It wasn’t so long ago that pornographic videos were the secret indulgence of those who owned a video cassette recorder and had the links to procure the VHS tapes. Nowadays, the advent and availability of technology such as cable television, DVD, high-tech cell phones and the Internet have all brought this once underground material to the masses in a mainstream way.
While many won’t go shouting their love for porn from the mountain top, it certainly has made inroads in terms of popular consumption over time. It helps that it’s easier now, more than ever, to access adult entertainment in the privacy of the home.
Softcore stuff slips by almost unnoticed on TV, as adult film stars cross over to Hollywood. More hardcore viewing is available on cable for a few dollars more. On the sidewalks of urban centres, vendors of bootleg DVDs stock a wide variety of colourful “blue movie” titles with explicit packaging for all and sundry to see. And thanks to the World Wide Web, pornographic literature, images and videos are just a few mouse clicks away. All this negates the need for guys (or girls!) to go out and get their favourite x-rated magazine.
The Pleasures
According to the Cambridge Advance Learner Dictionary, pornography relates to “books, magazines, films, etc. with no artistic value that show sexual acts or naked people in a way that is intended to be sexually exciting”.
People have long been using porn to arouse themselves sexually, men especially (perhaps because most porn is made to suit men’s sexual fantasies). There’s the accepted notion that watching porn is a normal activity for men, and this view goes hand in hand with the views that men are turned on by the visual and always have sex on the brain.
There are guys who will readily admit to using porn to “relieve the tension”, and some will even go as far as to say that they use porn as a harmless, guilt-free means to avoid infidelity or even promiscuity. In porn, they find a place where women are always eager for sex and willing to do anything. There’s no need to consider things like intimacy, courtship and birth control.
An interesting trend that has developed in recent times is the use of porn by couples to enhance or “spice up” their sex life. While it might be hard for some to fathom, it is a practice that is gaining traction as some women become more receptive of the idea. A self-styled Jamaican “gallis” (who asked to remain anonymous), who frequents motels that offer porn channels on cable TV, told Buzzz that it is often his female “conquest” who finds the porn and uses it to set the mood.
“Yuh have one a two weh no really interested inna the blue movie dem, but majority of dem want fi see it wen we touch inna the room. Dem turn it on and select di channel and tings happen fast after dat,” he revealed.
The Perils
As much as porn provides pleasure to men and some women, there is enough evidence to confirm its many perils to the individual as well as couples. There’s the risk of addiction – an unhealthy porn habit that interferes with the individual’s life and relationship.
Critics of pornography have labelled it as being “dangerous and destructive” because repeated exposure to it can potentially alter one’s perception of reality. Skin flicks invariably display sexy, “perfect” women at their physical peak, and if a man habitually sources sexual arousal from these images, there is the risk that he will lose the ability to become sexually aroused by his partner.
It is for this very reason why most women object to the consumption of porn by their significant other. They are insulted by the fact that a substitute is being used to excite their male partner, and it comes as a blow to their self esteem. It is also a source of insecurity, and for some it is tantamount to cheating. Porn also brings with it incorrect perceptions and expectations about sex. There’s no focus on romance, commitment and foreplay, and normal sex acts start to appear boring.
“Why would I want to be with a man who watches porn?” asks Marcelle Drakes, a 28-year-old student of the University of the West Indies.
“Certainly that means that porn is offering him something that I can’t, so it makes no sense for use to be in a relationship. Watching porn is an excuse for men to remain immature…it’s something for men who have a fear of commitment and who don’t really respect women.”
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It wasn’t so long ago that pornographic videos were the secret indulgence of those who owned a video cassette recorder and had the links to procure the VHS tapes. Nowadays, the advent and availability of technology such as cable television, DVD, high-tech cell phones and the Internet have all brought this once underground material to the masses in a mainstream way.
While many won’t go shouting their love for porn from the mountain top, it certainly has made inroads in terms of popular consumption over time. It helps that it’s easier now, more than ever, to access adult entertainment in the privacy of the home.
Softcore stuff slips by almost unnoticed on TV, as adult film stars cross over to Hollywood. More hardcore viewing is available on cable for a few dollars more. On the sidewalks of urban centres, vendors of bootleg DVDs stock a wide variety of colourful “blue movie” titles with explicit packaging for all and sundry to see. And thanks to the World Wide Web, pornographic literature, images and videos are just a few mouse clicks away. All this negates the need for guys (or girls!) to go out and get their favourite x-rated magazine.
The Pleasures
According to the Cambridge Advance Learner Dictionary, pornography relates to “books, magazines, films, etc. with no artistic value that show sexual acts or naked people in a way that is intended to be sexually exciting”.
People have long been using porn to arouse themselves sexually, men especially (perhaps because most porn is made to suit men’s sexual fantasies). There’s the accepted notion that watching porn is a normal activity for men, and this view goes hand in hand with the views that men are turned on by the visual and always have sex on the brain.
There are guys who will readily admit to using porn to “relieve the tension”, and some will even go as far as to say that they use porn as a harmless, guilt-free means to avoid infidelity or even promiscuity. In porn, they find a place where women are always eager for sex and willing to do anything. There’s no need to consider things like intimacy, courtship and birth control.
An interesting trend that has developed in recent times is the use of porn by couples to enhance or “spice up” their sex life. While it might be hard for some to fathom, it is a practice that is gaining traction as some women become more receptive of the idea. A self-styled Jamaican “gallis” (who asked to remain anonymous), who frequents motels that offer porn channels on cable TV, told Buzzz that it is often his female “conquest” who finds the porn and uses it to set the mood.
“Yuh have one a two weh no really interested inna the blue movie dem, but majority of dem want fi see it wen we touch inna the room. Dem turn it on and select di channel and tings happen fast after dat,” he revealed.
The Perils
As much as porn provides pleasure to men and some women, there is enough evidence to confirm its many perils to the individual as well as couples. There’s the risk of addiction – an unhealthy porn habit that interferes with the individual’s life and relationship.
Critics of pornography have labelled it as being “dangerous and destructive” because repeated exposure to it can potentially alter one’s perception of reality. Skin flicks invariably display sexy, “perfect” women at their physical peak, and if a man habitually sources sexual arousal from these images, there is the risk that he will lose the ability to become sexually aroused by his partner.
It is for this very reason why most women object to the consumption of porn by their significant other. They are insulted by the fact that a substitute is being used to excite their male partner, and it comes as a blow to their self esteem. It is also a source of insecurity, and for some it is tantamount to cheating. Porn also brings with it incorrect perceptions and expectations about sex. There’s no focus on romance, commitment and foreplay, and normal sex acts start to appear boring.
“Why would I want to be with a man who watches porn?” asks Marcelle Drakes, a 28-year-old student of the University of the West Indies.
“Certainly that means that porn is offering him something that I can’t, so it makes no sense for use to be in a relationship. Watching porn is an excuse for men to remain immature…it’s something for men who have a fear of commitment and who don’t really respect women.”
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