PORNOGRAPHIC MOVIE MAGIC
5 Myths About Porn DEBUNKED
“The internet is for porn! The internet is for porn!
Why do you think the net was born?
Porn! Porn! Porn!
I’m glad we have this new technology. (For porn!)
Which gives us untold opportunity. (For porn!)
Right from your own desktop.
For p—…”
“The Internet is for Porn” from Avenue Q, as performed by Rick Lyon, Stephanie D’Abruzzo, and the Avenue Q Ensemble
The internet is ripe with porn. Not only are genres and platforms growing more diverse, but it’s getting to be more accessible to anyone, especially the inexperienced. If your parents didn’t bother giving you “the talk,” or you managed to avoid the mandatory Sex Ed seminars in middle school, I sincerely hope you don’t search up the top results on PornHub for sensible bedroom techniques.
Making a porno can be like making any action movie. A lot of planning, direction, and special effects go into making superheroes fly, as well as making porn stars jizz on cue. The scenes take multiple takes, have protective measures in place, and are scripted to ensure that the story plays out seamlessly. In pornography’s case, it’s the flawless and convenient sex.
Performers in both adult and action movies all serve to elicit one thing from their audience—fantasy. Whether it’s power fantasies or sexual fantasies, reenacting these scenarios in real life takes plenty of effort; summoning an orgasm is not that much easier than summoning super strength.
There’s plenty of movie magic that goes into making pornographic films, which props up sex as a picture-perfect scenario when nothing awkward happens.
While porn can serve multiple purposes, it does not make for good sex education. It could motivate people to spice up their lovemaking, or on the other hand, it could over-glamourize sexual ideals to the point of lessening the satisfaction of the real thing. Watching porn can set a standard for sex lives, for better or worse. And often, it’s unrealistic
So, what does porn get wrong about sex?
Myth: “Lasting” for 45 minutes is the norm.
Male performers always seem to be able to pound away for ages, never losing their cool. If you come across a porn video that lasts for 45 minutes or more, often the penises stay tall and rock-solid for the entire duration of intercourse, never pausing to make sure they don’t cum early. This can happen in real life, but you shouldn’t expect it from everyone, every time. The average cis male lasts for 5-6 minutes during heterosexual penetrative sex. Thanks to training, boredom (it is their job) and video editing, pornography can cut out the moments they ejaculate early, they need to pause, or they lose their erection. Don’t expect yourself (or your partners) to meet those high standards.
Myth: The bigger the better.
Big dick energy is overrepresented in porn. All body parts come in different shapes and sizes, and genitalia are no different. In both heterosexual and homosexual pornography, extra-large penises are always idealized. The directors heighten sexual tension by using penis size as a form of powerplay, particularly in films that dabble in dom-sub dynamics.
The average erect penis rises to about 13 centimeters, but by porn standards, that length is subpar. Porn videos tend to show off 20-centimeter masts or more, which only account for less than three per cent of men. They simply show up better on-camera. And no, bigger does not always result in more pleasure; plenty of people who are attracted to men would also opt for less volume. Like anything, dick size is a personal preference.
Myth: Not a hair out of place.
Do most people go bare down there? Au contraire, pubic hair is everywhere! Not even just down there, but hair can sprout from armpits, forearms, and other areas that folks are socially pressured to mow off.
Getting a Brazilian wax is not the standard. The hair that grows in your nether regions comes in varying thickness, patterns, and textures. Waxing can be an expensive and painful procedure, and there are other ways to tend to the garden—whether it be simply trimming it down or even letting it all spring up. In gay porn, younger performers tend to have no hair in their genital areas at all. Pornography often gives in to beauty ideals of being hairless, which unfortunately, taps into people’s insecurities and polices them to tame natural hair growth.
Myth: Orgasms come together fast and easy.
Sorry to break it to you folks, but people with vaginas sometimes fake their orgasms, and many have never even had an orgasm. Porn makes it seem like women come to rapturous climax at the right time, usually three-quarters of the way into the video. It also seems like both (or all) participants come simultaneously, which is seldom the case. Also, for those with penises, you rarely jizz as much as the amount that porn stars do. Often, production adds more liquid to increase the gooeyness of the ejaculation. There are also pills that increase ejaculation volume that porn producers could have handy. So, if your partner is having a tough time coming, don’t take it personally.
Myth: Consent and protection are not sexy.
Porn makes everything seem convenient. You can sleep with your professor, plumber, or your girlfriend’s dad without consequence. In a typical porno storyline, the characters meet, some cheesy lines are quipped, their animal instincts get triggered, and suddenly they’re on the ground tearing each other’s clothes off. Not one second spared to ask, “Do you have a condom?” or “Is doggy style okay with you?”
First off, the porn industry has plenty of consent regulations in place prior to production. Consent happens before the camera rolls. The actors have to sign off on paperwork that declares they’re okay with whichever sexual moves and positions that they’re slated to perform. If they get spanked on video, for example, that is on-cue. Porn can also minimize the importance of protection; condoms are considered less appealing to the audience, so porn often opts out of wearing them. Safe and consensual sex is important, people.
While porn can give the wrong impression, there is nothing wrong with clicking around PornHub or SeanCody on special occasions. Porn is always there (so, so much of it) to satisfy your bodily needs if you want to feel a certain type of way. Just be cognizant of the fact that pornos are not instructional videos. Be choosy on the things you’d want to try at home, don’t expect your body to act the same way actors do in the videos, and always be respectful with your partners!
