What is obscenity? I agree that there is a fine line to what is and what isn’t considered to be obscene. When I ask myself that question I look at a couple factors. One factor I take into consideration is whether it affects a large group of people or just one person. I do not agree with some behaviors that are done by just one person, but I pose the question is it obscene if no one else witnesses it?
What I mean by that question is if it isn’t affecting anyone and they are doing something that is not necessarily appropriate, would it be obscene. People do things that are inappropriate all the time, but I argue that it’s in where the event takes place. People may stand and admire themselves nude in the mirror, but they are doing it in the privacy of their own home where others cannot see it. Another case would be cleaning the house in the nude, but leaving the curtains wide open where several people can see it. I tend to say the second scenario is much more obscene then the first. The difference is that people can witness it and find it to be obscene.
Another factor in which I judge obscenity is whether others have been found of the same thing. Each case is taken one at a time, but some cases are so similar with different outcomes. An example of this was the book mentioned in lecture that was not considered obscene when it was a hardcover, but found to be obscene when it was printed with a soft cover. I understand that they judged it by age, education, and wealth at this time, but the format of a book doesn’t change the content in a book.
