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Japanese Pornographic Art: How Making the Taboo Mainstream Creates a Healthy Society

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  • Japanese Pornographic Art: How Making the Taboo Mainstream Creates a Healthy Society

    Japanese Pornographic Art:
    How Making the Taboo Mainstream Creates a Healthy Society
    By Sean Ptacek


    Throughout Japanese history much of the consumed art has been pornographic. From the shunga books of the Edo period to the modern pornographic manga comic books, pornography has always been a part of Japanese popular culture. What makes this subject interesting is the way in which pornography has become so accepted and un-taboo in recent history. In fact, except for the ruling parties in Japan , pornography has always been accepted by the public and provides a fun way to explore sexuality without actually engaging in any sexual acts, especially for the younger generation. This process of making pornography more fun and even comic takes away the taboo surrounding sex and makes society much more open about the subject which in turn leads to less sexual deviancy in Japan . This point can be greater emphasized when comparing Japanese and American views on pornography and sex.

    In America , pornography and sex in general have always been considered taboo and not to be talked about. Even today, more conservative state governments such as Texas are trying to not teach children anything about sex, just teaching abstinence and the evils of premarital sex. These attitudes have led to the United States having extremely high rates of teen pregnancy and sexual deviancy because children have had to learn everything by experimenting with sex and watching pornographic movies which are very degrading to women and provide an unrealistic but extremely graphic illustration of sex. Pornography is just as popular in the United States as it is in Japan , but society as a whole is still prudish and the billion dollar industry remains underground and invisible. This invisibility of the subject, as well as the graphic, aggressive and un-fun nature of American pornography are the key differences between Japanese and American pornography and the reasons why the people of Japan are so much more sexually healthy and “normal.”

    The slow process of making pornography completely mainstream started in the 1700s with shunga books and since the subject has taken centuries to become completely mainstream society has had time to adjust and become comfortable. America , on the other hand, has not changed its prudish attitude about sex and pornography since the inception of the country and does not look like it will anytime soon, which still leaves the country a few centuries before it will become sexually awakened. Awakened is a good way to describe Japan ’s views on sexuality and infers a sense of being taught about the subject, which is one of the two main reasons that shunga books became so popular in the Edo period.

    Originally shunga books had two purposes in Japan ; to advertise the local brothels in the Yoshiwara and to teach children and women about sexuality. The advertising aspect of the shunga books pertained only to wealthy men who could afford a prostitute. The acceptance of prostitution at the time helped to make the shunga books popular but it was the teaching aspect and the artistic style itself that really drove shunga’s popularity. The pictures themselves, while sometimes graphic, were all drawn in a similar style which included enormous phalluses and a somewhat feminine depiction of men, as can be seen in the pictures below. The unrealistic nature of these drawings help to make them less taboo and more fun to look at and explore than something like modern American pornography. Children and women could look at the pictures and learn some amount of sexual mechanics while at the same time laughing and enjoying the ridiculousness of the pictures – women were an especially good market for shunga books because they were not always allowed to travel freely and the books provided a safe way for women to escape, if only just for a little while. It is this light treatment of sex that shunga thrived on and the reason that only those in the government could take offence to the books. There were many different censorship reforms that were brought down upon shunga during the Tokugawa regime but the medium survived by breaking the rules. Shunga books remained popular and in the mainstream with respect to common society. Japanese people of the time probably all saw some form of shunga and it was so popular that famous artists such as Moronobu even published some prints for shunga books, such as the shunga image and book cover below. The popularity of shunga books in the Edo period led to a mainstream, if not governmental, acceptance of pornography and as time passed pornography showed up again in manga comic books.

    Modern Japanese manga has many different genres within itself and some of them are very pornographic. In fact, for women one of the most popular genres revolves around popular characters from animation series being portrayed in gay relationships, it is called ya-o-i. There are also multiple other pornographic genres that include bishojo (beautiful young girls) and rorikon (“Lolita complex”). What is interesting about modern manga is that it still maintains a light, comic treatment of sex while still being very graphic. Looking at the pictures below from a girl’s comic it becomes apparent that modern manga contains some very graphic images. But even when the comics become very graphic they are still comics, a point that can explain the acceptance and popularity of this kind of pornography. Manga did have trouble with the Japanese government in the 1980s and 1990s when censorship again reared its ugly head, but eventually even the Japanese government even accepted the art form. The fact that real people are not being portrayed in sex acts and the continued use of enormous phalluses and stylized human forms creates an unreal world for children, as well as adults, to explore and learn about from the safetyof their own homes. By making sex and pornography completely mainstream and within the realm of open discussion Japan creates a culture that can deal with its sexual questions and problems in a safe and open manner. This openness is the key difference between Japan and America when it comes to the topic of sex and pornography. The openness is also the key reason why Japanese society does not have problems with teenage pregnancy and sexual deviancy, children know what sex is from an early age and there is no taboo around the subject stopping them from discussing the subject with their friends, parents, or teachers.

