Erotica vs. Porn

Erotica. Porn. What's the difference? Is there a difference?

Erotica are works of art- be they literary or visual (sculpture, photography, et al)- that are designed to stimulate and arouse the senses. Some erotica is presented as social commentary; some erotica is presented merely for the aesthetic value, yet all erotica is an expression of a time and place. The erotic is expressive of cultural mores, thus erotica is often best understood when viewed from the basis of its originating cultural context.

Yet the erotic crosses all genres and is one of the few art forms that truly transcend cultural boundaries. It is sensual and provocative, vibrant and visceral, a feast for the eyes that stirs the passions and ignites irascible debate. Alas the typical dictionary definition of erotica is terse and uninformative for that which arouses sexual desire is as diverse as are the likes and dislikes of individual moviegoers. Differences made even more distinct when viewed from the POV of gender.

In the minds of some there is perceived to exist a thin to non-existent line between erotica and pornography. This is an erroneous misconception. There are very clear boundaries it's just that where those boundaries may be drawn depends largely on cultural context. Every society has mandated mores, including taboos related to sex and sexuality. Alas the result is that, while the line between erotica and pornography clearly does exist, it's a vague mist shrouded boundary whose borders shift and change with the eye of the beholder.

Over time social standards shift. Thus the taboos of one generation may no longer apply to the next. A prime example being that modern women wear pants. This is not out of the ordinary. Yet, barely a century ago, this would not have been considered acceptable attire for a "proper" lady. Too, proper beach attire for men and women a century ago was quite altogether different than what is permissible today just as discussion of such a topic as erotica might have considered improper for "polite" society.

At it's most simplistic erotica pushes against the boundaries of cultural mores. It walks the fine line between taboos, while taking care not to trample over them. Which is not to say it treats the subject matter with kid gloves, far from it. Indeed erotica often contains a veil of social commentary.

Then there is pornography. Pornography is, or has become, nothing more than a checklist of graphic sex acts. Sex acts that often trample over mores and taboos. There is, too often, very little art or artistry to porno movies. In fact most "porn" barely qualifies as cinema, much less erotica. Yet we all know, instinctively, the difference between the two; right?

Consider this pic, recently posted in a thread about "Hot Babes" at the Latarnia forums:

There is something about that image. It has a subtle subtext that is at once tantalizing yet disturbing. The image is charged with moody eroticism that's hauntingly mesmerizing. In some ways it reminds me of the Kekko Kamen movies, if they weren't done with tongue planted so firmly in cheek. But is it porn or erotica?

Here is another pic from the same thread:

The above screen cap is said to be from the remake of the movie Flower and Snake. I have not seen the movie. According to wikipedia the original movie was "a Japanese soft-core S/M film" and one of the comments at IMDB calls it the "greatest film ever made featuring extreme bondage and ballroom dancing". It should also be noted that "crucified women" is also an niche fetish, a very niche fetish, one I first became aware of back when Xena: Warrior Princess was still on the air. Google the term. You may be as surprised and shocked as I was.

However everything and anything can be turned into a fetish. There exist sites dedicated to scenes of actresses being carried, actresses smoking, actresses bare feet, actresses appearing in a scene with only one shoe on &tc. The list goes on and on. In this instance the nature of erotica is highly subjective.

Porn is blatant. It's in your face. It leaves very little to the imagination. In most mainstream movies the erotic is a very delicate balance of mood and setting, even the lighting and camera angle will be considered long and hard prior to ever shooting a single frame, to say nothing of the story. Conversely the only experience the pornographer needs in today's world is, all too sadly, knowing how to turn on a camcorder. The result being sex divorced of sense or sensuality. It is a clinical approach to sexuality that is, in a word, boring.

Erotica stimulates the imagination of the audience. It takes the viewer to the threshold of that which is taboo, yet never quite crosses over.

Erotica is about subtlety and subtext. However movies are meant to entertain, be they erotic or pornographic, and if they do not entertain the audience then they are wastes of celluloid and/or video tape. Some critics bash movies just for the fun of it while others languish over every word trying to honestly appraise a movie. But the bottom line is a movie is supposed to entertain. Considering how prolific the porn industry is one has to assume they are keeping their target audience well entertained. But is that enough?

No other aspect of filmmaking relies so heavily on a proper balance of mise-en-scene than establishing the proper atmosphere for the erotic. For instance a photo of a nude woman is not in and of itself erotic. Much depends on how the woman is posed, what the background is, and whether or not she is totally nude or partially clad, to say nothing of what it is she is wearing. In short nudity is not synonymous with titillation.

Alas that is a fact that many low budget directors either do not understand, never learned in film school, or fail to grasp. Then so, too, have many self-anointed guardians of "moral values" over the years. A fine example of this can be found in Not Another Teen Movie, where the foreign exchange student character appears nude. While this is a good jibe at the perceived differences between American and European sensibilities regarding nudity there is nothing erotic about her scenes. The actress is merely nude.

The mise-en-scene is that sense of atmosphere that makes movies memorable. Erotica is all about the mise-en-scene, or rather it's about achieving a sensual mood within the scene. You can see effective scene composition that establishes an atmosphere of sensuality in movies such as Dracula, Sirens, Lolita, throughout the entirety of Pleasantville and even in television series like Xena: Warrior Princess and BURN NOTICE. Of course there is that fine line between erotic and salacious which makes movies like Emmanuelle, The Perils of Gwendoline, and The Story of O memorable as much for their atmosphere as the controversy surrounding them.

Then there is the knee-jerk over reactions of the self-annointed "moral majority" like those who run the MPAA who, in their zeal to squash all sensuality and representations of sexuality in films, have become a rubber stamp for amoral violence. .

But that's a discussion for another day.

# End of Line

Copyright © C. Demetrius Morgan