Wednesday, November 25, 2009

CAN PROSTITUTION BE MORAL?

How would you describe the stereotypical prostitute?  


Can prostitution be moral?


These are questions that have arisen because a blogger who wrote up her life of prostitution has either been unmasked or unmasked herself.  There has been reaction which, at the lower end you could describe as surprise, at the upper end, shock, horror!  The levels of reaction stem from the publicity about the woman, who she is and what she does.


Am I unusual in my reaction, I wonder; I am not even mildly phased by any of the revelations. There is nothing really new, except that a new media has been involved in the circulation of the story; blogging.  It has broadened out the sum total of the audience who have now had their curiosity sated.  Even more media have taken up the story, generating further discussion and awareness of the milieu that has been exposed.

10 comments:

TG said...

I didn't hear about the particular story you mention above, but I must say the topic would bore me... What can be revealed that we already haven't heard in the past? I wonder... for me it's not such an interesting topic.

ZACL said...

I understand your view MKL but what about the two questions posed?

The story has received attention in the UK because the person concerned has paid her way through higher education on her earnings, (not the first to do so) and has obtained a Phd. Others have not been so public about it. I hear also, that this person's earning potential has, or is, paying for her children's education. I cannot verify the latter point as the discussions that I have heard emanating from the disclosures, have considered other aspects of prostitution...hence my two questions at the start of my post.

Vincent said...

Can prostitution be moral? - It is whatever it has always been.

Am I unusual in my reaction? - No.

I would like to have said that the lady's life was no one else's business, but for the fact that she has blogged her way into the public domain, and accidentally (or not!) been identified in her real name.

So I don't know what to think. No one has yet persuaded me why I should be remotely interested.

ZACL said...

In general, your response mirrors my feelings about this current exposée. A discussion with a male friend this afternoon, generation a wider range of thinking, but neither of us felt particularly emotive about the issue.

Sure, we would have been concerned about coercive behaviours and denounced it. But this 'story'......?

No-one has offered an view on the question about a stereotypical prostitute.

Vincent said...

I try and ignore stereotypes.

ZACL said...

I notice you say you try to ignore them.

I think that in general, people do have a stereotypical idea in their minds whether they are aware of it or not. There is a whole other discussion bundled into that, of course.

Vincent, apropos two other different things.

Is it possible to edit replies after they have been sent, without having to delete the whole thing?

Also, do you have to return to sites to check on replies to your comments, or are you notified of them; if you are notified, how is it set up?

All I get is a copy (unwanted) of the replies I send to comments but I have to check out the comments, if there are any.

Vincent said...

Yes, I am aware of many stereotypes and so I have them in my mind. Not only that, I have my prejudices too!

No, on Blogger it is not possible to edit replies. It is easy to be notified of replies by ticking a box. On other blogs like wordpress you have to subscribe to comments notification, or something like that - which comes to the same thing.

If you want notification of replies to comments on your own blog, then this is what you do. go into settings, choose the comments tab, scroll down to the bottom. In the box marked "comment notification email", enter your own email address. Click "save settings".

ZACL said...

That's a fair comment Vincent.

It is a pain not being able to edit comments, particularly when all you may want to do is edit typos,

Regarding comments; in some ways wordpress is easy, you can subscribe and un-subscribe. I have yet to take more time and learn my way around that site. It does seem a powerful and flexible one, albeit a bit impenetrable and complex to start with.

I checked out your instructions, thanks. I found I already had my email address in the comment notification email box. I am notified about my own follow-up comments, which I could happily do without, but apart from yours, no-one else's. Not sure why.

zewt said...

paid her way to PhD???

care to share the story?

ZACL said...

Hi Zewt,

In essence the story is, 'Belle de Jour' her blog name, provided sexual services (presumably at a price) and paid for her studies and daily living expenses, with what she was able to earn. She has a Phd. I also heard that she has paid for her children's education too.

It is not the first time I have come across this. However, this case hit the UK headlines and talk programmes. A 48 hours wonder! There are men who have done something similar but you do not hear about them, as a rule, in that context.

Hence raising the questions I asked.