Feona Attwood

Pornography, the Everyday and Material Culture

Introduction

Pornography, the everyday and material culture. Challenges dominant views, exploring pornography as a diverse, material cultural practice embedded in everyday life. Discover how individuals interact with it over time, shaping 'porn careers' in social contexts.

Abstract

This article challenges dominant portrayals of pornography as a harmful, abstract force disconnected from everyday life. Instead, it explores pornography as a diverse and material cultural practice embedded in people’s personal histories and daily experiences. Drawing from a large-scale qualitative study involving over 5,000 participants, it highlights the wide range of media considered pornographic and the varying ways people encounter, use, and relate to pornography over time. The concept of a “porn career” is introduced to trace changes in individual engagement, revealing complex relationships shaped by context, emotion, and desire. Emphasizing the significance of space, place, and access, the article calls for a grounded, nuanced understanding of pornography that accounts for its ordinary, affective, and socially embedded dimensions.

Review

The article "Pornography, the Everyday and Material Culture" presents a compelling and timely intervention into the often-polarized discourse surrounding pornography. Its central strength lies in its resolute challenge to conventional understandings that frequently frame pornography as a monolithic, abstract, and inherently harmful force disconnected from lived experience. By re-positioning pornography as a "diverse and material cultural practice," the authors effectively ground the phenomenon within the personal histories and daily realities of individuals. The impressive scale of the qualitative study, involving over 5,000 participants, immediately lends significant weight and credibility to its findings, promising a rich empirical foundation for its arguments and representing a substantial contribution to the field. The research effectively unpacks the complexities of individual engagement with pornography, highlighting not only the wide spectrum of media considered pornographic but also the highly individualized and evolving ways in which people encounter, utilize, and form relationships with it over time. The introduction of the "porn career" concept is particularly insightful, providing a valuable analytical lens for tracing the dynamic changes in individual engagement and the intricate interplay of context, emotion, and desire that shape these trajectories. Furthermore, the abstract's emphasis on the crucial roles of space, place, and access underscores the article's commitment to a thoroughly grounded analysis, moving beyond purely psychological or sociological interpretations to acknowledge the tangible conditions of engagement. Ultimately, this article appears poised to make a significant impact by advocating for a more sophisticated and empathetic understanding of pornography. By foregrounding its ordinary, affective, and socially embedded dimensions, the authors compel readers to re-evaluate simplistic moralistic or decontextualized perspectives. The call for a "grounded, nuanced understanding" is well-justified by the robust methodology and the detailed theoretical framework outlined, making it critical for fostering more informed public discourse, policy development, and academic inquiry. This work promises to be an essential reading for scholars across media studies, sociology, cultural studies, and gender studies, pushing the boundaries of how pornography is conceptualized and researched.

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