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Feminism: Sex and gender discussions

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Original poster

There aren't many plays about prostitution are there?

26 replies

MrsWinnibago · 30/08/2014 23:07

Just musing. Did a quick search and found that on Wikipedia there's a list of plays about prostitution and found that 3 out of 15 were written by women. The other 12 were penned by men.

Is prostitution not a good subject for the theatre?

Why not?

It's a subject which would surely invite drama....could you share your thoughts please?

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Original poster
MrsWinnibago · 31/08/2014 12:59

bump

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Mintyy · 31/08/2014 13:01

Why, are you thinking about writing one?

ABlandAndDeadlyCourtesy · 31/08/2014 13:16

About prostitution or with pprostitutes as characters? Anything with Mary Magdalene in would qualify as the latter, right?

What were the 15? Was Breakfast at Tiffany's in there?

PetulaGordino · 31/08/2014 14:40

was la dame aux camellias in there?

Original poster
MrsWinnibago · 31/08/2014 14:49

I am Mintyy I just wanted to see what others' thoughts were. AB no....and I've realised they missed Playhouse Creatures which is by a woman.

Petula no...and that's by a man, the novel was anyway.

It's such a woman's subject isn't it?

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PetulaGordino · 31/08/2014 15:50

oh ok, i thought you were talking about plays about prostitution in general rather than those specifically written by women. it was adapted for theatre. what is the list?

what do you mean by it inviting drama? that troubles me rather

Poofus · 31/08/2014 19:19

Women playwrights, or famous ones anyway, are few and far between I think. So not surprising to find there aren't many well-known plays about prostitution by women, I think. The only plays on the theme I can think of are Mrs Warren's Profession and The Respectful Prostitute (both by men).

CaptChaos · 31/08/2014 19:42

It's a subject which would surely invite drama

It's such a woman's subject isn't it?

Which aspect of prostitution would you go for, do you think?

ItsDinah · 31/08/2014 19:44

Not many about domestic violence or heroin addiction either. Prostitution was viewed as very oppressive and harmful to women in the nineteenth century UK in a way that it was perhaps not in other countries. Draw the line between voyeurism and titillation and what is acceptable as entertainment,into which last category theatre has to fall. Until quite recently all plays were censored by the Public Chamberlain and that might have discouraged the topic. Tis Pity She's a Whore;Berg's Lulu;Rain (Sadie Thomson);Blue Angel. I think if you cast your net further back 18th century and before in Britain and further afield than Britain you will find a lot more than 15 plays although modern eyes may not find the heroine's occupation as obvious as it was to contemporary audiences.

Original poster
MrsWinnibago · 31/08/2014 20:46

Capt I think I'd like to look at the different reasons women end up in prostitution. I read that most are either economically challenged, black or indigenous.

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Original poster
MrsWinnibago · 31/08/2014 20:47

Petula I don't mean the WOMEN invite the drama. It's just a turn of phrase.

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Original poster
MrsWinnibago · 31/08/2014 20:49

Dinah I think part of the trouble with subjects like these are that you run the risk of writing hackneyed twaddle really. It's a complex subject and I'd hate to write it badly.

I have spoken to a sex worker in depth and found it very enlightening. But she's just one...and reading can only give me so much information really. I'm a shocker for researching and researching till' I fall in a hole....and then not writing much at all.

I've had things published and performed so I know I'm capable.

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Original poster
MrsWinnibago · 31/08/2014 20:51

And plays are meant to hold up a mirror to the audience...to show them society in a clear light and to give them a new understanding of something. And I get frightened of doing it "wrong".

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CaptChaos · 31/08/2014 21:03

From listening to Rachel Moran today, women end up in prostitution because men want to pay to fuck women. As she said, there's no poverty, addiction or abuse in the world which would lead women into prostitution if there weren't men who wanted to pay to fuck them.

Original poster
MrsWinnibago · 31/08/2014 21:05

Yes...but how do we get rid of that desire? Is it possible to recondition men? Not ALL men have that desire...why do some and not others?

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CaptChaos · 31/08/2014 21:10

Yes, it is possible, but not without destroying patriarchy and men's feelings of entitlement to women's bodies and spaces. Until men see women as full human beings, they will always believe that they can buy women's consent. Until men realise that they aren't entitled to sex whenever they want it, they will always be willing to pay for it. Couple that with the fact that men will always continue to enforce situations where women believe that the only way to keep body and soul together is to prostitute themselves and you have the perfect recipe for men to hire a body to wank into for a space of time.

GobblersKnob · 31/08/2014 21:19

Not really what you're asking but tbf you're looking at a list on wiki ours hardly likely to be comprehensive ;)

The first to spring to my mind when I saw your thread title was Mark Ravenhill's 'Mother Claps Molly House', (only because I went to see it not that long ago) and that isn't listed. I'm sure there are umpteen more.

That said I think it is an interesting subject, that generally is rather oversentimentalized. Good luck with your writing.

Original poster
MrsWinnibago · 31/08/2014 21:38

Oh yes Mark Ravenhill! I forgot that one. I agree...it IS over sentimentalized. I think maybe that's the problem...

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Original poster
MrsWinnibago · 31/08/2014 21:40

Chaos why do you think some men have the desire for paying for sex whilst others do not? Is it because it has been eroticized so much? The taboo of it I mean? And that doesn't appeal to all men? Each man has this "thing" and the taboo isn't it for all of them?

When I think of prostitution I think immediately of those "sexy" pictures that call girls leave in phone boxes. I suppose a lot of men do too.

Then I see irritating shit like Belle De Jour...making out that all prostitutes are happy hookers...

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Caitmous · 31/08/2014 21:53

Sugar Mummies by Tanika Gupta, about sex tourism in Jamaica?

ABlandAndDeadlyCourtesy · 31/08/2014 21:59

Superficially it is appealing to be able to get your wishes met without troubling about the other person, especially if you have a core belief that the other person is of a less important group than you (see also slavery and freak shows).

When you truly think the person on the other side of your domestic/entertainment/sexual servicing is a person, then hopefully your humanity changes your behaviour.

ItsDinah · 01/09/2014 20:00

Mirror? With such a broad subject perhaps you need something very stylised . Brecht ,Littlewood,Fo.What about male prostitutes? I'm beginning to think it would be more interesting to look at the clients.

iismum · 02/09/2014 18:23

This is a bit of a tangent, sorry. Just wanted to respond to the poster that mentioned any play with Mary Magdelene would have a character who was a prostitute. There's no evidence at all the she was a prostitute. There's a brief mention of a prostitute in one of the gospel stories but nothing at all to connect her with Mary Magdelene. The church made a conscious decision to 'market' her this way in order to downplay her importance - she was one if Jesus's key companions and was an active women rather than someone who could easily be forced into a 'mother' or 'helpless innocent' role, so didn't fit the church's narrative about women. So they labelled her as a prostitute to discredit her.

ABlandAndDeadlyCourtesy · 02/09/2014 18:28

Ii, fair enough. But, because of the "marketing", I'd be surprised if there weren't a number of plays featuring a prostitute called MM.

PetulaGordino · 02/09/2014 18:30

true, but if she is portrayed in a play chances are she will be portrayed as a prostituted woman presumably? given that culturally she has been designated as such. whether she was or wasn't (and i too don't see any evidence that suggests she was) a prostitute is separate to whether a playwright will decide she is one, and whether the audience will interpret that too