History
Anthropologists have learned that in even the most primitive societies there was usually one woman that lived on the boundaries of the village that traded sex for material compensation. Prostitution (sex work) has been well documented in ancient history and has been thought to have financed many artistic endeavors from Egyptian Pyramids, operas and ballets. (Ditmore 2006 pg. xxvi). The classifications of sex work in ancient Greece has been that of a cultural treasure “the hetaerae: in ancient Greece and the Japanese “geisha” have been considered positions of honor in these societies due to extensive training in the arts, music, and dance. There was an emotional labor that went along with these positions, that I will talk more in-depth
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The outright condemnation of prostitution came in the 16th century with the Renaissance and the Protestant Reformation. With these new reforms a new moral compass began to point at prostitution and the wickedness of women, and society began to panic. This new morality was then used to restrict the autonomy of women. The attempts to stop prostitution or regulate prostitution has basically punished the working class and poor women, for behavior that would be innocent when engaged in by others (Ditmore 2006 pg.xxvii). Meanwhile in America in 1721 the French sent sex workers from prisons to the Louisiana territories in hopes that they would marry the 700 French men settled. These women upon arriving in the colonies realized the sex trade provided them with more independence than any arranged marriage could (Grant 2013 pg.3). As we moved into the 20th century, social reforms started to kick in and these new social reformers took up the cause of ending prostitution reframing it as a social disease. With the efforts of prohibition and abolition this social disease could be cured. This is when anti prostitution policing and social campaigns were stepped up (Grant …show more content…
In doing so we will look at sex work from a cultural perspective. First, we must recognize that culture is a set of experiences, social institution and achievements that are shared by a people, or social group. We will look insider the world of sex workers through the eyes of those that work in the sex fields (Huber 2009). At the beginning of my paper I posted a quote by Maggie McNeil, which is an advocate for sex workers around the world, before that she was a librarian, writer and prostitute. McNeil who feels that societies hang ups about sex and relationships makes society despise the sex worker. McNeil states in an interview “somehow, neither my mother nor the nuns who taught me ever managed to instill in this little Catholic girl any sense that sex is dirty, bad, wrong or otherwise distasteful, and without that unhealthy concept imbedded in one’s psyche prostitution is no different from any other service one might perform for hire” (McNeil 2016).Sexual Attitudes in society are based on what each society deems as normal. Many societies have different attitudes about sex and sexuality. Sociologists have learned that each societies conception of sexual behavior is based on their values and norms. Societal perceptions of sex, sexuality, and sex work has been changing over time, until recently sex work has not been a prominent public issue in the United States. The law and public
The 1990 romantic comedy, Pretty Woman, is a popular film that represents several aspects of feminism through the character of Vivian Ward, a prostitute who experiences a change in social class when she meets corporate businessman, Edward Lewis. The film demonstrates society's placement of sex workers and the inequalities they face in everyday life due to the stigma and generalizations of the whole sex industry. I argue that the film Pretty Woman addresses the issues in society of the marginalization of sex workers and the high stigmatization that is associated with acts of sex work. In addition, through the character of Vivian, it is emphasized that sex workers have agency and empowerment of their own desires. I believe Vivian’s strong sense
This paper will discuss the well published work of, Pomeroy, Sarah B. Goddesses, Whores, Wives, and Slaves: Women in Classical Antiquity. New York: Schocken, 1975. Print. Sarah B. Pomerory uses this book to educate others about the role women have played throughout ancient history. Pomerory uses a timeline to go through each role, starting with mythological women, who were called Goddesses. She then talks about some common roles, the whores, wives, and slaves during this time. Pomerory enlightens the audience on the topic of women, who were seen as nothing at the time. Men were seen as the only crucial part in history; however, Pomerory’s focus on women portrays the era in a new light.
Through all this it is obvious that the homosexual acts were a common feature of Ancient Greek society. That is, it is a common feature among men in ancient Greece. So there stands the question of what were the actions of women when their men were away seeking out young men and boys in bath houses or actually committing these homosexual activities? A look into this takes the use of Feminist Anthropology, which strives to understand the female position and power in society, in conjunction with archaeology and the synchronistic approach to truly understand the full dynamic of homosexuality in Greece (Walter, “Feminist Anthropology?”).
Dating back to ancient times, the role of women has never reached true equality with men. We can trace this inequality back to as early as the great Athenian society, where life as we know it today started taking form. On the other side of the inequality, throughout the ancient history of the world, the roles and positions that women have had have improved over time. We can see this tracing time from Athens, to Sparta, the Roman Republic, it's Empire and the rise of Christianity. Although some of theses societies lived parallel in time, each one shows a difference in the way they treat women. Each one did not treat women the same, but the end result compared to the beginning is positive for women.
