Exploring The Association Between Pornography And Rape Essay Examples

The use of Pornography was defined by Lord Chesterfield in very few yet eloquent words, “The pleasure is momentary, the position ridiculous, and the expense damnable.” But what actually is pornography? Our legal system defines it as the portrayal of sexual acts solely for the purpose of arousal of an individual. Our definition and interpretation of pornographic content has been changing with time and for the most part, depends upon the social practices and the reinforcement of the moral codes of the society. As the accessibility of pornographic content elevates with time, we find ourselves connecting the dots and anticipating the social as well and general ramifications of this change. This paper is being written with the intention of understanding the aftermath of the wide use and distribution of pornography and its impact on our views of women and sexual discrimination towards them.
Pornography and its use are a primordial concept and just as antique has been the debate regarding its impact on sexual behavior. But since the data and results of the research fail to provide any conclusive results in the debate, many individuals deny the existence of any connection between the two dynamics. This, however, does not mean that this connection is absent altogether. In my opinion, an individual’s exposure to pornography could have devastating impacts on his/her views of the opposite sex and could increase the level of sexual discrimination in the society. There could also be various direct or indirect impacts of the cases of sexual violence and rape.
There are, however, many individuals who deny the presence of connection between the use of porn and the frequency of rapes. According to the article aggression and violent behavior, Ferguson contests that there is slim somewhat virtually fictional connection between exposure to pornography and sexual aggression which may also very well have been greatly exaggerated by politicians, social scientists, and pressure groups. Ferguson argues that the impacts highlighted relate to violent porn which is reasonably rare and is not that major of an issue. He moves a step further to suggest an inverse relationship between rape cases and porn consumption. The basis for this claim is that most people use pornography to quench their sexual desires so that they do not have to seek a solution elsewhere.
Milton Diamond, who is a professor at the University of Hawaii, takes a similar stand on the issue and argues that according to scientific research, the exposure to pornography reduces the rate of sexual crimes. But even Diamond refuses to acknowledge the adverse impacts of porn in the society. His article ‘Porn: Good for us?’ persuades that even though pornography may not be seen to increase crime, it still encourages the degradation of women in the society.
Now, let’s explore the other side of the debate. Does exposure to pornographic content lead to increasing in sex crimes? I say yes. Let’s see how. One connection could be found between the sales of men’s magazine which is five times higher per capita in the states of Alaska and Nevada and the rate of rape and another sexual activity is close to six times higher per capita in these states. According to another statistic, during a period of increased availability of porn in the Now South Wales, there was almost 90.6 percent increase in the rape rate. A study of the Michigan State Police also suggested the same connection which claimed that pornography was viewed just before or during 41 percent of the 38,000 sexual crimes analyzed during the period of the past twenty years.
The major issue to worry about is that the adverse effects are not limited to just adults in the modern age of technology. Exposure to questionable content also has an influence over children and young people of today. This exposure may be disturbing or upsetting to these youngsters and could also lead to the inclination towards sexist notions and unhealthy sexual behaviors. This content that is age-inappropriate as well as violent in some cases is a very poor excuse for sexual education amongst our young population. I think it is about time that we focus on and comprehend the long-term impacts of this problem rather than presenting excuses for further indulgence in the act.
Another paper was presented on the same topic by Paul Pollard in his journal ‘Pornography and sexual aggression’. According to this research paper, men responded in a similar manner to enactments of rape and to the content where all participants were willing. These reactions could lead to increases sadism towards women and may as easily end in instances of rape. And this is just the analysis of the exposure to non-violent content. The impacts of violent porn still need to be factored in. Another factor we have to consider is the impact of pornography on the people other than the audience. Could women be the only victims of heinous acts of sexual crimes or could our children be equally exposed to this sexual aggression? Also, what kind of a society would we be living in if we lost respect for the women that surround us?
Pornography and its impact are an issue that requires ominous concentration for the sake of a better future for our children and also for a healthy society. The ramifications are widespread ranging from the undesirable impacts on the willing and non-willing participants of video and picture pornography to the people who suffer the sexual desires of the males in the society. In addition, children who grow up with unhealthy sexual behavior and practices are also an obscurity that we might have to look forward to in the future. These children may also grow up to be sexual predators who might inflict the same level of misery on others in their lives and the cycle of misery would carry on. Is the increase in sexual activity the only impact that would act as a wake-up call for us? Do we have to pay a price for our carelessness to finally be able to address the issue? The solutions to our problems are pretty simple. There should be a criminal action against those who openly display pornographic contents, be it on internet websites or in magazines that are sold in supermarkets and stores. We also need to take steps to make sure that the young ones cannot gain access to this inappropriate content whether at home, in schools or our on the streets.

References

Christopher J. Ferguson, R. D. (2009). The pleasure is momentarythe expense damnable? Aggression and violent behavior, 323-329.
Diamond, M. (2010, March 1). Porn: Good for us? Retrieved from The Scientist: http://www.the-scientist.com/?articles.view/articleNo/28803/title/Porn--Good-for-us-/
Duhaime. (n.d.). Pornography Legal Definition. Retrieved from duhaime.org: http://www.duhaime.org/LegalDictionary/P/Pornography.aspx
Flood, M. (2010, February 05). The harms of pornography exposure among children and young people. Retrieved from xyonline.net: http://www.xyonline.net/content/harms-pornography-exposure-among-children-and-young-people
Goldsmith, M. (n.d.). Sexual Offenders and Pornography: A casual connection? Retrieved from AIC: http://www.aic.gov.au/media_library/publications/proceedings/20/goldsmith.pdf
Pollard, P. (Fall 1995). Pornography and sexual aggression. Current psychology, Volume 14, Issue 3, Pages 200-221.