Everyone, at one point or other in their lives, has taken a look into the ever-growing world of pornography. Whether it was out of curiosity, interest, or just something to stimulate your vision while you played "discovery" with your own body, you watched in awe as two human beings (maybe more -- but hopefully they were human beings ) did the deed for your viewing pleasure.
Some numbers for fun
Pornography, just like all things that are still considered taboo, is a big seller -- more so among men than women, but you already knew that.
1-- In 1999, pornography sales in the US alone surpassed the $10 billion mark.
2-- In 1991, 1,275 seedy pornographic movies hit video store shelves. Not even ten years later, 11, 041 movies hit those same shelves, albeit more room was made for such a demanding market. That's more than an 850% increase.
3-- According to a two-year research study conducted by Alexa Research, the word "sex" is the number one searched term on the Net. Porn, porno and pornography came in fourth. 70% of porn traffic occurs between 9am and 5pm ET (get to work guys... after you finish this article).
4- In 1999, the average revenue for online pornographic sites in the US alone was approximately $175 million.
5- According to the Nielsen Net ratings, 17.5 million surfers visited porn sites from their homes in January 2000.
Do women like it?
There are mainstream movies to suit everyone's needs; there's comedy, drama, love stories, violence, sports -- as well, there are pornographic films to suit everyone's particular taste. The problem is that a lot of women don't like what most pornographic films have to offer. Maybe that's why pornography is mainly purchased by men.
The problem isn't watching sex, per se, it's more the fact that women are sometimes degraded and demeaned in these films, not to mention all the damn woman-on-woman scenarios. Okay, maybe many women have envisioned themselves kissing another female, but it's getting somewhat tired. Hasn't the trend run its course already?
Women like foreplay (now there's a shocker) and lovemaking no doubt, and instead of watching a couple go at it like complete savages, most prefer the more slow-paced sensuality if you will. There are movies that women can definitely get into. Unfortunately, most pornography is geared toward men and what they prefer.
Now of course there are women who enjoy watching nasty, raw sex geared towards guys -- I don't know how many will admit it -- but they are few and far between.
Unfortunate education
I always knew that the sex education taught in school was less than acceptable, but when teenage guys and girls end up getting their education from dad's collection of pornography, therein lies a huge problem.
The predicament that results from watching such films at an early age is that, if the films are demeaning to women (i.e. the man ejaculates in the woman's face), then both sexes might grow up thinking that that's the norm and incorporate it into their love lives. What they likely don't understand is that these are two virtual strangers getting paid to put on a nasty show for those who happen to like it.
Of course, porn could serve as a harmless tool; many couples enjoy watching pornography together and making love or mimicking whatever's occurring in the film. But guys have to understand that some women simply cringe at the thought of watching these movies that really push the envelope (i.e. movies entitled Fantastic Facials ).
Can you say erotic?
I know, I know, every time I mention the word "erotica" around my male friends, they roll their eyes imagining that the film, book or photographs will involve a Fabio-looking dude whose hair is blowing perfectly in the wind. It's not like that at all.
Believe it or not, there are women like former porn star Candida Royalle who have decided to take the bull by the horns and delve into the market, gearing erotic films toward women.
These films actually contain a plot (stop yawning) and women usually prefer to follow a story about sex, rather than watch everyone from the chambermaid to the pizza boy knocking on the same door and getting laid to the same cliché music.
