November 7, 2011
John Cleland’s Memoir of a Woman of Pleasure v. Attorney General of Massachusetts (1966)
Posted by sswanso under Case Briefs1 Comment
Link: http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/html/historics/USSC_CR_0383_0413_ZO.html
1. Facts of case: John Cleland wrote a novel called Memoirs of a Woman of Pleasure also known as Fanny Hill. In the novel, main character Fanny Hill is a prostitute, which means she has sex in exchange for money. The reading includes several descriptions of sex and as a result some readers are offended. Many years later G.P. Putman’s sons published Fanny Hill. At the time the state of Massachusetts had a strict law that said the state could file a lawsuit against any book that was found obscene and if found obscene the book would have to end publishing. Massachusetts attorney General Cowin filed a lawsuit against Fanny Hill. Soon after G.P.’s sons join the case to defend the books further publishing. During the trial there was a mixture of opinion, while a large number of scholars including professors and teachers speak in favor of the book. However, the trial judge ruled the book obscene, which then G.P.’s sons appealed to Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts and eventually the Supreme Court.
2. The issue here, was the novel Fanny Hill obscene or was it just an art expression protected by the first amendment.
3. The decision here was 6-3 in favor of the book, while there were six that agreed the book was not obscene. They had trouble agreeing on a reason.
4. In short the Supreme Court ruled in favor of the book because the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts admitted the book had literacy value. Further stating that the court misinterpreted social value, as it is stated in the constitution.
The following was misinterpreted:
a)The dominant theme of the material taken as a whole appeals to a prurient interest in sex.
b)The material is patently offensive because it affronts contemporary community standards relating to the description or representation of sexual matters.
c)The material is utterly without redeeming social value.
5. Questions to consider…
1.What is the significance in this case?
2.How has legal precedent changed since this case was decided?
3.How would this case be ruled in 2011?
One thought on “John Cleland’s Memoir of a Woman of Pleasure v. Attorney General of Massachusetts (1966)”
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
November 9th, 2011 at 10:41 pm
I think we have seen such a shift in the overall moral compass of the country. Whether you agree with the shift to allow more explicit, vulgar, lewd material or not it can clearly be seen when you turn on a TV. I think that what you can now say and do on cable and even the broadcast channels is very different from what the norm was 40 years ago. With that said, I do not think this case of the book about Fanny Hill the prostitute would make it to such a high court because people would not have a problem with it.
Parents should be in charge of what material their child is taking in. I feel that government should not censor books because it contains material that parents do not want their kids to see. If the book has literary importance or value, then the book should not be banned even if it makes a group of people uncomfortable. They can just not buy the book and would never have to deal with the material. I think that the courts should allow people to regulate themselves and people to regulate their children, rather than making laws about censoring material. I feel that once the court begins to determine which material is obscene or indecent then a gray area will be created which will limit the artistic expression that people have (authors in this case).
I think that the impact of this case is a very positive one to protect first amendment rights of the individual and the freedom to write or talk about anything in this country as long as it has some value literarily, scientifically, artistically or politically.