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The Journalof Sex Research Vol. 15, No. 4, pp. 285-298 November,1979

Pornographic Comics: A Content

Analysis
C. EDDIE PALMER

Abstract

The major purpose of this research is to document, through content

analysis, the nature of pornographicthemes found in a collection of porno-
graphiccomics usually called "eight-pagers."Pornographiccategoriesdevel-
oped by Kronhausen and Kronhausen (1961) were used in the analysis.
Females are depicted as similar to males in carnal appetite and sexual
aggression.Male chauvinismis apparent in many of the comics, and male
fantasies are equally displayed and fulfilled. The comics visually portray
numerousbehaviorsconsideredlegally or morallydeviant, but project "nor-
mative" sexuality by concentratingupon adult monogamousheterosexual
behavior.Finally,a discussionof taxonomical,linguistic and methodological
problemsin studying pornographiccomics is offered.

The "funnies,"comic strips, comic books, "comics,"and cartoonshave

been topics of serious investigationfor several years. Numerouswritings
have been devoted to the history, content, style, reflections,and insights
in variouscomicographicserials. (See, for example,Barshay, 1974;Berger,
1971, 1973; Brabant, 1976; Brown, 1969; Daniels, 1971; Faust, 1971;
Gilmore, 1971; Hamaker, 1975; Kasen, 1979; Kramer, 1974; Levinson,
1975;Mira, 1971;Palrner,1977;Pekar, 1970;Reitberger & Fuchs, 1970;
Spiegelman, Terwilliger, & Fearing, 1953; Steinem, Chesler, & Feitler,
1972;Woll, 1976;and Young, 1969).Speakingof the more recent attention
given comic books, Daniels (1971)states:

Somehow comic books have taken on new overtones of "relevance."There

are even courses on the subject in a number of colleges and
universities.... And the industryhas institutionalizeditself with the creation
of the Academy of Comic Book Arts, desigrledto enlighten the uninitiated
and award worthy workers in the field .... The fashionable populanty of
Mcluhanesquemethodsof analyzingmediahas inspireda new outlook. . . and
such an approach compensates the comic book for its lack of leptimate
C. Eddie Palmer, PhD, is an Associate Professor in the Department of Sociology at
Texas Tech University.A preliminaryversion of this article was presentedat the Annual
Meetingof the Mid-SouthSociologicalAssociation,Monroe,Louisiana,in November,1976.
Request for reprintsshould be sent to C. Eddie Palrner,PhD, Departmentof Sociology,
Texas Tech University,P.O. Box 4590,Lubbock,Texas 79409.
285
286 C. EDDIE PALMER

tradition.... And fluctuationsin the style and content of these periodicals

serve to mirrorchanges in the attitudes of both arttistsand audience. (p. ix)

Socialscientistshaveanalyzedcomicstripswith a varietyof purposes

andconclusions.Spiegelmanet al. (1953),forexample,offerdocumenta-
tionthat comicstripcharactersseekspecificgoalsanduse specificmeans
to achievesuch goals;furthermore,these patternsof adaptationvary
accordingto the socioeconomic positionof the comicactors.Young(1969)
has hypothesizedan interestinglinkbetweenthe creationof "adventure"
comics and the economicdepressionof the 1930'swhen the funnies
containedandreflecteda symbolicvisualandnarrativesearchfor order
and stabilityin socialcircumstances. Kasen(1979)has recentlyutilized
comicstripsto studysocialmobilityand the shift to middle-classliving
in the UnitedStates.Brown(1969)has positedthat comicstripheroes
may serveas vehiclesof projectionof fearsand racialoppressionwhile
Brabant(1976),Kramer(1974),andLevinson(1975)haveshownthatsex
rolestereotypesareperpetuatedthroughprintedandtelevisedcartoons,
usuallywithfemalesbeingportrayedas passiveanddomesticated. Comic
books,then,maybe saidto portrayandreflectnumerouspsychological,
cultural,andhistoricalsocietalconditions.
The themesof sex andaggressionin comicbookshavebeena topicof
concernandinvestigationlin the past,withsex beingless systematically
investigatedthanaggression.Whileone'sabilityto discernsexualmean-
ings fromthe activitiesof MickeyMouse,DonaldDuck,or Dennisthe
Menacemay be lodgedin psychoanalytictheoryand technique,other
comicbooksareless subtlein theirtreatmentof sexualbehaviorandare
the oneswhichserveas the databaseforthe presentstudy.
Comicbooksandcartoonsthatcontainexplicitsexuallanguage,graph-
ically explicit (and exaggerated)representationsof male and female
genitalia,coitus,fellatio,cunnilingus,analintercourse,analingus,homo-
sexuality,and bestiality,as well as literarysatireof politicsand sexual
mores,are not newto the Americanscene.Gilmore(1971),for example,
has prepareda four-volumeworkcontainingapproximately 475 porno-
comicswhichappearedbetween1930and 1965,with the majorityde-
1Concernover the impactof comic bookson childrenmay have reachedan all time high
as a result of Wertham's (1954) book Seduction of the Innocent when a comic book
publisherwas summonedto testify before the Kefauvercommittee on delinquencyin the
mid 1950's.Political and academic argumentsas well as anti-comic book organizations
appearedpartiallyas a resultof Wertham'sblisteringindictmentsof comicbooksas a cause
r

