Subtitle/Alternate Title

How OnlyFans and Pornography Have Influenced Perceptions of Women and Sex

First Advisor

Ian Zuckerman

Second Advisor

Russell Arnold

Thesis Committee Member(s)

Lara Narcisi and Amy Schreier

College

Regis College

Degree Name

BA

Document Type

Thesis - Open Access

Number of Pages

58 pages

Abstract

Debates surrounding sex work are nothing new. Decades have been spent arguing that it’s misogynistic, liberating, exploitative, none of your business. There is a distinct shift in the field, though, one that warrants new analysis. The technological advancements of the past decade have resulted in a significant development: OnlyFans. This website combines certain aspects of in person sex work with pornography, and adds in new layers of parasocial connection. In order to understand both the issues with this mode of sex work and its implications, I employ a Marxist analysis of labor to understand commodification and wage slavery. Additionally, I refer to the anti-sex work feminism of the second wave as well contemporary feminism’s acceptance of body commodification in this manner. I maintain that, even though it is new and changed, OnlyFans is still prone to many of the previous criticisms of sex work as well as newer critiques. The harm that porn and websites like OnlyFans inflicts on the perception of women, their roles in society, and their physical safety cannot be understated.

Date of Award

Spring 2024

Location (Creation)

Denver, Colo.

Rights Statement

All content in this Collection is owned by and subject to the exclusive control of Regis University and the authors of the materials. It is available only for research purposes and may not be used in violation of copyright laws or for unlawful purposes. The materials may not be downloaded in whole or in part without permission of the copyright holder or as otherwise authorized in the “fair use” standards of the U.S. copyright laws and regulations.

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