    In conclusion, shunga books and pornographic manga comic books have contributed to an evolved and open view on sexuality in Japan . Starting with shunga books and moving on to modern manga, Japanese society’s views on sex were made more and more public and open and contribute to a society that is sexually healthy and does not have the sexual problems of a society such as the United States. The comic and unreal portrayal of sex acts in Japan helps children to learn about the subject from a young age and do not demonize the act of sex like traditional American views. By not taking the subject so seriously artists have been able to teach society about sex in a fun way without ever degrading real women and without the violent nature that most American pornography illustrates. Overall, American culture could learn a lot from Japanese culture in this respect and should find someway to achieve the same openness if America is ever to solve the problems of teenage pregnancy and underground sexual deviancy that currently plague the nation.

    -----------------------

    Questions:

    Do things of this nature both decrease numbers of sexual deviancy and also stimulate safer, healthier attitudes towards sex throughout society as a whole?

    Does the proliferation of mainstream, pornographic material of this kind break taboos associated with sex in children?

    And if "not talking about" or denying the existence of sex inadvertently triggers high rates of teen pregnancy, what, if any, would be the implications of not taking sex so seriously?
    Attached Files
    ZhongwenMovies.com

  • #2
    Did you write this onesp1ng? I agree with the general idea, sex should be treated with a sense of humor and shouldn't be taboo. But...

    This process of making pornography more fun and even comic takes away the taboo surrounding sex and makes society much more open about the subject which in turn leads to less sexual deviancy in Japan.
    How are we defining "sexual deviancy" here? And once we've defined it, where is the proof that there is actually less of it (whatever it is) in Japan? And most importantly, assuming there is less of "it", how can we conclude that hentai, shunga, etc., are the cause or even part of the cause? There's a great many other differences between the countries.

    In America , pornography and sex in general have always been considered taboo and not to be talked about.
    Has the author seen HBO lately? But this is true of the U.S. as compared to other Western countries.

    These attitudes have led to the United States having extremely high rates of teen pregnancy...
    Again, no proof of a causal relationship. And there are plenty of countries, some in Asia, that lead the U.S. in teen pregnancy rates.

    Now I'm going to go watch some Skinemax.

    Comment


    • #3
      LMAO,

      Im not ashamed to admit that as a kid (12-17) i wacked off too
      hentai manga with such enthusiasm that... oh nevermind.

      Anyway, the author is waaaaaay off in many senses. 1.) "the people of Japan are so much more sexually healthy and “normal.”" oh my ****in god, if you were to put a light bulb on the number of perverted little shits in japan, you would have a dazzling light show that would brighten the ****in cosmos.

      Never have i seen so many pedophile-istic ideas and incestuous depictions until i have seen anime porn. Sometimes, the little cartoonic sexual images may have the potential to arouse, until the little subtitles pop up with little things like,"oh brother stop" and "not too loud, mother and father will hear you". plus the depictions of "aliens" and "monsters" having their way with girls that havent even grown pubic hair yet.( and they wonder why there are so many pedophile's) And not to mention, the non-pornographic anime will still have things like a breeze blowing the skirt of a extremely young looking girl up like a sorry marilyn monroe rip. c'mon.

      or maybe you didnt hear about that little japanese sikko who murdered, COOKED, and ATE, some poor little american blonde, then wrote a book about it, and eventually became a CELEBRITY in japan, CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT SHIT??? no jail time, nothing.

      NEVER in your life will you find a more twisted, perverted muther****er. Japan is the motherland of pervs, and why? because they are all horny ass muther****ers with too much goddamn "pride and honor" to admit it, therefore, they wack off in thier little closets and develop sexual deviancies.

