Unit 9
Pornography

Overview

Pornography has been a difficult issue for feminists. Some feminists link pornography to the perpetuation of violence against women and view it as a fundamental threat to women’s equality. Others view state attempts to censor pornography as a greater problem, stating that attempted censorship threatens the production of important cutting edge sexual expression (such as gay and lesbian sexual imagery). In this unit, we review the pornography debate and the response from Canadian courts.

Learning Objectives

After completing this unit students should be able to

1. define the radical feminist argument against pornography.
2. explain why other feminists take issue with the radical feminist point of view.
3. outline the legal framework for controlling sexually explicit material in Canada.
4. describe and analyze the Supreme Court’s interpretation of Canadian obscenity law in R. v. Butler; and identify the controversy over the decision.
5. describe and analyze the Supreme Court’s further interpretation of Butler and its statements about the “harms-based approach,” in Little Sisters v. Canada.
6. develop and outline their own perspective on a feminist analysis of pornography.