PORN: UT Students and the questionable art form

The subject of pornography may not be dinner conversation, but some students at UT were willing to share their views on the subject.

The amount of ease with which people speak of pornography is often as varied as their opinions on the subject.

To some, porn is seen as a casual matter of conversation amongst friends. To others, it is just as easily seen as a taboo topic, not to be discussed openly –likely attributed to the clandestine nature with which most view pornography.

Many college students, whether or not they watch porn, aren't largely concerned with its effects on the overall population. In fact, while the majority of students questioned weren't necessarily opposed to porn, yet they weren't exactly advocates.

Those not against the existence of porn had varied views on whether or not it nets society any benefits.

Chris Dykyj, a sophomore majoring in athletic training, isn't opposed to pornography, but also said that there "really aren't any benefits" to viewing porn outside of entertainment.

"It's bad, but not the end of the world," he said.

Dykyj also said that porn could be destructive in a relationship and called it "really degrading to both men and women."

Sharon Barnes, professor of women's studies, agrees that pornography is often demeaning to all of the parties involved. One of her main concerns revolves around the concept that consuming pornography enforces male dominance.

"Men get a pleasure response from the depiction of women in objectifying and dehumanizing positions," Barnes said.

Although there is not any extensive research done linking violence to x-rated content, Barnes believes it "creates a cultural atmosphere where sexual assault is more tolerated."

Perhaps worse still, most pornography normalizes violence by portraying women as enjoying the experience, said Barnes.

However, hardcore and graphic pornography, particularly websites devoted to the aggressive genres such as bondage and S&M aren't solely degrading to women. Many sites are devoted to the smaller percentage of women viewers.

Even still, there are others that purport to use pornography to portray women's sexuality in positive perspective. Among these are a number of female pornography directors, who identify themselves as creators of "feminist pornography." Directors include Swedish-born Erika Lust and Ohio native Madison Young.

The industry, however, typically targets males. Two out of every three viewers of porn are men, and the content is mainly focused on pleasing this demographic.

While Barnes worries that masturbating to internet porn may lead men to mistreat the women in their lives, she also believes that men directly suffer from chronic consumption.

"It's abusive to the men who [watch] it," said Barnes. "It's belittling and berating men who can't stop using it."

Despite the many negative connotations linked to porn, plenty of students find little wrong with the erotica experience.

Christian Ball, a freshman majoring in pharmacy, said that he is "not against porn at all."

When it comes to the major intrigue of porn, "number one is arousal," said Ball. "Number two is curiosity."

Ball also believes that various forms of pornography can be considered an art form.

"It's kind of like a movie," he said. "And film is a form of art."

Questions of pornography's artistic value were famously debated in the 1964 Supreme Court case Jacobellis v. Ohio in which Justice Potter Stewart famously said, when asked how to distinguish smut from art, "I know it when I see it."

For Barnes, the distinction is easy to make.

"Pornography doesn't have a plot," she said. "It can be art in a different situation, but it is "not healthy for anyone to use as a sense of their sexuality."

Objectifying women is not specific to porn: the portrayal of women is similar to the portrayal of women in the media and fashion industries, only more explicitly.

"Women, of course, develop impossible standards of beauty and perfection. Men are affected by that too," said Barnes.

She added that pornography creates "a certain standard" for sex in the eyes of some viewers. Confusion over standards such as this are carried from personal life into the academic field as well.

Bilgi University in Istanbul, one of Turkey's most prestigious institutions, was recently in an uproar over a similar issue: the questionability of pornography as art form.

According to BBC News, the film department at the university has been closed due to disagreements between what would be considered traditional Turkish values and some of the experimental arts and lifestyles practiced in Istanbul.

This outraged reaction stemmed from film student Deniz Ozgun's dissertation project: a pornographic film starring a student. His intent was to "reveal how synthetic the sexual scenes in it were."

After an interview with Ozgun appeared in a Turkish magazine, parents immediately began to question the credibility of projects undertaken at the university. The backlash was so severe that Ozgun and the former student who starred in the film have gone into hiding.

While Bilgi is well-known for being one of the most liberal institutions in Turkey, there is still a striking difference between the people's view of pornography there as opposed to the U.S.

In Istanbul, adult content may only be in the experimental stage, but in the U.S., the internet-based porn industry is thriving with 40 million Americans as regular visitors of x-rated sites.

People may not want to admit that they view it, or speak on the specifics of their fetishes, but the numbers don't lie. Twelve percent of all websites on the internet are pornographic. This means approximately 24,644,172 sites entirely dedicated to bare flesh and erotica.