Power/Pleasure/Danger: The Context and Conflict of Feminist Appropriation of the Erotic

Abstract

No sooner had sexuality been identified as a major area of concern within the feminist camp, than significant disagreements began to emerge. One central issue which splits feminists is the ongoing debate over pornography. Contrary to the dominant view of pornography as men's appropriation and subjugation of women's bodies, feminist advocacy for women to appropriate the erotic as an agent to shake and reshape the current "norm" of female sexuality constructed through patriarchal "regime of discourses" has stirred up heated discussion and debate. This paper intends to contextualize this controversial strategy in terms of the growth of women's power in defining their own sexuality, the cultivation of women's sexual pleasure through appropriating the erotic and its potential danger in a patriarchal society. We believe that this feminist appropriation of the erotic is a positive step in the ongoing construction of female sexuality and a significant progress toward the autonomy of female desire and pleasure in our society. However, taking into consideration that all women do not have the same sexuality and that all female agents do not occupy the same position of power in a still largely patriarchal structure, this strategy should be seen as yet another discourse (among many others) in defining female sexuality to be considered, discussed, qualified, rejected, or embraced--according to individual differences.