It was supposedly George Bernard Shaw who said that America and the UK were ‘two nations, separated by a common language.’ Whoever it was, they had a point. As an author who sells far more books in the USA than the UK, I am always careful to get my work read by some American friends to avoid bafflement or sometimes unintentional hilarity.
But there are other differences too; some of which puzzle me. The same undoubtedly happens the other way around. As I’m a writer of romance and erotica, I’d like to talk about a few related to the area of sex.
I have read erotica for many years, and watched my fair share of porn as well, and there are some striking differences between Europe and America. Obviously, there is a lot of generalising here, but these are a few of the things I’ve noticed, looking across the Atlantic.
Step relationships.
There is a plethora of books and porn dedicated to step parents, step siblings and every other step relation. It isn’t a big thing in Europe and I’ve always been puzzled by it. Is it the taboo element? Is it the age difference? Is it code for incest?
Interracial sex.
Again, it seems to be a massive sub-genre. You do see it quite often in European porn and in erotica, but it is rarely highlighted or regarded as special (and no, I’m not saying we don’t have a racist problem over here). But in the US, there are whole labels and studios who produce nothing but interracial films, and whole sections on Amazon. What is the attraction?
Underwear and lingerie.
As someone with a passion for lingerie, the differences here can be quite striking, and have nearly caught me out on a few occasions. I cannot bring myself to use the word ‘panties’, even though it seems to be the default in the States. But to a reader in the UK, it triggers a snigger, as it has a childish, almost prudish sound to us.
Other words have different interpretations, too. Stockings are a good example. To a European, they are made of silk or nylon, and upper-thigh length. They are either hold-ups or attached to suspenders. It seems the definition in the US is somewhat broader. They can be made of cotton or wool and almost any length; from knee to crotch. I sometimes wonder what American readers visualise when I describe what one of my characters is wearing!
As for knee highs … To the European mind, they’re practical – for wearing below a long dress or skirt – or for school-children. Thinking of them as sexy can be problematic!
Cuckold.
Another category that is a bit of a mystery to us. It seems that the general intention is to belittle the cuckold; to show him that another man is needed to satisfy his partner as he’ll never be able to. In European porn and erotica, the opposite is nearly always the case. The husband is confident enough to bring another man into the scene to allow her to satisfy her fantasies; to give her double the fun.
These are by no means the only differences, but they come to mind as I write. All these things are trivial in a way, and there are no rights and wrongs. I wonder if my American readers have noticed differences looking the other way across the Atlantic. We all do the same things; it’s just that some of us do slightly different things, as well. Vive la difference!
