The Feminist Porn Book: The Politics of Producing Pleasure by Tristan Taormino, Constance Penley, Celine Parrenas Shimizu, Mireille Miller-Young Read Free Book Online

and education I had under my belt, would I choose to do work that is shunned by most of society and would ultimately limit my future career options? (Don’t let the moderate crossover success of Tracy Lords or even Sasha Grey fool you into thinking the taboo has been lifted: as I always point out, we still live in a culture that avidly consumes porn while judging and marginalizing the women who perform in it.) It’s true that many of the women who enter the field of sex work do it for less than positivereasons, such as to act out feelings of worthlessness or self-loathing. But there are also many women who do it because they enjoy sex and like the idea of having sex for money, or at least find it far less oppressive and more lucrative than some of their other options. My reasons contained elements of each of these scenarios. I found being in porn movies easier than giving all my time to a job I had no interest in. And I also began to understand the deeper psychological reasons that led me to porn. I believed that my natural gifts weren’t enough to gain my estranged father’s love and approval. Steeped in a culture that conveys to young girls that our greatest asset is our desirability, I came to the conclusion that my sexuality was the way to fulfill my needs. And what better way to secure the love and approval I so longed for than becoming a sought-after porn star?
    My time in counseling was bringing me the peace and self-acceptance I longed for. But while I thought my introspective journey would bring closure to the porn chapter of my life, it launched me more deeply into the world of porn than I could have ever imagined. As I was gaining the clarity and self-compassion I needed to move on with my life, a certain curiosity began to take over. I found myself wondering what porn movies that appealed to women might look like. I also began to feel a desire to give something back to women after performing in male-identified porn that left women out. So why not create adult films that deliver useful information about sex and that represent women’s desire? After all, until recently, porn had been for many people their only source of sexual information. I began to see its potential as a way of educating while entertaining its viewers, thus giving back to both women and couples who sought to better understand each other’s needs.
    By 1983, several cultural events had come together to create the perfect moment for this concept to flourish. The women’s movement had given women permission to explore their sexuality. They were curious to view sexy movies, but the majority of women were not comfortable with what they found in existing porn. As it turned out, many men, too, were also looking for something different, and they wanted to find movies their partners might enjoy. At the same time cable TV and the VCR came onto the market and suddenly there was a way to view movies in the privacy of your home. Now women could sneak a peek in the safety of their own domains and couples could enjoy them privately, rather than sitting among questionable guys in raincoats, in dark seedy theaters with sticky floors. Now all they needed were the movies—and that’s where I came in.
    I welcomed the challenge of creating explicit erotica that was exciting,skillfully done, and above all, female positive. I was convinced there was a commercial market for this and I was determined to prove it. As an added incentive, any hope of putting Candida Royalle to rest was lost once porn from the 1970s became available on video and cable TV. Stepping behind the camera allowed me to create movies that I felt proud to be associated with. It was my way of giving something back while reclaiming my name, and helping women feel more comfortable with their sexuality. We still lived in a world where “good girls don’t,” where female characters with strong, active sex drives in movies and on TV had to be punished or show retribution for their sins. I believed