In lieu of an abstract, here is a brief excerpt of the content:

Introduction From the Profane to the Mundane Pornography i s not often a subject linke d to the mundane . Take, fo r example , th e controvers y surroundin g th e 199 6 releas e o f Milos Forman's film The People vs. Larry Flynt. Th e main players in the porn debate s resurfaced, usin g the platform create d b y the film t o mak e the sam e argument s the y hav e alway s mad e abou t pornograph y an d women. Larry King brings together Hustler publishe r Larry Flynt and televangelist Jerr y Falwell ; Falwel l liken s Flyn t t o a Naz i an d say s tha t "pornography i s a scourg e o n society , demeanin g t o wome n an d chil dren ." Flynt responds that he has tremendous respect for women and that there is no element o f coercion i n the production o f his magazine: "Th e models pos e willingl y . . . fo r ever y on e wh o posed , there' s anothe r te n thousand i n line. " Glori a Steine m i s interviewe d i n th e new s coverage , represented a s the spokesperson fo r al l feminists; on CNN sh e proclaims that you are not a feminist unless you are against pornography. In an Arts and Entertainmen t channe l biograph y o f Flynt , Steine m object s t o th e film's portraya l o f th e publishe r a s a her o o f Firs t Amendmen t battles : "Larry Flynt' s portraya l o f women , pornographically , i s a contributin g factor t o th e terrifi c dange r i n whic h wome n fin d themselve s walkin g around th e street. It legitimizes it. " These positions demonstrate how different player s in the porn debate s often extract it from the conditions in which it is produced and consumed in order to represent a political position that has very little to do with the mundane use s to whic h pornograph y i s actually put . I n their uneas y al liance , both th e religious Righ t an d antipor n feminist s hav e argue d tha t pornographic texts like Hustler tur n all men into victimizers/rapists/chil d molesters an d al l women int o victims, of eithe r physica l violenc e o r ob jectification . Flynt' s eas y denia l o f th e victi m charge—thousand s o f women ar e actuall y waitin g t o pos e fo r Hustler —asserts a freestandin g agency, as do First Amendment arguments that champion the rights of in1 2 I Introduction: From the Profane to the Mundane dividuals an d admonis h opponent s o f porn t o simpl y "no t bu y i t if yo u don't lik e it." Th e most insightfu l voic e in the Larry Flyn t coverage wa s Laura Kipnis, a Northwestern Universit y professor an d author of a book on pornography , Bound and Gagged , wh o despit e bein g positione d b y the Arts and Entertainment sho w as a supporter o f Flynt, presents in her book a multidimensional examinatio n o f Hustler, focusin g o n th e com plex imbrication s o f class , gender, an d sexuality . Kipnis refuses t o stak e her argumen t o n clea r antipor n o r propor n arguments , an d i n thi s re spect , Bound and Gagged i s a long overdue contribution t o a politics of pornography that exceeds this tired binary. However, Kipnis does remain invested in positing pornography as an indicator of politics rather than as an everyday practice . "Certainl y everyone' s entitle d t o bette r orgasms — wherever an d wheneve r the y ca n b e had, " sh e says , bu t thi s i s no t th e point o f he r book : "onc e you'v e accomplishe d tha t [bette r orgasms] , there's still the issue of what pornography means as a form of culture, and why it's so meaningful t o ou r culture , especially now" (x) . Pornograph y is so meaningful, argue...

Share