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Is Anal Sex Hardcore?

The Challenge of Putting Porn Into Little Boxes

Soon after opening in 1997 we found that porn was the product customers came in with the most baggage around. Being the first feminist identified sex shop in Toronto that also carried a range of porn -- from soft to extremely hardcore -- we had a lot of people coming to us interested in giving porn another try, but turned off by previous experiences and not sure where to start.

As a result, porn has been the product line that demands the most reflection and work from our collective membership. We probably spend more time watching, thinking, and debating porn than anything else we carry. All that talk came in handy when, a few years back, we decided it was time to devise a classification system for customers.

Which brings me to anal sex. Anal sex proved to be the first stumbling block. In our first draft everyone involved in the process agreed that anal sex would be a distinguishing feature of the raunchier content we carry (closer to five flames than one). But some members challenged this. What was it, they asked, about anal sex that makes it inherently raunchy or hardcore? Should a sexual activity taken out of the context of erotic energy, people's bodies, and all the non-verbal communication that happens during sex, ever be classified as essentially "hard" or "soft"?

It was a good question, and one we got stuck on for some time. In the end we agreed that when it came to an individuals sex life this didn't make sense at all. But when it comes to porn we feel like it does.

Porn is a kind of fetishization of sexual activity. With few exceptions, porn isn't about the subjective experience of the actors (one notable exception would Tony Comstock's films). So it makes sense in this context to identify porn both as it's produced, but also along the lines that customers most often ask for (and anal sex vs. no anal sex is a common request).

In the end we decided to make our rankings reflect both sexual activities and sexual energy in a film. Like everything at a worker co-operative, we consider our porn nosology a work in progress. Have a look and if you've got comments, suggestions, or controversies you'd like to suggest, let us know!

	Light and Breezy. Titles may titillate but keep the action relatively clean. No anal, no genital close ups, no external ejaculation.
	Penultimate Porn. Scenes feature light-hearted sex, actors understanding and responding to their partner's desires. Some external ejaculations, occasional anal sex, threesomes, and girl-on-girl.
	The Mid Point. Scenes feature light-hearted sex, actors understanding and responding to their partner's desires. Some external ejaculations, occasional anal sex, threesomes, and girl-on-girl.
	More Bang for the Buck. Sex that's raunchy and to the point. Expect multiple scenes involving anal sex, group sex, some power play, zoomed-in shots, and facial ejaculations.
	Hard as We Want to Be. The most explicit content we carry. Titles may feature power play and/or rough sex, multiple anal scenes, double penetrations and dirty talk.