0t Juvemle crlmes.
 COMICS
PORNOGRAPHIC 287
of pornocomic,
being of 1930'sand 1940'svintage. As to this type
picted
Gilmore(1971)states:
pagers were conceived in
During the height of their popularity,the eight
alleys and distributed
dark attics, published in dingy garages or unnamed
Yet they accountedfor a
from the hip-pocketsof vendorsacross the nation.
of the Great Depression.
multi-million-dollarbusiness in the tight economy
(p. 7)
eight pagerswere
Whilethere are contradictionsas to how many of the
indicate that
produced, the worksby Gilmore(1971)and Klotman (1971)
comics themselves often
theElgureis between 699 and 712 originals.The
poor. The English
containart which "rangesfrom excellent to incredibly
. . . anyone with an
isoften illiterate and the non-sequitursare delightful
But then they lose
ounceof talent could improve on these comics....
1971, p. 8). Many of
theirflavor of delicious outrageousness"(Gilmore,
comic characters of the
thecomics are satirical reconstructionsof the
Dagwood and Blondie,
"legitimate"funnies (Maggie and Jiggs, Popeye,
a few letters of their
etc.) and others portray celebrities (by changing
(Gert Gabbo, Jean
names) involved in the most carnal of activities
A basic artistic theme
Traford,Clint Table, Katerine Heardmore,etc.).
of the sexual organs of
foundin all the comics is a gross exaggeration
joke involves small
both males and females (unless the butt of the
the behaviors
genitaliaand/or impotence).And, as will be demonstrated,
particularsexual
ofthe comic actorsfollowcertainpatternsand exemplify
proclivities.

Method

Sample
comics, the four-
To document and articulate themes in pornographic
of pornographic
volume work of Gilmore(1971)offeredthe best selection
of all porno-
comics available to the author. While representativeness
author realizes that
comics (or even eight pagers) is not claimed (the rep-
Gilmore collection
more recent singular comics are available), the
analysis.
resents a body of data amenable to rather systematic
randomly selected from Gilmore's
A sample of 100 eight pagers was
strips. The sample of 100
collection of approximately475 porno-comic
unaware the purpose
of
units was identiEledby asking a person who was
288 C. EDDIE PALMER

of the selectionto thumbthrougheachof the fourvolumesandselect25

titles and recordthe title of the unit and the inclusivepage numbers.2
The personwas instructedto try to obtainequalrepresentation in the
selectionandnot to simplypickout the first25 or the middleor last 25,
but to choosefromthe selectionsthroughouteach volume.The porno-
comics,forthe mostpart7containedeightframesserializedoverone and
a halfpagesof 81/2''x 101/2''
coarsepaper.

Procedure

The pictorialcontentof the 100eightpagersselectedwas analyzedby

the authorto see if, andto whatextent,certainpredetermined categories
of behaviorwererepresentedin the comics.Utilizingcategoriesidentified
by the Kronhausens(1961),the authorexaminedeachframein the 100
unitsselected,and if the behaviorunderquestionwas depictedin any
frame,it wasnominallycodedin tallyfashionon a codingsheet.Because
of the non-exhaustiveness of the Kronhausens'(1961,pp. 850-854)cate-
gories,othercategoriesweredevelopedfromthe unitsthemselves.Those
behaviorswhichwerestarklyapparentto the researcher,or thosewhich
becameapparentthroughrepetitiveness, werestandardized andenumer-
atedaccordingly.Thus,these"data-generated" categoriesprovidea more
adequatedescriptionof the natureandtypesof sexualbehaviordisplayed
bythe comicactors.

