What comes to mind when you hear the word ‘porn’? Bad acting, bright lighting, bland furniture and bits bouncing about pretty much sums it up, right? Not to mention the typically phallocentric, somewhat rough, disconnected and orgasm-focussed vibes.
Traditional porn tends to be very performative in nature, because it is precisely that - a performance. Most mainstream porn caters to the straight male gaze by default and centres male pleasure and objectification of women as the norm. Which plays a huge role in whether or not women feel comfortable or empowered to prioritise their own pleasure in the bedroom. While there is definitely a lot of variety in porn including porn featuring trans and queer actors, a vast majority is still created with a male audience in mind.
Unfortunately, an awful lot of mainstream porn is made with rather questionable ethics, including unfair or lack of pay for performers, blurred lines of consent, coercion and poor working conditions.
This isn’t to say that all porn is bad and we should all stop watching it. That’s not a sustainable option, nor is it very sex-positive of us. But, this is an invitation to explore different types of porn and some more ethical alternatives.
What is Ethical Porn?
For those who do enjoy the visual medium of mainstream porn, there are plenty of ways to continue to do so, but with a more ethical lens. Ethical porn refers to work that is created consensually, often through a feminist lens, with respect for the performers and fair pay for all involved. Ethically made porn tends to depict more realistic sexual scenarios along with more diversity in body types, race, ability, age, sexualities and genders. A hallmark of ethically produced porn is that it will show real sexual pleasure - rather than false moans and a cut to *him* finishing. Typically, ethical porn will exist behind a paywall, because if you’re accessing porn for free - it’s likely that someone somewhere along the line isn’t being paid properly.
A few website to checkout for ethically produced porn:
Make Love Not Porn
Erika Lust
Afterglow
Creator Made Porn
With the rise in popularity of sites like OnlyFans, sex workers have been able to take control of the content, as well as their finances. Using a site like OF to subscribe and pay a performer directly is a great way to support them, and offers a more personalised experience.
Audio Porn
If you, like a lot of people, don’t find visual porn very enticing, welcome to the world of audio erotica. Contrary to what you might assume, audio porn isn’t just ‘listening to people have sex’, but rather it consists of talented voice actors who depict scenes - either with the help of other voice actors, or by speaking directly to you as their lover - that are designed to turn you on and invite you to indulge in fantasy. Rising in popularity over the past few years, this genre of pornography allows the listener to insert themselves into the sexy, salacious scenarios they’re listening to, rather than simply being a passive observer. Along with sexy stories, many modern audio erotica apps such as Dipsea and Quinn also have guided masturbation tracks which can be a great place for many beginners to start in the exploration of self-pleasure.
Written Erotica
An often overlooked category when it comes to porn is classic erotic literature. The written word can be just as deliciously decadent than any audio or visual counterpart, and again gives the reader the opportunity to exercise their imagination and insert themselves into the story or act as a voyeur to a scene unfolding between the characters on the page. There are various levels of written erotica, from basic romance, to smut to straight up porn. Sites like Aurore and Literotica contain steamy stories often shared from the writer’s own personal experiences.
The next time you’re keen for a bit of a self-pleasure session and would like something to pique your sexual interest, try expanding your usual repertoire and checking out some ethical porn alternatives. You might find that consuming porn in a different way unlocks new heights of arousal.
