Baudrillard was not concerned as much about pornography and particularly not about cybersex, as he was about the more general concepts of ‘hyperreality’ and the ‘obscene’. But nevertheless, it seems that his ideas might be relevant in today’s ‘mediated’ forms of sexual pleasure. This paper therefore tries to apply his theory towards the notion of cybersex. Two questions seem of highest importance: Is cybersex ‘real’? What is it that actually takes place in cybersex? The first question can be framed with Baudrillard’s notion of ‘hyperreality’ and ‘virtual’, whereas the ‘obscene’ is most fruitful in describing the content of cybersex. In the following, this essay will in the first paragraph deal predominantly with the definition of cybersex before the second and third part will introduce Baudrillard’s ideas and critically apply them towards the question of the ‘realness of cybersex’ as well as the ‘content’ of it. Before the conclusion will try to give the analysis a wider perspective, a section of general critique will follow the development of the argument and reflect on the applicability of Baudrillard towards cybersex. First, however, it is necessary to come to a common understanding of the notion of cybersex.
Table of Contents
- Introduction
- Defining Cybersex
- Baudrillard's Theory and the "Realness" of Cybersex
- Hyperreality and the Virtual
- Cybersex as Simulacrum
- Baudrillard's Theory and the "Content" of Cybersex
- The Obscene
- General Critique and Applicability of Baudrillard's Theory
Objectives and Key Themes
This paper aims to apply Jean Baudrillard's theories of hyperreality and the obscene to the phenomenon of cybersex. It explores whether cybersex can be considered "real" and examines the nature of the experiences it entails.
- The definition and characteristics of cybersex.
- Baudrillard's concepts of hyperreality and the virtual.
- The application of Baudrillard's theory to the question of the "realness" of cybersex.
- The application of Baudrillard's concept of the obscene to the content of cybersex.
- A critical analysis of the applicability of Baudrillard's theories to understanding cybersex.
Chapter Summaries
The Introduction sets the stage by outlining the paper's objectives: applying Baudrillard's work to understand cybersex. The section on Defining Cybersex clarifies the term by examining its virtuality and its paradoxical relationship with the body, drawing on relevant research. The section on Baudrillard's Theory and the "Realness" of Cybersex introduces Baudrillard's concepts of hyperreality and the virtual and explores the implications for assessing the "reality" of cybersex. The section on Baudrillard's Theory and the "Content" of Cybersex delves into Baudrillard's notion of the obscene to analyze what occurs within the cybersex experience. The paper concludes with a General Critique and Applicability of Baudrillard's Theory section, reflecting on the strengths and limitations of applying Baudrillard's framework to the phenomenon of cybersex.
Keywords
Cybersex, hyperreality, virtual reality, the obscene, Jean Baudrillard, simulacrum, media theory, mediated sexuality.
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- Johannes Lenhard (Autor), 2011, Hyperreal Obscenities – Baudrillard on Cybersex, Múnich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/182788
