Prostitution

Why This Topic?

I don't use prostitutes. Yet, I find it a fascinating topic. I have been wondering why I am so interested. I have finally come up with these reasons:

I have an incurable admiration for sexually liberated women.
Prostitutes typically fit that description. If they were not comfortable with sex, it would be highly unlikely that they would try to turn it into a profession.
The concept makes sense. I look around, and I see many people craving good sex.
In these times of rampant hypocrisy, there is something refreshing, genuine, almost admirable about a prostitute.
A prostitute is the antithesis of a hypocrite. A prostitute make no claims of being morally right. But what you see is what you get. Sometimes, the customers are the hypocrites. And quite often, people in power who are prosecuting prostitutes, are hypocrites.
Prostitution, at least at the upper end of the scale, is about glamour. In some forms, it is only a step away from modeling. I believe it is Gucci, who ran ads in "Elle", showing prostitutes walking the streets. Glamour is fascinating.
Prostitution is as old as the world. Yet, these days, it is suddenly an idea whose time has come again.

A Few Thoughts

In its most basic form, prostitution is nothing but a contract between consenting people. A contract to provide sex in exchange for payment.

Since sex is not inherently immoral, and neither is the exchange of money, prostitution is not inherently immoral.

It has been said that prostitution is as old as the world. It has also been said that prostitution occurs between animals; it has been observed amongst chimpanzees and penguins.

Some marriages involve a situation where one party provides most of the money, and the other party is expected to consent to sex. In some cases, very little sex is exchanged for access to a lot of money.

Divorce is not illegal. But in many cases, divorce is immoral.

In some marriages, the use of prostitutes by one of the spouses, is tolerated by the other spouse. The prostitute provides a function one of the spouses is not willing to provide. The prostitute is not much different from the maid.

This used to be quite common in the upper classes of more traditional societies, like traditional Europe, England, South-America and even the American South. In all cases, respectable women were not encouraged to be too expert or knowledgeable about sex. It was widely considered more convenient if husbands who could afford it, went looking for it somewhere else.

The Need

Prostitution does fulfill an identifiable societal function. In some cases, it can be a substitute for psychological or marriage counseling. It might even prevent divorce. Although usually an imperfect solution, it can be a cost- effective one. Shrinks are expensive. So are lawyers and settlements.

Prostitution provides a safety valve against frustration, especially for people who are not attractive or have few social skills. Also in couples that have very different sex drives and might otherwise be headed for affairs or divorce.

Prostitution tends to be prevalent in societies where sex is repressed. It was quite popular in Victorian England.

Closer to home, in a society where sexual advances can carry very negative legal consequences, in a society where an exposed marital infidelity can destroy a career, prostitution should be expected to become an alternative of choice.

The fact that prostitution is illegal, may sometimes encourage it. It guarantees a measure of anonymity and silence, which may not otherwise be feasible.

Oversexed Males and Undersexed Females

In most cases, prostitutes tend to be women, while clients tend to be men. This may be partially due to the fact that men may have easier access to money. But it probably also means that in this society, there is a deficit of sexually available females with respect to sexually needy males.

Changing Perceptions

It used to be that prostitution was for losers. For those men who could not find a woman in any other way. Using a prostitute was something nobody would normally admit to.

That perception is changing. I was at a party the other day, with some very promising young lawyers (as well as a number of attractive women). One lawyer was talking to the other: "Hey, let's go to Vancouver next weekend, and see some girls..."

Why Illegal?

The justification for making prostitution illegal, usually has to do with the protection of women, and the control of sexually transmitted diseases. That could make sense if as a result of the law, prostitution completely ceased to exist.

In practice however, the fact that prostitution is illegal, normally results in the exploitation or abuse of prostitutes, and does contribute to the spread of sexually transmitted diseases.

Illegal prostitutes may be the target of violence or rape, and will be hesitant to contact the police. Or else, they may simply disappear, and nobody may ever know.

Similarly, by driving prostitution underground, the law effectively makes it impossible to maintain any form of sanitary control. Of course, street prostitution is the worst, since it often occurs indiscriminately, at night and in a rush.

More recently, legal scholars have opined that Roe v. Wade may legalize prostitution. If a woman has a constitutional right to decide whether or not to keep a pregnancy, why would she not have a right to use her body as she sees fit, including the right to offer it for sale (maybe "rent" would be a more appropriate term)?

Punishing the prostitute rather than the client makes very little rational sense, if the stated goal of the law was to protect the prostitute in the first place.

Insecurity

A more plausible explanation as to why society seems so bent on outlawing prostitution, is that "legitimate" sex partners or spouses may feel threatened by prostitution. Outlawing prostitution is a way for society to deal with sexual insecurity.

Another explanation may be the "puritan" theory. The fact that some people just cannot stand the fact that others have more fun than they do.

Of course, it is also well known that street prostitution is always pursued more aggressively by law enforcement. Apparently, that has to do with a true or imagined perception that prostitution decreases property values.

Economic Necessity

Some prostitutes do what they do as a way to make money on the side. It is not totally uncommon for highly attractive female college students to be in this business a few hours a week. They typically can afford to be very selective, and charge high prices. Besides for school, the money may be used for trips to Europe and other extra's.

More tragic are the women in low income situations, doing it out of pure economic necessity. Sometimes they are single mothers, who simply have not been able to find any other way to make it. Effectively, many of those women are risking their health and their lives.

This happens in a lot of places, from Cuba to India to Russia to Guatemala. But it has also been very clearly documented in many cities around the US.

These are extremely unfortunate situations. Even police officers are heartbroken when they see it. It is a situation that should make people think about policies in terms of criminalization, and about our welfare system.

Prostitution and the Bible

I would not go as far as saying that the Bible permits prostitution. But I would venture to say that the Bible is not very strongly against it. There are several instances where Jesus interacts with, and even defends prostitutes (typically called adulterous women).

Jesus saved a prostitute who was about to be stoned. He defied the Pharisees ("When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.") and sent her off with a slap on the wrist. ("Go and sin no more.") I would not be too wrong by saying that Jesus had more sympathy for her than for the Pharisees.

Jesus may actually have intended to promote respect for a class of people that is essentially dedicated to serving, and gets nothing but disdain in return.

Links

A great discussion of prostitution in the Byzantine Holy land: DAUPHIN: Brothels and Babes

A discussion of policy implications of prostitution in Canada. Although not specifically about the US, some of the material is quite applicable: Prostitution in Canada

Enrico, 12/27/98, 02/22/01

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