Why Hide Pornography? The controversial debate over the views of pornography have been unsettled for decades. Susan Brownmiller agrees with feminist groups that pornography falsely portrays the female body. In her essay “Lets Put Pornography Back in the Closet,” Brownmiller suggests that pornography should not publicly be advertised if it is obscene or negatively delineates women.
I, however, disagree with Brownmiller’s thesis because pornography is not forced upon the public eye, and the concept that pornography is made to harshly portray women is a matter of opinion. Brownmiller believes that the intent of pornography is to “humiliate, degrade, and dehumanize the female body for the purpose of erotic stimulation and pleasure” (59). In her essay she describes how the obscenity of pornography should be utilized in court situations, when women are being “stripped, bound, raped, tortured, mutilated, and murdered in the name of commercial entertainment and free speech” (59). Brownmiller also mentions how a person should not have to witness these obscene images in public areas, such as newspaper booths.…show more content… Douglas regarding public pornography and how he believes that no one is “compelled to look” (59). Where Brownmiller strongly opposes his statement, I strongly agree with it. Pornographic images do not commonly appear at your average news stand, as Brownmiller points out, yet magazines containing certain images such as Hustler, Penthouse, and Playboy may be sold there. If a newsstand chooses to stock any one form of these magazines, it is the customers decision to either look at it or not. Movies regarding pornography also are not forced upon the public. There are adult sections at video stores and even whole stores themselves dedicated to the separation of adult films from the general public. This separation shows societies attempt of keeping pornography out of the views of those who choose to avoid
