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Art or Porn: Clear Division or False Dilemma?

Maes, Hans R.V. (2011) Art or Porn: Clear Division or False Dilemma? Philosophy and Literature, 35 (1). pp. 51-64. ISSN 0190-0013. (doi:10.1353/phl.2011.0003) (KAR id:31448)

Abstract

Art or Porn? The popular media will often choose this heading when reviewing the latest sexually explicit novel, film, or art exhibition. The underlying assumption seems to be that the work under discussion has to be one or the other, and cannot be both. I think this is a false dilemma. Against Jerrold Levinson and Christy Mag Uidhir, I argue that pornography and art are not mutually exclusive and that the phrase “pornographic art,” far from being an oxymoron, actually designates a legitimate artistic category. There is strong opposition to this view in the philosophy of art today. Both Jerrold Levinson and Christy Mag Uidhir have recently argued that pornography and art are mutually exclusive. So, my first task is to show that their arguments, though well-crafted and carefully formulated, ultimately fail.

Item Type: Article
DOI/Identification number: 10.1353/phl.2011.0003
Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BH Aesthetics
Divisions: Divisions > Division of Arts and Humanities > School of Arts
Depositing User: Hans Maes
Date Deposited: 09 Oct 2012 13:43 UTC
Last Modified: 16 Nov 2021 10:09 UTC
Resource URI: https://kar.kent.ac.uk/id/eprint/31448 (The current URI for this page, for reference purposes)

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