Modern sensibilities cause us to assume that brothels and prostitution were underground operations. However, there is evidence in Martial 7.61 that Emperor Caligula enforced a tax on prostitution, “which was pitched at a high rate and enforced with great vigour, in many places collected by the military” (McGinn, 18). Additionally, there seems to have been a relationship between politicians and places where sex may have been sold-- “the dice throwers ask for Cn. Helvius Sabinus” (CIL IV 3435). It has been suggested that in the Roman world, prostitution was seen almost as a necessary evil off of which money was to be made. In fact, one of the first recorded negative opinions was that of Cyprian, Bishop of Carthage, in the third century CE, where he says, “...having entered the brothel, the location of the sewer and the slimy black hole of the rabble, he has befouled his own sanctified body, God’s temple, with hateful filth…” (Ep. 55.26 [CCSL 3.1.289]). This suggests, but does not by any means confirm, that the thought of prostitution as a terrible practice was not introduced until the Christian era, and was therefore not prevalent at
The social, physical, and mental expectations of women were very high and very strict. Women were to be married young and as virgins to their much older husbands (pg. 28). They were also expected to produce children, specifically sons, and were not allowed access to the legal system in most areas of Greece (Ian and Powell, 28-34). They could not be and were not seen as individuals outside of their homes, and ancient Greek texts held a mostly misogynous view of women during that time (Ian and Powell, 28-32). Hesiod, a famous Greek poet, even goes on to say that women were sent by Zeus as punishment to mortal men and that they are the epitome of deceit and lust (Ian and Powell 29-32). Also, women were confined to sex within their marriage, while men had the choice of seeking extramarital affairs with prostitutes or slaves that they acquired (Ian and Powell, 35). Overall the lives of the women of ancient Greece were far from glamorous, and there was not much of a difference in the treatment of women concerning their social class. The well off house wife was maybe a step or two above the “lowly” prostitute, and that was most likely due to the fact that a well off woman might have been able to receive an education because of her family’s status. Whatever the circumstances were however, it appears that women had no place or value in ancient Greece other than to have children and
Frances, S. (2012). Sex work and the law: A critical analysis of four policy approaches to adult prostitution . Thinking about justice: a book of readings (pp. 190-220). Halifax, N.S.: Fernwood Pub..
In some form or other, prostitution has been recognized throughout history and all over the world. There has been alternating phases of repression and toleration of prostitution. Official Christian morality has always opposed prostitution, but in big cities prostitution has been rather open and tolerated in Christian societies until the sixteenth century when venereal disease became a major public problem. At that time public authorities began denouncing prostitution and took severe measures to eliminate it. By the nineteenth century, official enforcement of rules against prostitution had become lax in the U.S. and England; while in nations such as France had rather wide open houses of prostitution in major cities. The U.S. launched a campaign to suppress prostitution. Industrialization and mass communication seem to have been associated with increased repression of deviance in general and sexual deviance in particular.
“There is no difference in work in which a women sells her hands, such as a typist, and a work in which a women sells her vagina, as in sex work.” Claims author Lacy Sloan. In today’s society, many people believe that prostitution is an immoral act. It is the world’s oldest profession and because it has been long condemned, sex workers are stigmatized from mainstream society (ProQuest Staff). However, the act of purchasing sex between consenting adults should not be prohibited by the government, but regulated for society's overall best interests. Prostitution is illegal and as a consequence prostitutes are often victims of violence and sexual assault; therefore, prostitution should be legalized and regulated to ensure the safety of sex workers.
Previously, the earliest ancient female sex workers, we call them as prostitutes, which is involved who sell the talent, do not sell the body or sell the body in nature, such as providing companionship services, allow guests touch the body or sex with the guest.
In Ancient Greek civilization, being a rich man would be the position that offered the most opportunities. This was a vast contrast compared to the opportunities presented to an Ancient Greek woman. But even for the richest women, becoming a priestess at a well-known temple would be considered the highest position offered to them. Despite this, becoming a priestess or taking any role in Greek ritual would mean a tremendous amount of faith on the part of the aspiring woman.
Sanders, Teela, Maggie O’Neil, and Jane Pitcher. Prostitution: Sex Work, Policy, and Politics. London: SAGE, 2009. eBook Collection. Web. 17 Oct. 2015.
The norm of prostitution, or rather, its lack of normalization, is problematic. Prostitution has been deemed as an unacceptable career for women, therefore, it is typically shunned from ever becoming customary. As the oldest ongoing profession in the world, one would think that prostitution will be close to being acceptable, just how homosexuality and marijuana is today. Yet, prostitution is far from being a norm of society, and the “whore stigma” remains attached. By analyzing statistics and testimonies of sex workers, the evidence ties back to the effect that the whore stigma has upon the industry.
Since prostitution has been around there have been labels and stigmas behind the workers, their morals and the job itself. Leaving these men and women to be rejected rights, health care, insurance, etc. Weitzer observes, “[i]nstead of viewing themselves as ‘prostituted,’ they may embrace more neutral work identities, such as ‘working women’ or ‘sex workers’ […] These workers are invisible in the discourse of the anti-prostitution crusade precisely because their accounts clash with abolitionist goals.” Weitzer is hinting at the fact that these women and men see themselves as workers too, deserving of workers rights and protection, just as you and I would expect. But they are declined help and benefits because of the stigma following their line of work, based on societal values.
Can you imagine having a job where people are constantly discriminating against you because of your occupation and having justify yourself to people that the labor is not who are you rather what you do (Bruckert & Parent , p. 71). Sex work is one of the most interesting occupation because of the skills and challenges in the industry. With this in mind, sex work is seen as a unique job because of the amount opportunities that it can provide can cause great influence in some individual’s life or even some economics. Yet, it is also seen as one of the most exploited occupations in our society. Sex work is the only form of labor that is the most criminalized, sensationalized and stigmatized by everyone from some feminist groups and law enforcements.