Sex and the city: “Harlots” provides an engaging view of the sex trade in 18th-century London

[AdamSmith]

Finally! Return of a viewpoint explored by Louis Malle long ago in 'Pretty Baby', but precious few times since.

Sex and the city: “Harlots” provides an engaging view of the sex trade in 18th-century London

Hulu's tempting new drama views Georgian-era prostitution through the female gaze, and the result is fascinating

http://www.salon.com/2017/03/29/sex-and-the-city-harlots-provides-an-engaging-view-of-the-sex-trade-in-18th-century-london/

[Darkseraphim]

@AdamSmith : According to Salon "Margaret’s dilemma isn’t moral, mind you. There’s never a question of whether Lucy can escape a life of prostitution or even if she wants to. Her turn in the world’s oldest profession is all but inevitable and not uncommon in Georgian-era London, when one in five women made their living as prostitutes."  I ran across this 20% figure before in college while doing research or a paper and it seemed too outrageous for me to believe at the time.  However, it is now being used as a widely accepted number for London at that time.  I find it amazing how far we've come as a society and how quickly we forget where we've come from.

[AdamSmith]

8 hours ago, Darkseraphim said:

@AdamSmith : According to Salon "Margaret’s dilemma isn’t moral, mind you. There’s never a question of whether Lucy can escape a life of prostitution or even if she wants to. Her turn in the world’s oldest profession is all but inevitable and not uncommon in Georgian-era London, when one in five women made their living as prostitutes."  I ran across this 20% figure before in college while doing research or a paper and it seemed too outrageous for me to believe at the time.  However, it is now being used as a widely accepted number for London at that time.  I find it amazing how far we've come as a society and how quickly we forget where we've come from.

I don't know. That seems about right for any major world city even today. Certainly today in Manhattan, easily 20% of everybody is for sale sexually.

And gladly so, no under- or overlay of tragic desperation or any of the usual tropes that linger still from late Victorian times.

[Darkseraphim]

@AdamSmith : Do you really think the number is that high in modern Manhattan?  I thought maybe 5% would be more accurate for most industrialized economies; 20% sounds just right for Vegas though

I have never had a hard time finding suitable companionship in virtually any city I went to.  However, I'm just a middle class guy.  I assume that just as in the Victorian and Georgian times if you are making a C-Suite level of income a lot more opportunity opens up.  I have seen guys in Miami literally give girls $500 - $1000 at the clubs just to cut the crap and get straight to business.  I assume the same goes for the gay world where the power of mammon can overcome nearly all obstacles.  However, I think don't think 20% make their living from making their bodies available in most places.  Many of the guys I meet do it to because they love having sex and it's an easy way to supplement their incomes.  So I can agree with you that 10 -20% may be sexually available, if the price is right

 

[AdamSmith]

@Darkseraphim, here is a qualification that some may take as offensive, but in my experience (as a white middle-class male) is accurate, not only in NYC but also here in Raleigh, NC where I live now, and in many other cities: That 20% applies if you exclude the "Caucasian" population. Black and brown ethnicities today, judging by my firsthand experiences in Manhattan and also here in RDU, simply don't have the hangups. They are open (even historical black prejudice against same-sex doings have simply vanished over the past decade, with generational change) to it all.

White kids have undergone the same change. There simply appear to be fewer who need to do sex work for economic reasons, not moral disapprobrium.

[Darkseraphim]

@AdamSmith : Oh the dismal science!  Yes, I freely admit that people under more economic stress are more open to "socially unorthodox" means of supplementing their income.  It is just that in the states I have met very few guys that rely solely on escorting as their primary source of income.  Many more are definitely open to supplement their incomes but, in the industrialized economies few should need to subsist solely on work that is so unpredictable.  The only reason I keep pushing back is that 20% of the population relying solely on massages and partying as their primary source of income just seems too much!  I can definitely say 5% professionally and perhaps 10-15% casually.  Many of the guys also supplement their income providing party supplies in addition to occasional sexual services.  I do not think the professional market is that large in most industrialized cities however, the casual market is probably 3X the size of the professional market.  

 

P.S. judging by my screen name and image as well as the pics I post and the places I travel, I believe that you can safely guess what type of guys I have a taste for