Intro -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction to the 2007 Edition -- Introduction -- From Plato to Computers -- Clarifications and Caveats -- Chapter 1: "To Deprave and Corrupt -- Minors, Censorship, Sex, and History -- The Invention of Childhood? -- Protecting the Young and Immature -- Free Love, the Comstock Law, and "Secret Entertainment -- Some Judges Start Asking Questions -- Chapter 2: More Emetic Than Aphrodisiac -- Freud, the First Amendment, and a First Round with Ulysses -- Minors and Obscenity in the '30s and '40s -- Juvenile Delinquency, Social Science, Comic Books, and Professor Kinsey -- Intellectual Ramblings -- Chapter 3: The Great and Mysterious Motive Force in Human Life -- The Supreme Court Speaks- Finally -- Protecting Young Psyches After Butler and Roth -- Buttons, Armbands, The Little Red School Book, and Rupert Bear -- Justice Brennan Changes His Mind -- Chapter 4: Policing The Airwaves -- Contents -- Oral Sex, and "the Public Convenience, Interest, or Necessity -- Jerry Garcia and a Definition for Indecency -- Shielding Young Ears from the Seven Dirty Words -- Pacifica in the Supreme Court -- Chapter 5: The Reign Of Decency -- Youth and Censorship: A Road Map -- The FCC, the Meese Commission, and Art About AIDS -- Act I, the Irrepressible Mr. Stern, and Perhaps Molly Brown -- Sealed Wrappers, Blinder Racks, and Dial-a-Porn -- A Few Judges Think About Indecency and Harm -- School Censorship, Heinous Crimes, and Violent Videos -- Chapter 6: The Educational Minefield: Sexuality and Education -- Modesty, Virtue, and Early Battles over Sex Ed -- Teen Pregnancy and Sex Respect -- Abstinence Unless Married -- Models of Sexuality Education -- Chapter 7: Indecency Law on Trial: Reno V. ACLU -- Panic over Cyberspace -- The Wired Courtroom -- A Never-Ending Worldwide Conversation -- Chapter 8: Filtering Fever.

The Politics of Filtering- Blocking Sex, Vulgarity, and Dr. Seuss -- State Laws, Loudoun County, and Reno II -- Heavy Breathing: The "Harry Met Sally" Case -- V-Chips, and Ratings Revisited -- Violence, Curse Words, and Kids at Century's End -- Chapter 9: Cultural Differences -- Minors in the Global Culture -- Video Nasties and the Venerable BBFC -- The French Letter and Internet Watch -- The European Union Weighs In -- Les Dangers Ubuesques du Filtrage -- Chapter 10: Media Effects -- Imitation and Catharsis -- Disproving Aristotle -- Definitional Dillemmas -- Sex, Violence, and Social Science -- Kids, Ambiguity, and the Social Cognition Approach -- Conclusion: "The Ethical and Moral Development of Youth -- Notes -- Index.

In Not in Front of the Children, Marjorie Heins explores the fascinating history of "indecency" laws and other restrictions aimed at protecting youth. From Plato's argument for rigid censorship, through Victorian laws aimed at repressing libidinous thoughts, to contemporary battles over sex education in public schools and violence in the media, Heins guides us through what became, and remains, an ideological minefield. With fascinating examples drawn from around the globe, she suggests that the "harm to minors" argument rests on shaky foundations.

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Electronic reproduction. Ann Arbor, Michigan : ProQuest Ebook Central, 2018. Available via World Wide Web. Access may be limited to ProQuest Ebook Central affiliated libraries.