Erotica Versus Porn

Hello everyone.. I have a big question about something that has irked me so bad, I had to tell you all about it. And I would appreciate your views on this. Is Erotica and Porn the same thing? Or are they two different entities?

I had a very interesting conversation with some Ass tonight who decided to peruse my site.. then go on to say it was smut on the net. Now I know I shouldn't get angry.. to each his own. But I felt the strong need to protect my site and my writing. I guess I have never came across someone who didn't think that fantasizing and adult entertainment was a healthy thing. I was shocked and angry that he could so easily dismiss all sites with any kind of adult edge to it as smut - and that it was disgusting and contributed to the down fall of mankind..

So I ask you this question... is Erotica and Porn the same thing? Should it matter, should we care? Did I over react to it all? Should the word Porn be a bad thing for our writing to be called? —Gina

"I read erotica, you read smut, he reads porn."  —John Preston

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From screwy_lou
This question has interested me since it was first presented to me in the first lesson I received in my course work from the Arrowgrove School for erotica writing. I think ultimately the answer can only come from the person asking the question since it is one of those answers that is different for each individual. With that in mind, here is my take on it.

Comparing erotica to porn is like comparing sex with your "life partner" to a "one night stand". It's not what you do and/or how you do it as much as the emotional commitment involved. For instance, a bulk of my personal income is made by performing in a live homoerotic online porn/chat room. My customers don't care what I want in life, my thoughts and concerns, my likes or dislikes, what I ate for breakfast or my dinner last night. All they want is to get a nut quickly and cheaply.

Now when I am done for the day I take a shower and join my wife. Regardless of what we are doing and or how we do it, there will always be more involved between us than just a roll in the hay.

Porn is about getting off where erotica is about a person or people who with thoughts and emotions and living a full life while they'er getting off. That is the best way I can explain my thoughts on the difference between porn and erotica.

From Mistress Wench
I happen to agree with Unknown Sweetheart. [see entry below] Both porn and erotic stories get you off in one way or another. I happen to like to call erotic stories readable porn.

I happen to write a few short stories here and there along those lines. While I have no character development and it basically is sex scene to sex scene, it leaves things up to the readers imagination. When I read erotica I can form my own thoughts as to how some people look, how the setting is and how they sound when they have sex. As opposed to watching porn where my mind is made up for me.

To me my readable porn is more stimulating in all sorts of ways. When I read, I get a clear picture in my mind and once that's formed my body starts to respond in kind. Readable porn or erotica, either way it keeps me coming back for more.

I also happen to like that I can relate to characters on some level. For instance, going into a bar intent on a one night stand can be very stimulating if written correctly. When you describe the bar, the people around the bar, and the fact that it's not impossible for "normal" people to do it too.

The female character in question with the one night stand may be called a slut for her actions, but I merely would say that she is acting like the typical man. And lets face it, when men do that sort of thing, no one looks twice, but for women it's nasty.

Anyway, sorry for the long sidetrack. Either way you look at it every person is correct in when they say that porn and erotica is they same or different. It's whatever floats everyone's kinky little boat that matters, right?

From Unknown Sweetheart
We all have to ask this big question... is it porn or erotica? does it really matter? It's basically the same thing... how I know this...
1) both get you aroused
2) both are sexy
3) both use images and words to turn you on...

From Anonymous
If you can pull out erotica anywhere and read/discuss it, but not porn then there is a double-standard that none of us are willing to face

From Fred Lapides
My grandma always said: it is all in the groin of the beholder

From Anonymous Moose
Of course they are completely separate things! One of the good examples I've seen somewhere in this thread is porn=fast food, erotica=fine gourmet.

Porn is there to be cheap, generally catered to guys looking for a quick way to get off. It's full of sluts, whores, tits, cunts, women greedy for cocks and cum.

I hate porn. It's distasteful. It's about the lust and the degradation of the people into nothing but crazed animals hungry for eachother's hot bodies.

On the other hand, I enjoy erotica immensely. It engages the mind as well as the body, presenting a wonderful, sensual situation that also captures the emotions. It is a story of lovers, not of fuck-buddies.

Porn is for people who are looking for simple lust, erotica is for those looking for a sensual and lasting experience.

From SylentVylent
I write for a porn network. Some of the copy in our sites are hard-sell, and they all boil down to Cock! Cunt! Ass! Tits! Cum! Buy! They turn the market on enough to sell well. The copy I submit is more about texture, feeling, sound, smell, taste, and manner. Because I'm new to the company, I don't know if it'll generate as much sales as the existing copy styles. But my entry exam submission to the company turned my boss on; he's the network owner, and he's one of the most genteel guys I've ever met.

Anyway, the difference between porn and erotica is in the elements you objectify. If it's the person, it leans towards porn. If it's the mind, it's more about erotica.

There you go: Body = Porn, Mind = Erotica.

From cng
Erotic vs. Porn? Porn is thrown at the reader, the viewer. By that I mean the subjects are playing to the audience. Erotic draws the reader, the viewer into the role, the situation, the scene. I seem to think that porn caters more to a shallow, unimaginative male audience, where eroticism seems to please the more intelligent female audience. Years ago it used to be a thin line between porn and erotic by most people's standards. Today I see a very distinct line between erotic and porn, even when erotic can be just as, if not more so explicit than cheap porn. It is the manner in which it is presented.

"Pornography says women want to be raped, battered, kidnapped, maimed;
pornography says women want to be humiliated, shamed, defamed;
pornography says that women say No but mean Yes-Yes to violence, Yes to pain" (Dworkin 1993).

There is definitely an absolute line between porn and erotic. It is NOT the fact that I slid my fingers in her pussy, it is the manner in which I did. It is not the fact that we write in great detail, it is the way we write in great detail that separates porn from erotic.

From Jay D
Porn & Erotica are completely different IMHO. Most porn usually feels contrived/set up/fake. While Erotica has a mind-game quality to it. Porn is for the quick-fix while erotica is more for the on-going pleasure.

From Gwen Masters
I think the difference in "porn" and "erotica" is simple Porn is about the body. Erotica is about everything else. Porn is fucking; erotica is fucking the mind.

From Vinayak
In the title itself you seem to have admitted that they are different. Erotica means sexual pleasure WITH mental happiness. Porn means show of LUST, perhaps without any mental satisfaction.

From Cathy
Porn is the rough cut. There it is laid out no frills just lick, suck & fuck. It's gaudy with no imagination. And I don't know about you but I've heard better orgasms from my cat. This is silly but it bothers me that the women aren't always clean or neat looking.

Erotica is the mind opening up, filled with flowers and beauty. It shows us that anything is possible even if it isn't our cup of tea. I can pick up a good erotic book and my body responds. It is a delightful way to spend an afternoon and I usually come away singing.

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