Pornography and Transnationality

The Case of Hälle, Sweden in the 1970s

Abstract

This article addresses border crossings in the 1970s related to sexual commerce, in particular in the small community of Hälle, located near the Sweden–Norway border at Svinesund and European route E6. As the legal situation with regard to pornography differed in Norway and Sweden, Swedish legislation being more liberal, Norwegians travelled to Sweden to both buy and to consume on-site sexually explicit material and entertainment. By choosing this perspective, the article shifts focus away from the sexually explicit material itself, towards the spaces in which it can be found, and reflects upon consumption of such material as a literally transgressive, non-normative sexual behavior.