Traditional Japanese religions do not consider sex or pornography a moral corruption in the sense of most Abrahamic faiths, and until the changing morals of the Meiji era led to its suppression, shunga erotic prints were a major genre. While the Tokugawa regime subjected Japan to strict censorship laws, pornography was not considered an important offence and generally met with the censors' approval. Many of these prints displayed a high level a draughtsmanship, and often humour, in their explicit depictions of bedroom scenes, voyeurs, and oversized anatomy. As with depictions of courtesans, these images were closely tied to entertainments of the pleasure quarters. Nearly every ukiyo-e master produced shunga at some point. Records of societal acceptance of shunga are absent, though Timon Screech posits that there were almost certainly some concerns over the matter, and that its level of acceptability has been exaggerated by later collectors, especially in the West.
Traditional Japanese religions do not consider sex or pornography a moral corruption in the sense of most Abrahamic faiths and until the changing morals of the Meiji era led to its suppression shunga erotic prints were a major genre While the Tokugawa regime subjected Japan to strict censorship laws pornography was not considered an important offence and generally met with the censors' approval Many of these prints displayed a high level a draughtsmanship and often humour in their explicit depictions of bedroom scenes voyeurs and oversized anatomy As with depictions of courtesans these images were closely tied to entertainments of the pleasure quarters Nearly every ukiyo-e master produced shunga at some point Records of societal acceptance of shunga are absent though Timon Screech posits that there were almost certainly some concerns over the matter and that its level of acceptability has been exaggerated by later collectors especially in the West