irrespective of whether exploitation was involved in the making of potentially misogynistic material or the motivation for people to buy it, it does concern me a great deal that having such material available may increase negative attitudes to women. At this point we return to the oldest question in the industry and I’m afraid I have no answers. I also fear that vocal elements in the pro and anti lobbies have no answers either but they continue to offer “evidence” to support their particular agenda. My focus in this piece was intended to be the fact that women have a more prominent voice than was previously the case and I do believe that the way that women use pornography is beneficial to them personally and if they are engaged with porn rather than excluded, that is for me very positive.
I guess in the end I am an optimist and have a lot of faith in the capacity of women to bring positive change in any male dominated arena. Whether it be giving micro credit loans to women in the developing world because funders know mothers make sure the money is used for the intended purpose, or the fact that the whole swinging scene is run hands down by women on their terms – wherever women have a chance to improve things they do so and I remain hopeful that this will be the case in the porn industry. Whatever they accomplish as producers of porn and however their consumer influence helps shape the industry, it is certainly much better to have women involved rather than allowing it to be an exclusively male domain.
Thanks, Daria & Simon, for your well-considered replies. I guess what frustrates me is the gap between the potential of pornography and the actuality of it. It wasn’t so long ago there were pictures of Jenna Jameson in Times Square and porn was supposedly going “mainstream” – didn’t happen, and I fear the industry quite likes that ghetto it’s always been stuck in. I have no problem with the “crazy stuff” being produced or consumed, so long as no one is being exploited or hurt in the process – what depresses me is that there’s so much of it, and so little of the kind of thing I’m looking for. I want from porn much the same as I would want from sex: affection, intimacy and a sense of beauty – is that so much to ask? Hopefully, as you say, things will change; but I see precious little evidence of it so far…