Kronhausens'
Categories

EventhoughKronhausen andKronhausen(1961)developedcategories
mostapplicableto writtenpornography(andeven offercaveatsabout
theutilityof theirconceptsfor pictorialanalyses),theircategorieswere
chosenas the basic ones for the presentanalysis.In their distinction
betweenerotic realismand pornography,they contendthat "porno-
graphicwritingsfollowa certaingeneral outline or organizationand
employa numberof specificmechanismswhichwe believecanbe isolated
anddemonstrated" (Emphasisin original)(Kronhausen & Kronhausen,
1961,p. 849). As the comicbook representsa uniquecontiguration of
interconnected writtenlanguageand graphicimagery,the Kronhausens'
categoriesarethoughtto be appropriate forthe presentresearch.
2A list of the comics analyzedherein is availableupon requestfromthe author.
 PORNOGRAPHICCOMICS
289
The Kronhausens (1961, pp. 850-854) identify 11
major categories3
(favorite "subplots or sub-themes") of "mechanisms"
found in pornog-
raphy. Even though variations occur, the categories
in Table 1 are
thought to constitute analytically distinct categories
which make up the
bulk of pornographicwritings. (Some liberty has
been taken in Table 1
because of space limitations;the readeris urgedto
comparethe original.)
In addition to the themes presented in Table 1, the
"othercategories"
employedconsist of the follounng:(1) age of participants,
(2) heterosexual
intercourse, (3) heterosexual fellatio, (4) heterosexual
cunnilingus, (5)
heterosexualanal intercourse, (6) females portrayed as
prostitutes, (7)
female bestiality, (8) flatulence or excrement, (9)
animals engaged in
masturbationor same species intercourse,and (10) male
bestiality.
Results and Discussion
Table 2 shows the frequency of porno themes
found in the porno-
comics.A brief discussion of each category is presented
below.
Seduction. Of the 100 units sampled, approximatelyhalf
(47) of the
porno-comicscontained behavior categorizableas
"seduction."One rea-
sonfor the relatively small numberof "seductions"
in the comics is that
explicitsexual relations between the charactersare
presented very early
inthe sequential frames.Because of average
length of the pictorialstory
(eightframes), little time is spent (wasted) with
sexual ritualistic or
antecedentbehavior. Many of the stories "got right to
it" without
preparatory behavior. Of the 47 that presented seduction themes,
the
malewas more likely to be the aggressor(23) with the
female actor falling
notfar behind (18). Five of the 47 units
demonstrateda mixed seduction
sequencewhere male and female were equally involved in
seducing each
other.One unit representeda male dog as the seducer
of a female actor.
(Therelatively high number of female seducers
may reflect a male
fantasywhich belies traditional American custom of
the female as the
more passive participantin sexual relations.)4
DefZoration.Orily10 of the sample of eight pagerspresented
decipher-
'3 Klotman (1971),in
an article entitled "Racialstereotypes in hard core
reviewed 699 of the eight papers (the same comics under pornography,"
them contained black charactersand that in 17 units scrutinyhere) and found that 34
of
blacks were engagedin sex. She
makes the point that racialslurs are presentbut may be
couchedin such a manneras to go
unnoticed because they are "easilydigested along with the full fare
1971,p. 222). Because of this finding,this categorywas of erotica"(Klotman,
deleted from the present analysis.
4 For a recent
statementon the traditionalrole of the male as the sexual
"datinggame,"see McCaghy(1976,p. 135). aggressorin the
 .

C. EDDIE PALMER

TABLE 1
PornographicThemes Utilized in ContentAnalysisof Porno-Comics
Theme Description

Seduction Brief scene in which sexual activities are initiated,often with

a willingpartner."Victims"are difficultto identifybecause of
ease OI perSUaSlOn.

Defloration Almost synonymouswith rape, but since the victim in these

wish-fulfillingpornographicfantasiesare seen as highly sexed,
passionatecreaturesof impulse,they do not need to be
coercedonce they have lost their virginity;they enjoy thereaf-
ter.

Incest Not veiled;open, frank,and undisguisedincestuousrelations

between even the closest of kin.