      American porn is not excluded, but seldom in america will you find monsters engaged in sex acts with adolescent girls, taboo porn depicting incest, and suggestive sexuality with pre teen girls. You will only find dirty ass little money hungry hoes catching aids on camera, and whats so unusual about that?
      "Life is a run. In attack we run, in defense we run. When you can no longer run, time to die" - Shichiroji "Seven samurai"

      Comment


      • #4
        LMAO,

        Im not ashamed to admit that as a kid (12-17) i wacked off too
        hentai manga with such enthusiasm that... oh nevermind.

        Anyway, the author is waaaaaay off in many senses. 1.) "the people of Japan are so much more sexually healthy and “normal.”" oh my ****in god, if you were to put a light bulb on the number of perverted little shits in japan, you would have a dazzling light show that would brighten the ****in cosmos.

        Never have i seen so many pedophile-istic ideas and incestuous depictions until i have seen anime porn. Sometimes, the little cartoonic sexual images may have the potential to arouse, until the little subtitles pop up with little things like,"oh brother stop" and "not too loud, mother and father will hear you". plus the depictions of "aliens" and "monsters" having their way with girls that havent even grown pubic hair yet.( and they wonder why there are so many pedophile's) And not to mention, the non-pornographic anime will still have things like a breeze blowing the skirt of a extremely young looking girl up like a sorry marilyn monroe rip. c'mon.

        or maybe you didnt hear about that little japanese sikko who murdered, COOKED, and ATE, some poor little american blonde, then wrote a book about it, and eventually became a CELEBRITY in japan, CAN YOU BELIEVE THAT SHIT??? no jail time, nothing.

        NEVER in your life will you find a more twisted, perverted muther****er. Japan is the motherland of pervs, and why? because they are all horny ass muther****ers with too much goddamn "pride and honor" to admit it, therefore, they wack off in thier little closets and develop sexual deviancies.

        American porn is not excluded, but seldom in america will you find monsters engaged in sex acts with adolescent girls, taboo porn depicting incest, and suggestive sexuality with pre teen girls. You will only find dirty ass little money hungry hoes catching aids on camera, and whats so unusual about that?[/QUOTE]

        i swear man, i hate little japanese spectacle weearing journalists who have this unrealistic notion that japan is so much greater in terms of morality, to the US,
        when the modern japanese is pretty much a full fledged wannabe american.

        dont get me wrong, i love judo, i love the samurai, and i love japan. just dont go trying to compare cultures, thats when you show your ****in ignorance.
        "Life is a run. In attack we run, in defense we run. When you can no longer run, time to die" - Shichiroji "Seven samurai"

        Comment


        • #5
          I abso ****ing lutely agree. Seems outsiders think japan is some super honorable society. They are just as dirty as the rest of us. This kind of relates to the "asians saving face thread". They don't want to admit to being sexual deviants but they will go down to the corner and buy their fav porn and perhaps some dirty panties and what the hell a half keg of beer from the VENDING machine and go home and wiggity wack off to some sick shit....damn I wish I grew up in Japan. Oh and I need to go find an english translation but in Korea (south) some schools are getting so out of hand because younger kids are gang raping young girls and video taping it to share with their friends. Along with the out of control school vs. school fights. Maybe apocalyspe will be here soon.
          "What is barely legal?" - Ali G

          Comment


          • #6
            Let's go to Japan and castrate some motha ****as...they won't be able to escape our superior American running technique.
            Becoming what I've dreamed about.

            Comment


            • #7
              This process of making pornography more fun and even comic takes away the taboo surrounding sex and makes society much more open about the subject which in turn leads to less sexual deviancy in Japan .
              From what I'm told by the ladies, of whom I tend to talk to many during my travels in China, Asia, and, even America, the Japanese are some of the most sadistic, perverted men they've come across.

              So much for that theory.

              If you go through Narita airport in Tokyo, and stop at any newstand, you'll find tons of "porno" magazines, all proudly displayed as if they were Newsweek or Time. Some of the stuff is soft, some if it is, well, a little "hard", but not as graphic as let's say, Hustler used to be. These newstands reminded me of the old newstands in Time Square of many years ago, before it became "Disneyified". It's quite a shocker to see these modern newstands with nothing very young women in all states of undress adorning the covers. And, the Japanese make no bones about standing there to browse through the pages. Even on the damn airplanes, you'll see them reading this stuff in public. Different mentality, not in the way, for example, the French are open about their sexuality. One gets the impression that the Japanese view on porn, and, young women in general, tends to me more on the "less loving" side, and more on the sadistic perverted side.

