Deep classification: pornography, bibliographic access, and academic libraries

摘要

This study examines the mainstreaming of pornography in the context of current economic, popular culture, and academic trends. As pornography becomes part of popular culture, it simultaneously becomes an area of focus for academics and therefore presents particular challenges for college and university libraries. Both physically and conceptually, academic libraries must find a place for pornography on the shelves and in the array of knowledge structured by gibliographic access system. This study looks a how the variety of issues, concepts, and genres of pornography considered in academic discourse could be accommodated within access systems by examining the way in which the adult industry itself classifies pornographic films. Specifically, the terms used by the adult industry to classify these films could be grouped within newly developed categories. The identification of the categories would not be predicated on characteristics of porn films alone. Instead, the categories would encompass specific topics, and subject areas that connect pornography to mainstream culture. Using classifications from four different adult industry sources, four sample categories are presented that could serve as a model for how pornographic concepts could be accommodated within existing bibliographic access systems.