Permissive seductive Figureswho not only condone,but even participatein the

parent sexual behaviorof the child, or who actuallyallow and expect
the child to be interestedin sexual behavior.Permissivecoop-
erationis the rule.

Profanation of the sa- Mixingthat which is most holy with the most debased;
cred thumbingthe nose at the superegoor the collective con-
science;centralfiguresconnectedwith the clergyand religion;
representsan expressionof rebellionagainst social and reli-
gious institutionsand againstthe repressive(controlling)na-
ture of society.

Sexual vernacular Flagrantviolationof the social conventionsof polite verbal

discourse.

Supersexed males Exaggeratedsize of the male organand testicles and copious

amountsof seminalfluid ejaculated;potency almost limitless
and sex drive constantlyat recordstrength.

Nymphomaniac fe- Sexuallyhighly responsive;lackingcommontraces of mod-

males esty, restraintand sex-anxiety;highly excitableto clitoral
stimulation,copiousdischarges.

Homosexuality Female cunnilingus,use of dildos;male fellatio, anal inter-

course;mutualmasturbation.

Flagellation Whips,spikes,wire brushesand accompanyingparaphernalia;

spanking.a

Bondageand disciplinewere addedto the flagellationcategorybecauseof the assumed

a

similarityin sado-masochisticcontent.
 PORNOGRAPHICCOMICS 291
TABLE 2
Frequencyof Themes Foundin a Sample of Porno-Comics
No. of No. of
Porn-Theme Units Other Units
. . Characteristics . .
Contammg Contammg

Seduction 47 Age of participants

Defloration 10 Adults only 89
Incesta 7 Adolescentsonly 2
Mixed 9
Permissive/seductive par- 5 Heterosexualintercourseh 93
ent figure Heterosexualfellatio 44
Profanationof sacred 1 Heterosexualcunnilingus 36
Sexual vernacular 100
Supersexedmales 17 Heterosexualanal intercourse 23
Nymphomaniacfemales 23 Femalesportrayedas prostitutes 22
Homosexuality 13 Female bestiality 9
Bondageorflagellation 8 Flatulenceorexcrement 8
Animalsengagedin masturbation
or same species intercourse 5
Male bestiality 4
a Incestuousrelationshipsoccurredbetween uncles and nieces in three units; two units

containedsexualbehaviorbetweenmotherand male child;one portrayedrelationsbetween

godfatherandgoddaughter;one unit containedbrother/sistersex in additionto the mother/
son relationshipmentionedabove. One had brother/sistersex only.
h Of the seven units not showingheterosexualintercourse,three showedmale impotence,
two centered aroundunconsummatedmarriages,one dealt with a dog as the only sexual
partner,and one dealt with an old man in a house of prostitutionwho was unableto locate
the lover he desired.

able defloration scenes. It is interesting to note, in line with the male

fantasy idea above, that of the 10 deflorationsindicated,8 of the aggres-
sors were female. In some cases, multiple females were seen forcibly
"gangingup" on the male. This manifestationis interestingin light of the
fact that "in reality, despite the daydreamsof many men, females rarely
force sexual intercourseon males, but the rape of males by males is not
so unusual"(Emphasisin original) (McCaghy,1976,p. 129).
Incest.Incest was found to occur in only seven of the units examined.
(See footnote a of Table 2 for the types of incest depicted in the eight
pagers.)Of the incestuousrelations described,the majorityof kinsperson
conElgurationsdealt with sex between uncle and niece, with brother/
sister and mother/son sex tied for second place.
Permissive/seductive parent figure. While incest dealt with actual
sexual behavior (intercourse,oral-genitalcontact, etc.) between partici-
pants, the permissive/seductioncategoryallows for sexual voyeurismand
292 C.EDDIE PALMER

