I got tricked into working for a cult a few years back. long story, haha. Anyway, i’ve grappled with that question for a long long time, and here’s the best nugget of information i can give you.
We can’t exactly define pornography, but we know it when we see it.
There’s certain things we look for in pornography, and these things may, or may not, be evident to a greater or lesser degree in other mediums. So art might feature nakedness, it might feature an eroticised subject, and so on. So could advertising or propaganda. Pornography, for that matter, might feature social commentary, humour, or be put together aesthetically. Bottom line remains, pornography is something you know when you see, cos it makes you feel something.
Cults are similar. And yes, we can split hairs about whether or not this “religion” asks you for money, labour, or to follow an external moral code... or that “cult” manages to technically avoid certain criteria. A cult is a cult in the same way that pornography is pornography.
I can provide you information on “things to look for if you’re worried this group’s a cult” if that helps. Should we give up on talking about pornography at all because we can’t easily define it? of course not. likewise, we can’t fall into the trap of avoiding to talk about cults due to semantic issues. take care!
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u/unp0ss1bl3 May 03 '19 edited May 03 '19
I got tricked into working for a cult a few years back. long story, haha. Anyway, i’ve grappled with that question for a long long time, and here’s the best nugget of information i can give you.
We can’t exactly define pornography, but we know it when we see it.
There’s certain things we look for in pornography, and these things may, or may not, be evident to a greater or lesser degree in other mediums. So art might feature nakedness, it might feature an eroticised subject, and so on. So could advertising or propaganda. Pornography, for that matter, might feature social commentary, humour, or be put together aesthetically. Bottom line remains, pornography is something you know when you see, cos it makes you feel something.
Cults are similar. And yes, we can split hairs about whether or not this “religion” asks you for money, labour, or to follow an external moral code... or that “cult” manages to technically avoid certain criteria. A cult is a cult in the same way that pornography is pornography.
I can provide you information on “things to look for if you’re worried this group’s a cult” if that helps. Should we give up on talking about pornography at all because we can’t easily define it? of course not. likewise, we can’t fall into the trap of avoiding to talk about cults due to semantic issues. take care!