Description: An examination of the landmark 1957 Supreme Court case Roth v. United States, which for the first time attempted to define what constitutes obscenity in American life and law. Explores this problematic ruling within the broad sweep of American social and legal history.
Brief description:
Whitney Strub is an assistant professor of history at Rutgers University in Newark and the author of Perversion for Profit: The Politics of Pornography and the Rise of the New Right.
Review Quotes:
"Strub elucidates the duplicity and paradoxes in attitudes toward sexuality in the United States by examining the ups and downs of related law. Highly recommended to those interested in free speech and obscenity, as well as to those interested in publishing, law, and culture, and the U.S. Supreme Court."--Library Journal
"Whitney Strub offers a valuable and insightful analysis of the Roth case and the evolution of American obscenity doctrine. It is thorough, written with his usual flair, and thoughtful. In sum, this is an impressive book that makes a significant contribution to the literature."--Journal of American Studies