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Is Violation Pornography Bad for Your Soul?

Authors :
Kershnar, Stephen
Source :
Journal of Social Philosophy; Fall2004, Vol. 35 Issue 3, p349-366, 18p
Publication Year :
2004

Abstract

Pornography involves the graphic depiction of behavior where this depiction is intended to cause sexual excitement. This can occur in a book, play, movie, cassette, CD, etc. This might also occur via thoughts, like when talking of pornographic thoughts. If the reader denies that thoughts can be a type of pornography, then she should understand this expression to involve thoughts that are caused by a form of media. Violation pornography is pornography where the depicted behavior includes unjust sexual acts, like adultery, rape, and adult-child sex. There are three types of attributes that might be thought to contribute to flourishing: pleasure, desire-fulfillment, and objective-list elements. Objective-list elements are those elements that are thought to contribute to flourishing and that are distinct from pleasure and desire-fulfillment. Pleasure is probably a complex state of affairs that consists of a person having experiences that he wants for their own sake. The reason for such a complex account is that if pleasure is intrinsically good for a person then its goodness must supervene on its intrinsic features. Desire-fulfillment, however, is not something that contributes to flourishing. Where a person is unaware that his desire has been satisfied, it intuitively seems that his life does not go any better.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
00472786
Volume :
35
Issue :
3
Database :
Complementary Index
Journal :
Journal of Social Philosophy
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
14069356
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9833.2004.00237.x