Erotica  

From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia

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erotic art, erotic fiction, erotica vs. pornography debate, history of erotic depictions

Erotica (from the Greek language Eros - "love") — refers to works of art, including literature, photography, film, that deal substantively with erotically stimulating or arousing descriptions. Erotica is a modern word used to describe the portrayal of the human anatomy and sexuality with high-art aspirations, differentiating such work from commercial pornography.

However, there is a substantial overlap between erotica and pornography. The difference between the two is artistic merit and the author's intent. Erotica is pornography with high art aspirations, whereas pornography is produced for monetary gain. Both the term erotica and pornography were first attested in the mid-19th century; erotica was used in the context of book collecting and pornography in the context of debates on prostitution, obscenity trials and legal prosecutions.

A work solely intended for masturbatory purposes, is generally not regarded as erotic art.

One more way of looking at erotica is the sexual act becoming aware of itself: nature turning into culture, sex becoming self-referential.

Erotica also carries the connotation of softcore, whereas pornography carries the connotation of hardcore.

Body genre

Since pornography and erotica are genres that provoke physical reactions, what are called in narratology "body genres", they are generally held to be "low" cultural manifestations. However, nobrow writers, visual artists, filmmakers, photographers and publishers prove that works of high quality can be found in these maligned "low" genres.

Study of new media

new media studies

"Sex, as we know, is a heat-seeking missile that forever seeks out the newest medium for its transmission." --(Gerard Van Der Leun, 1993)

Erotica and pornography are excellent tools to study the rise of new media and new technologies. Printing technology gave rise to erotic fiction and erotic engravings; photography begot erotic photography; film begot erotic film; home video liberated the pornographic film from seedy theatres and the internet thrives on erotic imagery and dating services. Examples abound. Colin Wilson, for example, traces the history of the novel in relation to the human imagination and erotic fiction in his The Misfits: A Study of Sexual Outsiders.

By medium

• erotic art
  • erotic print
  • erotic illustration
  • erotic photography
• erotic literature
  • erotic comics
  • erotic verse
  • erotic fiction
• erotic films
• erotic music

By region

world erotica

• American erotica
• British erotica
• Dutch erotica
• European erotica
  • Belgian erotica
  • French erotica
  • Scandinavian erotica
  • German erotica
  • Italian erotica
• Japanese erotica

By era

erotica timeline

• Prehistoric erotica
• Ancient erotica
• Medieval erotica
• Renaissance erotica
• 17th century erotica
• 18th century erotica
• 19th century erotica
• 20th century erotica

Related

arousal - bawdy - burlesque - BDSM - censorship - clothing - eros - eroticism - erotic horror - fantasy - fetish erotica - genitalia - libertine - nude - lust - film star - nudity - paraphilia - perversion - peep show - pin-up - Pompeii - pornography - ribaldry - sadomasochism - sensuality - sex - sex film - sex manual - softcore - striptease - vaudeville - vintage erotica - voyeurism

See also

• Erotomaniacs
• History of erotic depictions
• Eros
• Erotica
• Homoeroticism
• Human sexuality
• Paraphilia
• Romance
• Sexual fantasy
• Vocabularies of eroticism
• Etymologies of erotica and pornography