Sexuality and American Culture

I came across this essay the other day:

www.laphamsquarterly.org/issue_article_b.php

Francine Prose discusses eroticism vs. pornography, how the former term evolved from the Greek "eros," and how the latter is exploited.  Prose continues with a detailed exploration of Lolita--- quoting Nabokov well and often--- from its original reputation as a pornographic piece to its recognition as "literature."  She admits to not remembering the "dirty parts" of Lolita after her first read, namely the Carmen Barman scene, a scene which troubled us into lengthy discussion.  Lolita is art, Prose explains, and an antidote to pornography.