Glossary
Article 175
The Penal Code article most often cited in debates about obscenity and sexual expression in Japan.
What it means
Article 175 is the legal horizon behind mosaic conventions, bookstore seizures, and free-speech arguments. Cultural writing invokes it as a keyword even when no prosecution is underway.
History / origin
Modern obscenity enforcement history runs through literature, photography, and film cases that shaped what industries dared to show. AV inherited that climate.
How the term is used in Japan
Journalists and activists say Article 175 as shorthand. Ordinary viewers may only know the mosaic result, not the statute number.
Common misunderstandings
- Article 175 is not the Anti-Prostitution Law.
- Citing the article is not a verdict on any specific title.
- This glossary entry is civic vocabulary, not counsel on illegal publishing.