Pornography: The opium of the masses

Type :

Term papers

Pages :

4 pages

Format :

.doc

Published date :

05/17/2009

Category :

Political science

Sub category :

Social sciences

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Summary :

Introduction
Pornography: A new religion
1. Comparing sex in the 'brave new world' / religion
2. Karl Marx's vision of the opium of the masses
Dystopias: Pornography and stability of the social order
1. Satisfaction of human needs = stability
2. Pornography makes people forget they lack other things
3. Sex as a social duty
In our society: Pornography, the opium of the consuming masses
1. Mainstreaming of pornography: Pornography and ands
2. Pornography maintains a stereotypical social order
Conclusion

Abstract

According to Marx, understanding religion is dependent upon the social purpose that religion serves and not upon the content of its beliefs. To understand pornography as the opium of the masses, I won't focus on its content, which would be difficult anyway, since the word 'pornography' does not describe sexuality itself but the discourse about it. Therefore it is a relative notion, and its contents depend a lot on the historical and cultural context. pornography, in our societies, is an underground market. In general it's more or less illegal, and the more it's controlled, the more its value increases. The consequences are impossible to fight against. It also represents an important, wealth-creating market. According to Marx, religion is an expression of material realities and economic injustice. Thus, problems in religion are ultimately problems in society. Religion is not the disease, but merely a symptom. According to Marx, religion is one of those social institutions which are dependent upon the material and economic realities in a given society.