behaviors of a less physicalnaturebetweenparticipants.Fiveof the units

contained suchparent figurebehavior. Ofthe represented,
permissiveness
childrenwereallowedto watchsexualintercourse between theirparents
or,in twocases,actuallyto helptheirparentspreparefora sexualsession
bysecuringlubricants,prophylactics, andothersex equipment.
Profanationof the sacred.Profanationof the sacredconstitutesthe
categoryleast representedin the eight pagers.(For an articlewhich
indicatesthat profanationof the sacredmay be more widespreadin
recent"filthyfunnies,"see Palmer(1977).)The onestorycontainingsuch
a theme was actuallya piece made up of 42 framesand was entitled
"Travelin' Preacher."This ElmerGantrytype seducedseveralof the
femalesin the communityandfailedto preacha sermonuntilthreatened
by the local sheriff.At the one sermonhe did preach,he workedthe
congregation into such a heightenedfrenzythat the culminationof the
serviceinvolveda full-blownorgywhilestill in the church.
Sexual vernacular.Possiblyakin to sexualgraffitior "verbalsex as
deviancy"(Bryant,1977,pp. 63-65),sexualvernacularwas a universal
themefoundin the eight pagers.All of the units containednumerous
wordsor phrasesthat wouldnot be heardin "politeverbaldiscourse."
Partof the intrigueor "mystique" of the porno-comicmayfindits locus
at this particularlinguisticjuncture.Part of the satiricalnatureof the
comicsrevolvesaroundthe factthat a symbolicmemberof societyin the
formof a comicstripcharacter,who followsconventionalsexualmores
withinthe "legitimate" comicstrip,can nowbe seen "backstage"as the
real, sexual, carnalbeings they are. Dagwoodand Blondie are now
observablewithoutthe facadeof middleclass civilityprojectedin the
funniesand are portrayedjust like otherpeoplein their real language
andsexuality.
Supersexedmales and nymphomaniac females.Eventhoughmostof
the maleandfemalecharactersfoundin the eightpagersmaybe viewed
as oversexedborderingon obsession,these two categoriesincludeonly
those instanceswherespecificlingualor pictorialreferencesweremade
bythe charactersthat they wereinsatiableor were"notsatisfiedyet"or
had alreadyreachednumerousorgasmsandwerestill engagedin sexual
behavior.Ofthese"super" supersexedcharacters,17unitscontainedsuch
indicationsfor males, while slightlymorewere noted for females(23).
This again may be centeredon the male fantasy which may have
stimulatedthe creationof the comicsin the firstplace.This at least fits
in well with some of the documented"verbalizedmotives"offeredby
some males regardingtheir attitudestowardfemalevictimsof sexual
 PORNOGRAPHICCOMICS 293
abuse, aggression,and assault (i.e., "they want it as much as I do," "they
say no but really mean yes").
Homosexuality.Explicit homosexuality was portrayed in 13 of the
units surveyed.Females were found to engage in homosexualbehaviorin
seven units (six examples of female cunnilingusand one example of the
use of dildos between two women were noted). Male fellatio occurredin
two units, and male anal intercoursewas observed in four units. Of the
six examples of female cunnilingus,in only one case was it suggestedthat
the oral participant was forced to participate or "lost status" by her
performance.Most cases involved sexually aroused and willing partici-
pants. In the four cases involving male anal intercourse,two represent a
loss of status (being surprised,hurt, or brutalized)for the anal recipient,
and two depicted willing participation on the part of the receiver. In
neither of the units depicting male fellatio did the oral participantlose
status.
Bondageor flagellation.Bondage and/or flagellationwas observedin
8 of the 100units and dealt with spankings,personstied to trees, shackled
or whipped,usually as a prelude to sexual relations.

OtherCharacteristics

In addition to the above mentioned porn themes, several other factors

were noted fromthe sample of eight pagers.While not meant to represent
the totality of other categorizablefeatures found in the porno-comics,
these "other characteristics"form the basic themes which extend or
complement the pornographicelements identiEledby the Kronhausens
(1961).These are treated singly or in combinationbelow and are listed in
Table 2.
Age ofparticipants.The vast majorityof the participantsportrayedin
the eight pagers were adults who interacted sexually only with other
adults (89). Nine eight pagers contained a mixed group of adults and
adolescents, while only two contained adolescents engaged in sex only
with other adolescents. Even though sexual themes and fantasies fre-
quently involve childrenin "reality,"the eight pagers are seen to involve
adults and only adults in the vast majorityof the cases. In this sense they
portray "normative"sexual relations.
Basic styles of heterosexualbehavior.The majority of units (93)
displayed heterosexual intercourse.This theme is second only to sexual
vernacularas a major topic contained in the porno-comics.Those seven
units which did not display explicit heterosexual intercourseutilized its
294 C. EDDIE PALMER

