Erotica: Porn or Literature

[Story of O]

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I am not a person of literature but I've been exposed to a community of women and men interested in the provocative world of erotica. Books of writers like D.H. Lawrence, Anais Nin and Pauline Reage usually crowd our desks.

This was a very interesting topic being discussed. I thought I might seek your opinions on: Is Erotica and Porn the same thing? Or are they two different entities?

If I am to consult Mr. Webster, this is the result I get:

Erotica: literary or artistic works having an erotic theme or quality
Pornography: the depiction of erotic behavior (as in pictures or writing) intended to cause sexual excitement

But what do you thinnk?

[kyuusai]

Logically speaking, i think it is just the same. It affects our sexual behavior...

[annais]

i should have seen this coming, O.

my take on this, i say, it's literature.

though both depicts sexual acts, i think both difers in the writing styles. erotica uses euphemisms and metaphors. it alludes to sexual acts and veils them. i think this is how writers sensualizes the act without having to animalize it. porn, the other hand, focuses on blunt sexual acts and uses frank, often coarse, language.

it's so tricky to distinguish the two. erotica that i've read:

Delta of Venus by Anais Nin
A Spy in the House of Love by Anais Nin
Women in Love by DH Lawrence
Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov
Ada by Vladimir Nabokov
Story of O by Pauline Reage
100 Strokes of the Brush Before Bed by Melissa Panarello

[singleserving friend]

hehehe, erotica is the thinking mans' porn. i'm kidding , a little. i agree with the above post totally and would like to add that i think porn is in your face and you dont need any imagination, it just does it for you. erotica on the other hand, makes you think and use your imagination. that being said, i think annais explained it much better than I did ! and yes, i think it is literature, erotica i mean.
@annais i have read lawrence and especially like anais nin. judging from your name and the books youve read, you seem to like anais too. i got a question, when i was in high school i think i read part of an anias nin book. i remeberd the title as just being "erotica" but i havn't found a title like that in her bibliographies, there is Delta of Venus: Erotica and Little Birds: Erotica . i wonder if either of those is the one i partially read or if i was just imagining it... i dunno. i can't remember very much about it. i do remember a short story in it about a hermaphrodite. sounds familiar to you? would like some help here thanks

[annais]

@singleserving friend

wow! you read anais nin too? uberkewl! oh that short story about a hermphrodite, i don't think anais nin wrote that but i could be oh-so-wrong. it could be hidden somewhere in the compilations of her short stories or it was taken from her diaries. then again, i suspect the book you encountered may be another some sorta compilation but not of nin's. i'll ask my friends if they have come across the story. when i learn something i'll send you a pm.

[Disturbed_Angel16]

ayyy..... ambot... basta parental guidance na cla....

[singleserving friend]

@annais yea, but its a bit hard to find her books here in cebu. i have to scour 2nd hand bookstores. i was pretty sure that was anais but then again... thanks!

[hondarevo]

They both maybe the same thing but if you say Erotica mura lang man na siya theme of your work that it maybe artistic or can be shown in a presentable way na walay malisya pero kung Pornography may erotic scenes na siya na maka bring up sa sexual stimulation sa usa ka tawo... in short very lewd non-sense na work... just showing off *** lang gyud!

[annais]

@singleserving friend

you're fortunate you can rummage these second-hand bookstores and find a good read. i had to borrow the books from friends. erotica seems to be out of circulation and very few people have copies of these books. i had to order my copy of "100 strokes.." at powerbooks.

@hondarevo

but erotica is pan-sexual pud. malice and provocation will always be there.

i think it depends on the kinda readers erotica writers want to share their stories with. Catherine Millet said in one of her interviews, "i intended to address an intellectual audience." hhhmm.. i wonder what kinda audience porn authors write for...

a schoolmate recently came across The Sexual Life of Catherine M. of Catherine Millet. she said it might be a good read.

[splendid moonlight]

sounds interesting. maybe i ought to take a break from reading classics and try erotica next.