In my Religious Ethics class today we were having a discussion about Internet pornography and the moral implications of it.
"It degrades women."
Yes, it does. But let's not forget that it degrades men as well. This should not be a feminist issue. By saying that it's only women who suffer from the sex industry, we alienate men from the debate and seem to make it okay for them to enjoy and participate in pornography. What about gay porn, or straight porn? The man in those films are being taken advantage of, like the women. To be paid for having sex and being filmed or photographed is a decision that many people will take because of financial need. The men and women in this industry are being exploited at the basest level possible.
Men are also suffering from watching porn in the same way that women are. Their view of sex is being manipulated and altered in the most awful of ways. Something which should be about love and mutual pleasure is often being portrayed to young, impressionable boys as something violent and atavistic. These boys are growing into men whose early knowledge of sex has stemmed from images they have seen on the Internet, and they are projecting these false sexual ideals onto young women, who cannot and should not match up to them.
Pornography degrades people. Those involved and those watching.
A Little Story.
- Charlotte Tea
- Shakespeare's Hometown. Lucky Ol' Me.
- I like strong, sweet tea and cold, quiet days. When I am old I plan to be gloriously eccentric. I'm pretty eccentric now, honestly. I could spend my life on the top deck of a bus if I had the oppertunity. I like the freedom it gives me. I plan to write for the whole of my existance, I can't see a reason why not. Proper job? No thankyou. Happiness for me can be found in a canned sticky toffee pudding. There's joy in the simple pleasure of licking the toffee residue off the can. I can recite the "Frailty, thy name is woman" speech in Hamlet, a play which I love. I find comfort in the fact that, however bad you think your life is, Hamlet's will be worse. I go and see every Shakespeare play they put on at the RSC, because I like Shakespeare. I like the way he captures people. I think Mariah Gale is an exceptional actress. I become atatched to fictional characters, and have been known to cry at romantic couples in novels. & I'm not sure I belive in true love in real life. Go Figure. In short; I'm pretty paradoxical. And I like it. Life's more interesting that way.
Whatever happened to you, Charlotte? I was just browsing 'people who listed 'Villette' among their favourite books' and came across your profile. I remember we had a little correspondence quite a long time ago, but what I don't remember was your oddball outlook and habits. (Maybe that's because I've grown loonier over the last eight years.) You're very interesting, you know; I would even suggest there's a hint of dear Luna about you. Shame you disappeared, but I do hope you're faring well. And I don't suppose you'll ever read this anyway.
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