absenceas the butt or "punchline"of the unit. Willingpartnerswere

availableto eachother,but,becauseof malesexualimpotenceor unwill-
ingness,sexualintercoursewasnot carriedout.
Heterosexualfellatio (femaleoral stimulationof the male genitals)
occurredin 44 of the stories and rankssecond only to heterosexual
intercourseas a style of sexualbehaviordisplayedin the comics.tIeter-
osexualcunnilingus(maleoralstimulationof the femalegenitals),present
in 36 of the units ranksthird.Heterosexual analintercourseoccurredin
23 of the unitswiththe majoritydepictingwillingacceptanceon the part
of the femaleparticipant.
Females as prostitutes. Reflectingthe generalpostureof the femaleas
aggressiveand anxiousto engagein sexualbehavior,22 of the stories
portrayedthe femalecharactersas prostitutes.Femalesactuallyasked
for moneyfromtheir tricksor wereanxiousto "sell"their favorsfor a
chanceto landa job, to pay theirrent,or, in a few cases,to help a male
friendin his attemptto blackmailothersby catchingthem in compro-
misingpositions.Male dominanceand machowas also a sub-themein
this matterin that femaleprostitutesweresoondeprivedof theirprofes-
sional detachmentand were frequentlyovercomeby the gargantuan
sexual prowessof the male. Prostituteswere often initiallyshown in
classicallyaloof posturesonly later to becometotally enthralledand
orgasmicallysaturatedby the supersexedmales and were depictedas
havingmet morethantheirsexual"match."
Minor characteristics. Severalotherminorcharacteristics werenoted
in the units surveyed.Nine of the storiesshowedfemalesengagedin
sexual behaviorwith animals (usuallydogs), and four showed men
similarlyengagedwith animals.Five units offeredpicturesof animals
masturbatingor engagedin sexualintercoursewith each other.These
wereeitherhouseholdpets,barnyardor zooanimals.In somecases,they
werethe impetuswhichinitiatedvoyeuristicadultsinto sexualbehavior,
and in othersthe animalswereseen copyingthe copulatoryacts of the
adults.
Scatologicalthemeswerealso presentin the porno-comics with eight
unitscontainingverbalor graphicreferencesto excrementor flatulence
whichusuallyaccompanied, or werea by-productof, the vigorousenergy
expendedin the sex acts.

Summaryof Porn Themes and Other Characteristics

Examinationof the porn themes discussedabove reveals that the

femaleis presentedas similarto the malein sexualappetiteandeven as
 PORNOGRAPHICCOMICS 295

more aggressive and insatiable in some respects. Such depictions are

incongruentwith the general sexual climate and beliefs of the 1930'sand
1940's;in fact, aggressivefemale sexuality appearsto have only recently
been generallyrecognized,along with female rights, in this culture. This
finding from porno-comics is different from the findings of Brabant
(1976), Kramer (1974) and Levinson (1975) in that females, rather than
being found to be passive, are shown as very active in sexual behavior
and, in some cases, as the aggressorsand sexual conquerors.A currentof
male sexism, however,runs throughthe eight pagersin that they portray
females interested in "rough,"as opposedto sensual, sexual behaviorand
in that 22 units depicted females as prostitutes but none displayed men
in that role. Numerous double standards and sex role stereotypes are
found in the comics and if, as some suggest, porno-comicswere (and are)
used as sex educationtools, one wondersjust how much of an impact this
medium has had on currentsexual attitudes and misconceptions.In fact,
the study of porno-comics as a reflection of cultural mores and/or
subterraneanvalues is vexed with numerousproblems.The remainderof
this discussion examines basic needs and problems in research of this
type.