              I had the opportunity to see a Japanese porn film once, many years ago, at a party. Compared to US made stuff, the sadistic qualities about it were quite overwhelming. They may make "funny" comic books about sex, and huge phalluses, but, in my opinion, it's less of an attempt to make it all the more appealing, and more a representation of the sadist side of their society.
              Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

              "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

              (more comments in my User Profile)
              russbo.com


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              • #8
                Case and point......I can't remember the name of the movie but it had to do with a guy turning into a robot and basically ****ing girls to death with the various new body parts.....someone please tell me the name of the movie....I think its tetsujin or Iron man or something....
                "What is barely legal?" - Ali G

                Comment


                • #9
                  Well, not to bring this thing down to new lows, but the one I saw had something to do with a broomstick, an anus, and cleaning the floor.

                  That is, when she wasn't spread out over the face of a window of a huge office building. Or, walking around on all fours barking like a dog.

                  Fortunately, I can't remember much more than that.
                  Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

                  "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

                  (more comments in my User Profile)
                  russbo.com


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                  • #10
                    Originally posted by tetsumaru
                    Case and point......I can't remember the name of the movie but it had to do with a guy turning into a robot and basically ****ing girls to death with the various new body parts.....someone please tell me the name of the movie....I think its tetsujin or Iron man or something....

                    I remembered .....TETSUO
                    "What is barely legal?" - Ali G

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Wait a minute, wait a minute. You can buy half a keg of beer from a vending machine there?

                      That settles it. The Japanese are morally superior. All that other stuff is just details.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Zachsan. I think it's time you came out to Vegas.

                        I need someone to teach me how to drink. I think it's time.

                        I have put this whole alcohol thing off way too long....
                        Experienced Community organizer. Yeah, let's choose him to run the free world. It will be historic. What could possibly go wrong...

                        "You're just a jaded cynical mother****er...." Jeffpeg

                        (more comments in my User Profile)
                        russbo.com


                        Comment


                        • #13

                          Young, beautiful and innocent - Prostitution Japanese style




                          Those of you who take the time to read the following, thank you. I feel horrible because I can't do anything with this problem and because it's not considered a problem here in Japan. Japan likes to think of itself as a Western country, most Japanese don't like the fact that they belong to Asia. But Japan is of course so different from the Europe I know. Very often the Japanese should be proud they aren't European; the crime rate, the respect for each other and so much more. But the following makes me proud Japan isn't a European country. It is tough on the AFS-mailing list to criticise another country, especially your host country (but we are all free to criticise USA...). I have tried to come to terms with the prostitution-problem, to really accept it. But I can't, it hurts me every day when I see the young girls in my high school who outside school sell sex. It has hurt all my AFS-friends here as well, so I felt it could be okay to tell you guys about it:

                          Tonight I saw it again. Japanese high school girls trying to sell sex. The girls can get big sums of money for doing this, the incentive is of course the money. The girls wore the garment that has totally taken over the kimono's popularity; the miniskirt.

                          Foreigners who come to Japan for a short period of time won't notice this. If you go to Thailand you will see fat old Germans and Norwegians on the beach with Thai children on their laps. Foreigners are disgusted by this. It stops normal people from going to the beautiful Thailand and creates a lot of other problems. For example the high AIDS rate, unemployment, crime and so on.

                          Japan is definitively more sophisticated. And Japan's way doesn't scare away tourists.

                          It is pronounced "terekrabu" (teleclub) in Japanese. Notice that English words are combined to make up this word (anything sounding American is cool and accepted). All high school students know what a teleclub is. And 36% of all female high school students have called such a club. To make it worse, 25% of Junior high school girls have also called.

                          Let me describe how this works:

                          Only men go to these teleclubs. They have to pay to be there/get in. Girls call to the teleclub for free, and if things work out they'll arrange a "date".

                          It is impossible for a girl to stay one day in Tokyo without getting a commercial for a teleclub, phone numbers are printed on free tissues handed out all over Tokyo. Girls call to the teleclubs for free, men sit there and wait.

