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Adventures of an export salesman : travel, race, and sex abroad in a 1970s Finnish pornographic magazine

Saarenmaa, Laura LU (2017) In Porn Studies 4(1). p.35-49
Abstract

During the 1970s, pornographic magazines that envisioned the Finnish man sovereignly enjoying sexual pleasures in Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union, the Middle East, and the Far East became extremely popular in Finland. In this article it is argued that pornographic magazines functioned as geographical as well as sexual maps; through the medium of magazines, Finnish readers were educated to think of themselves as privileged, ‘white’, ‘Western European’ men. The article addresses the topic of racial pornographies by drawing on the geopolitical conditions of the construction of Finnishness as western whiteness in the travel narratives of Kalle magazine between 1973 and 1977. In addition to racial differences, the article examines the Cold... (More)

During the 1970s, pornographic magazines that envisioned the Finnish man sovereignly enjoying sexual pleasures in Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union, the Middle East, and the Far East became extremely popular in Finland. In this article it is argued that pornographic magazines functioned as geographical as well as sexual maps; through the medium of magazines, Finnish readers were educated to think of themselves as privileged, ‘white’, ‘Western European’ men. The article addresses the topic of racial pornographies by drawing on the geopolitical conditions of the construction of Finnishness as western whiteness in the travel narratives of Kalle magazine between 1973 and 1977. In addition to racial differences, the article examines the Cold War conditions of the 1970s as a major contributor to the Nordic colonial mind, here referring to a generalized identification with colonial exploitation.

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Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
1970s, Cold War, colonial complicity, Finland, Pornographic magazines
in
Porn Studies
volume
4
issue
1
pages
35 - 49
publisher
Taylor & Francis
external identifiers
  • scopus:85012914933
ISSN
2326-8743
DOI
10.1080/23268743.2016.1273793
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
eefddbd1-67c1-4b7a-aeab-8d0cc639772b
date added to LUP
2017-02-27 11:59:39
date last changed
2022-02-14 17:38:02
@article{eefddbd1-67c1-4b7a-aeab-8d0cc639772b,
  abstract     = {{<p>During the 1970s, pornographic magazines that envisioned the Finnish man sovereignly enjoying sexual pleasures in Eastern Europe, the Soviet Union, the Middle East, and the Far East became extremely popular in Finland. In this article it is argued that pornographic magazines functioned as geographical as well as sexual maps; through the medium of magazines, Finnish readers were educated to think of themselves as privileged, ‘white’, ‘Western European’ men. The article addresses the topic of racial pornographies by drawing on the geopolitical conditions of the construction of Finnishness as western whiteness in the travel narratives of Kalle magazine between 1973 and 1977. In addition to racial differences, the article examines the Cold War conditions of the 1970s as a major contributor to the Nordic colonial mind, here referring to a generalized identification with colonial exploitation.</p>}},
  author       = {{Saarenmaa, Laura}},
  issn         = {{2326-8743}},
  keywords     = {{1970s; Cold War; colonial complicity; Finland; Pornographic magazines}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{35--49}},
  publisher    = {{Taylor & Francis}},
  series       = {{Porn Studies}},
  title        = {{Adventures of an export salesman : travel, race, and sex abroad in a 1970s Finnish pornographic magazine}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/23268743.2016.1273793}},
  doi          = {{10.1080/23268743.2016.1273793}},
  volume       = {{4}},
  year         = {{2017}},
}