becomes Gareth’s employee and accountantnin the sex-magazine empire.nMoney is another element in the mystiquenof control and dominance thatnpervades the world of the pornographer.nThe gushing blurb-writer of Robbins’nnovel tells us that Gareth lives in “a worldnof total pleasure and hedonism, in whichnmoney and sex are almost indistinguishable;na world that includes drugs, far-outnsex and violence; a world so rich it isnalmost out of Gareth’s control.” This isnthe world Robbins inhabits, and henclumsily proselytizes for it in his books.nImages of bondage, torture and forcednsex continually recur in Dreams Die First.nThe heroes are as violent and coercivenas the villains in such a world.nThe pleasure that such a book asks usnto partake of is not the release of sexualitynbut the tight control exercised by thensadist. Every pornographic book mustnremind us of the link between pornographynand murder in the Nazi deathncamps. For pornography strips not onlynits characters but also its readers. Byndenying the worth of others, it underminesnthe historic religious and moralnprohibitions against murder. The dangernof pornography lies not so much in itsnsexual explicitness as in its underlyingnphilosophy: that other human beingsnexist essentially for (and at) our pleasure.nOf course when the pornographer andnhis lawyer arrive in court they are wearingnthe First Amendment. And they recitenad nauseam our contemporary versionnof the Golden Rule: “Anyone canndo anything they (sic) want, as long asnthey don’t hurt anyone else.” But, ofncourse, it is precisely this responsibilitynto respect the human weight and dignitynof others that pornography in its enactmentsndenies.nThe publisher who personally, ornthrough his minions, arranges men andnwomen in degrading positions—violatesnthem sexually, as they said in an earliernage—is engaging in both a commercialntransaction and an act of violence. Sondoes a photographer and a filmmaker.ni^or the first time in my life, let menagree with Gloria Steinem. When askednto sign a letter in support of Larry Flynt,nshe angrily commented that he shouldnbe put in jail for encouraging crimesnagainst women. Of course, Mr. Flynt,nthe born-again pornographer, is the verynmodel of contemporary trendiness, atnonce a martyr, a Jesus Freak and a sexnmerchant. So he knows enough to mouthnthe conventional platitudes aboutnwomen’s rights.nBut in showing women (and men, fornthat matter) as contemptible beings he isnremoving—like Robbins—the rationalenbehind civilized treatment of humannbeings. In the world of Hustler and ofnDreams Die First, the First AmendmentnNumber One GarbagenSidney Sheldon: Bloodline; WilliamnMorrow & Co.; New York.nby Joan SurreynJ_,ibrarians are committed to obtainingnfor patrons what they want even ifnthey don’t agree with their taste. This isnwhy librarians are perennially confrontednwith the puzzle: from whatnsprings the public’s obvious dedicationnto keeping abreast of the Best Seller List.’nIs it a remnant of the adolescent’s automaticnresponse to peer pressure thatnkeeps so many reading the same things.”nDo they do it because they haven’t enoughninformation to make an independentnjudgment or because they mistrust theirnown judgment.”nA writeup of Bloodline, which madenits harshest criticism of the abundancenof cliches, did not adequately conveynreasons for not reading this novel. Wenall know that there is definite provisionnin the cyclical, anti-machine nature ofnman for nonsense and fun—fantasy,nwhimsy, and banality. But conning peopleninto callousness about inflicting mentalnhurt and physical harm on their fellowsnin the name of current fashion or falsenMrs. Surrey is Public Services Librariannat Rockford College,nnnmeans little more than the right to utternlewd remarks. Now we have reached thenstate where “kiddie porn” merchantsnargue their inalienable right to distributenmaterial showing six year-oldsnbeing sexually abused by geriatric lechers.nAnd a society that cannot protect itsnchildren should exercise its free speechnin asking forgiveness.nWB . Yeats was a man who knew muchnabout the capacity for violence that isnalways ready to erupt in man. He saidnthat civilization is a great struggle tonkeep self-control. At present, we arenlosing that struggle. Dnrebellions against misunderstood earliernvalues—that’s another story. Rubbing ournpsyches in the worst that is possible untilnour sleep is uneasy and we move inndulling clouds of suspicion is utilizingnour leisure to further erode our hardwonnperspective about what we have andnare vs. what we want and should be.nIf only criminal and unnatural actsncontain enough excitement to interestnus nowadays, then we had better notnexpect much from the future. It will takenmonths for one’s conscious and subconsciousnto submerge some of the sordidnIn .April. iy~S—9 wivksoii the-AV/’nSill- Ynrl.- iiiins liintk Kcr/cir McMn.Scilors list.nmental images conjured up by Bloodline.nThis, however, seems to be Mr. Sheldon’snliterary ambition.nWhen a work of fiction climbs to firstnplace on the New York Times list of bestnsellers in just six weeks, you can bet itncontains lots of explicit sex and suspense.nSidney Sheldon specializes in and hasnbeen striking it rich with both. This latestnbook is based loosely on a ChristinanOnassis-like heiress who takes over hernfather’s international pharmaceuticalnempire after his death in a mountainnclimbing accident.n11nChronicles of Cttlturen