                          This creates no big problems. Foreigners don't notice this, only a few can read Japanese. And generally it stimulates growth more than it creates economic problems, the economy is after all the Japanese Government's main (and only) concern.

                          The minimum age for having/selling sex in Tokyo is 14. Even though it is difficult to measure maturity, a Japanese 14-yearold is certainly less mature than a Norwegian at the same age rated on a Western scale. (I still haven't figured out what the Japanese scale is like).

                          Personally I think prostitution is okay as long as the seller and buyer are both over the majority age in the respective country (only organised prostitution is outlawed in Norway), just to have that mentioned.

                          But what's the sickening thing here in Japan is not only that children sell sex! The total ignorance of the problem is the worst. Women in Japan are used to being suppressed in various ways. They are discriminated in their jobs and forced to become housewives when they get children. For these reasons and more they don't protest against this sex-sale.

                          So girls in my class tell me that it is completely accepted morally for 14-year olds to sell sex and that they have no problems with it. Mothers don't care. Teachers don't care. Girls are expelled for smoking, but they are allowed to sell sex. Teachers may of course also take advantage of the students. In junior high schools it is normal for girls to give their teachers massages. And in high school teachers who sleep with students are not at all unknown.

                          I can't see any good arguments defending this sex trade. The AFSers over here get a lot of inside information, especially my friends who are in only girl schools (I am sorry I can't mention a fraction of what I know/have heard)

                          You may wonder why not more foreigners go to Japan to buy sex, the answer is: PRICES.

                          I can give you some examples. A girl I know sold her virginity for 1 million yen (60000NOK 10000 USD). That's a lot of money, even in Japan a teenager can live on 10000 bucks for a while.

                          The girls today told me that they turned down today's offer (it wasn't good enough). They told me it's possible to get 50-60000yen in Tokyo. These girls were real beauties (that kind of girls you would marry without knowing anything about their personality) so that raises the price.

                          Better stop here. Just wanted to show you what most AFSers here dislike the most about Japan. We all live after different values, but I am not planning to defend this sale pointing at cultural differences. Just wanted to tell you outsiders about this. Most people don't get to see Japans's backyard, now I have given you a glimpse of it.

                          I don't remember which Asia-edition of Newsweek that dealt with this issue in December, but find that one if you are interested in knowing more (cover story). It was a great article that surely pissed of some Japanese politicians who would like to have kept "Japan's dirty secret" (name of the article) a secret.

                          taken from http://www.janhoo.com/afs/articles.html -- 96/97
                          ZhongwenMovies.com

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                          • #14
                            I also have no problem with prostitution in general, but the question of legal age is an interesting one. 14 certainly seems too young to my American mind, but that's really arbitrary. The real question is, is an average 14 year old girl capable of making responsible decisions about this sort of thing on her own?

                            The instinctual American answer is, of course, no; but part of that is because, in this country, we don't give our kids a lot of credit when it comes to thinking for themselves. Which is paradoxical, because parents today enjoyed their share of sex, drugs, and rock & roll when they were teenagers, and it didn't kill them or destroy their lives. And when they talk about it, they're much more likely to say something along the lines of, "Those were fun times, but it was a stupid idea in hindsight"; rather than, "I was taken advantage of at a time when I couldn't make decisions for myself."

                            To me, the reason that so many American parents want to keep prostitution, drugs, etc., illegal, is that they don't want to be bothered with the consequences of bad parenting, and would rather have the law protect them against their own mistakes. For instance, If your 16 year old kid OD's on heroin, it wasn't because you failed to adequately warn them about the dangers of heroin. It's because the law failed to adequately protect them, and it's time for tougher drug laws. (Even less related to the discussion at hand, if your kid goes postal and shoots up a school, it's not because you're a ****ing idiot and have no idea how to raise a kid, but because we need tougher gun laws.) The fact that Law by its nature can do very little to stop this sort of activity never enters into the discussion.

                            But onesp1ng's last post wasn't really about the law, but rather about what the author saw as a social problem in Japan. So there's my tangent.
                            Last edited by zachsan; 01-31-2006, 09:46 PM.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              You damn libretarians and your personal responsibility!

                              I read the article, and it was interesting, but I still don't see what the author was trying to portray as a "big problem."
                              Becoming what I've dreamed about.

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