I Have An Idea - Lets Compare Pornography To Heroin

[basschick]

read my first sentence again.

So, by this token, barebacking video is OK after all, right? <wink>

the first amendment doesn't only cover artists. besides, it seems to me that art is a question of intent although my friend rob disagreed, feeling stronly that anything created is art. and with that disagreement comes the fact that anything CAN be art.

besides, i disagree. when i write a song, if i'm worrying about how others will react, that song will be changed only in the interest of censorship.

dannyz - i have heard over and over that when Tsiachovsky (and yes, i am sure i misspelled his name) wrote the 1812 overture that he didn't want to, resented doing it, only did it for the money, and hated it when it was done. yet people have been applauding it for over 100 years and some of the finest musicians and conductors of each generation have hailed it as a work of art - some even feel it is one of the finest works of art.

that being the case, it seems to me that it throws the concept that commercialism cannot be art right out the window. and i don't doubt it. i've seen a few commercials in my time that were better thought-out and better crafted than any tv show and most movies.

i think when we start to define whether things are art, no one's definition will agree. besides, why should the work of non-artists be any less valuable? that seems like elitism.

the mapplethorpe photos disgusted many - but were allowed to legally stand as art. and who am i to pretend to know differently?

again - things that disgust the average person may inspire someone else. and art is in the eye of the beholder - and the creator. and unlike other things, whether something is art - or is simply wonderful - can be created in the mind of the beholder or the creator.

Artists should always take into consideration how someone else may react to something they do.

[dannyz]

dannyz - i have heard over and over that when Tsiachovsky (and yes, i am sure i misspelled his name) wrote the 1812 overture that he didn't want to, resented doing it, only did it for the money, and hated it when it was done. yet people have been applauding it for over 100 years and some of the finest musicians and conductors of each generation have hailed it as a work of art - some even feel it is one of the finest works of art.

Basschick - Yeah I realize my post was pretty black and white and there was quite a bit of generalization there. I do agree with you and the definition that by creating, we are essentially artists. Let's look at the definition of 'art' from Dictionary.com:

Human effort to imitate, supplement, alter, or counteract the work of nature.

From this definition, porn can certainly be considered as art. Does porn not imitate life and the work of nature? Do we not edit videos or take photos that counteract or alter the work of nature? Isn't sex the most basic function of human nature? Doesn't sex on video or in photos appeal to the senses, and can't it often be beautiful?

Going back to the original point of the thread, comparing porn to heroin, I there is just no comparison in my opinion. Heroin is a drug, porn is a work of art, or if you don't agree with that definition then at least porn is a human creation. It seems like comparing apples and televisions.

So, if porn is in fact art by this definition, then I guess I would have to reconsider my orignal post. There are of course those who create art only for profit, those who create for profit and creativity, and those who only create only for creativity (but don't care about the profit).

I think most of us here our motivated by a combination of our creative will and our drive for profit.

[basschick]

"a human creation" - i like that

most people seem to consider all addiction is equal. i ain't buying it. there are some people who do all sorts of things without becoming dependent, and others who get addicted to any substance or habit. there are a couple people i know who managed to develop a dependancy on ibuprofen - no kidding.

in a world where the big lobbies aren't things like alcohol and tobacco, education would happen so that people would learn how to deal with their problems and keep from fixatingo on one thing, be it porn, heroin, cigarrettes or booze. but in our world. big money is there to make sure we are as easy to addict as possible. then they prohibit things they don't have an interest it.

[Madame0120]

http://www.classical.net/music/comp....ikov/1812.html