Research Needs ConcerningAdult Comics

Taxonomical needs. The porno-comicsexaminedhere are insufficient

for a thorough,systematic explorationcontaininghigh levels of general-
izability. With the recent proliferationof erotic magazinesand comics, it
is necessary to establish mutually exclusive categories of such erotica.
Behavioral themes, pornographicand otherwise, should be enumerated
if scientiElcanalyses are to gain the degree of precision necessary for
accurate description.
Biographical needs. The writers,publishers,and cartoonistsof porno-
comics should be sought out and interviewed lest the interpretationsof
content analysts be perpetuallychallenged by those concernedwith the
"intent"of the artists.
Methodological needs. Pekar (1970,p. 687), in taLkingabout the works
of one cartoonistand creatorof porno-comics,Robert Crumb,remindsus
that "it's a waste of time trying to find a hidden key to Crumb'swork.
Sure, it's often profound.But remember,he's trying to make you laugh.
So when you read his stuff, don't let it put you up tight." Likewise,
Denisoff (1975) has warned that content analysis may find the scholar
deriving some meaning from the material under scrutiny which was not
intended by the authorand not similarlyperceivedby the audience.Were
296 C. EDDIE PALMER
the eight pagers,for example,directedto a workingclass audienceand
didthe creatorshavea socialstatementto make?Did the audience"get"
the intendedmaessage?
Porno-comicsas eroticstimuli.Areporno-comics sexuallystimulating?
Eventhe best knownstudieshavelittleto offerconcerningthe impactof
porno-comics on thosewhoareexposedto them.HainandLinton(1969),
in studyingphysiologicalresponseto visual sexual stimuli,used only
picturesof nudes which varied by view (front and back), degree of
clothing,andageof stimuli-subjects.Levitt(1969,p. 257),in a summation
of studiesdealingwith sexualstimuli,states that photographsare more
sexuallystimulatingthan comparabledrawingsand that "thedegreeto
whicha stimulusresemblesrealityinfluencesits eroticstimulusvalue."
Rosen and Turner(1969,p. 236) studiedthose who had been exposed
and non-exposedto pornography and utilizedsex cartoonbookletsini-
tially in their study but because a "pretestindicatedthat very few
subjectshad been exposedto cartoonbooklets.. .these . . .items were
excludedfromthe finalquestionnaire." EvenGoldsteinandKant's(1973)
study,whileincludinga fewreferencesto porno-comics andcontaininga
few interviewsin whichporno-comics werediscussed,does not provide
the informationnecessaryto answerthe "stimuli"questionaboutporno-
comics.
Needs concerningthe collectionand preservationof porno-comics.
Eventhoughresearchinstitutes,notablythe Institutefor Sex Research
at IndianaUniversity,collectandpreservenumerousvarietiesof sexual
material,attentionshouldbe given,in numerouslocations,to the collating
ofthe multitudeof "new"porno-comics comingoffthe press.Thesedata,
madeavailableto studentsand faculty,shouldprovidematerialfor a
varietyof systematicstudies.
Porno-comicsas a therapeuticaid. Couldporno-comicspossiblybe
usedas therapeutictoolsto aidthosewithparticularsexualproblems?In
theage of the sex therapist,whennumeroustechniquesfrompsychoa-
nalysisto surrogatesex partnersare utilizedto increasethe sexual
functioning of men and women,couldthe sex comicoffera liberating,
relief,or"tensionreducing"functionunattainablethroughothervehicles?
Porno-comicsas molderand/or expressionof specificsentiment.Are
porno-comics the expression,as well as the molder,of commonlyheld
values?Whichis morepronouncedin whichcomics?Whosevaluesare
expressed or moldedby the comics?Whattypesof valuesare displayed
in the comics?Political?Religious?Sexual?What combinationsare
identiflable?Are porno-comicsto be viewed as part of the various
 PORNOGRAPHICCOMICS 297

"underground"movements that make up part of the subtetTanean,yet

very real, value structure of society? Do they serve as a boundary
maintaining function like other forms of "deviance"?Do they fulfill a
need for some to "debase"the legitimate symbols of a society and thereby
justify their own sexual passions? Do they, in other words, offer a
"leveling"agent to those who are less well off than the comic characters
portrayedin the "legitimate"comics?
Porno-comics as a vehicle for the study of deviant behavior. Porno-
comics may offer a novel means of studying deviant, and thereby non-
deviant, forms of human behavior. As Sagarin (1971) has aptly demon-
strated, even the legitimate comics may be used that way.
Porno-comics as a mechanism for cultural comparisons. As previous
writers have pointed out (Berger, 1971; Hamaker, 1975; Mira, 1971),
national differencesand similarities are observablein the regular comic
strips of various cultures. Sex comics offer another means of gaining
insight into the political structures,climates, and characteristicfeatures
of the human behavior of various social groups.
In conclusion,the research needs concerningadult comics are numer-
ous and are beset by taxonomical, methodological,and linguistic prob-
lems. Answers to these research needs may offer insights into societal
functioning and a range of questions about individual and collective
sentiment. Future studies of sex comics may enable us to answer the
basic question of "Whatis the essence of porno-comics?'The answer to
this question may sensitize us to various subtleties of other forms of
social and sexual behavior.
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