The Impact of Internet Pornography on Married Women: A Psychodyna ...

Nor is the intent to understand the intricacies of the marital relationship beyond how women understand the impact of pornography use on the marriage. These concepts will be considered on a limited basis as they relate to the experiences of women.

History of the Literature on Pornography

The issues surrounding pornography have traditionally been framed in terms of sexual morality issues (Perkins, 1997), First Amendment rights (Dworkin, 1989), or issues of offensiveness or obscenity (Dines et al., 1998). In 1988, Andrea Dworkin and Catharine McKinnon, radical feminists, attempted to obtain an anti-pornography ordinance in Minneapolis. They centered the pornography debate on the civil rights of women (Dworkin, 1989) and sought ordinances prohibiting pornographic material. However, the federal courts rejected the ordinance on First Amendment grounds. In support of her civil rights debate, Dworkin (1989) examines the meaning of pornography and the system of power in which pornography exists. Dines et al. (1988) address the production and consumption of pornography in a social, political, and economic context.

Pornography has existed in Western Civilization since Greek and Roman periods. Early pornography consisted of physical artifacts such as frescoes depicting sexual acts including a satyr having sex with a goat, giant erect phalluses, and etchings of nude bodies in the act of sex (Kendrick, 1996). These depictions were not widely disseminated, available only to a select group of individuals. The invention of the printing press expanded the media of pornography from the visual to include the written word and provided opportunities for a larger population. As subsequent new technologies emerged, resourceful entrepreneurs discovered unique ways to manufacture pornography, either in the written word or in audio-visual format. In fact, pornographers have always been the first to exploit the new technology (Griffiths, 2000). Pornography is now available in books, magazines, photographs, film, and videos.

Dines et al. (1998) trace the growth and development of the modern heterosexual pornography industry with the appearance of the first issue of Playboy in 1953.