Judging obscenity : a critical history of expert evidence / Christopher Nowlin.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Nowlin, Christopher J. (Christopher Jon), 1964-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Trials (Obscenity)--Canada.

Trials (Obscenity).

Evidence, Expert--Canada.

Evidence, Expert.

Pornography--Canada.

Pornography.

Trials (Obscenity)--United States.

Evidence, Expert--United States.

Pornography--United States.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (302 p.)

Edition:

1st ed.

Place of Publication:

Montreal ; Ithaca [N.Y.] : McGill-Queen's University Press, c2003.

Language Note:

English

Summary:

He demonstrates that these communities of experts are divided on such questions as, Can a novel or film be both high art and obscene? and, Is the world of heterosexual pornography categorically different from the worlds of gay and lesbian pornography? He observes that the ideas of an "average" psychological or behavioral response to a story or an image and the "community" standard of decency or tolerance are outmoded myths that elude all attempts at careful measurement. Nowlin concludes that lack of agreement among experts, for example, as to how and why some sexually explicit imagery titillates or pleases some people, while disgusting or demeaning others, can no longer be viewed simply in terms of moral, religious, or even political predilections. Judging Obscenity traces the way freedom of speech and the right to equality have taken shape within the worlds of pornographic expression and consumption and provides a historical glimpse of changing views about literature and art, as well as a critical examination of the nature of social science research in matters of human sexuality, media-response, and sexual expression.

Contents:

Front Matter

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction

The Constitutional Backdrop for Reviewing Expert Opinions about Pornography

Progressivism and Legislative Facts in the Shaping of Public Policy

Experts and Obscenity Law: American Rules and Innovations (1884–1990)

Experts and Obscenity Law: Canadian Rules and Derivations (1942–2000)

From Sadomasochism to Child Pornography: Experts Narrow Their Focus While Canadian Courts Broaden Their Horizons

Indecency Law: Microscopic and Macroscopic Views of the Female Breast and Lap-Dancing in the Dark

Conclusion

Notes

Bibliography

List of Cases

Index

Notes:

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Includes bibliographical references (p. [265]-274) and index.

ISBN:

1-282-86101-8

9786612861017

0-7735-7090-X

OCLC:

76898624