The subject of love for sale has been relevant throughout history, and the paradigm for discussion - whether among specialists or in the court of public opinion has remained fundamentally unchanged: what causes prostitution, and how should it be combated? This extremely wide-spread social phenomenon, which bears a central relationship to sexual life, is herein examined in a modern sexological approach. Special attention is paid to the fact that, while sexual life evolves in accordance with developments in other areas of life, prostitution does not.

A Remnant of Antiquity

A survey of the fundamental works on the history of sexuality attests to the fact that prostitution has remained largely unchanged since ancient times, and presents a problem, the root of which may be most simply and clearly expressed as follows: "This is the head of Janus; one face turned toward nature, the other toward culture."

The difficulties of constructing a truly scientific "etiology" of prostitution are noted by all. This is linked to the fact that, as a culture's social life becomes increasingly differentiated, the social factors contributing to prostitution become ever more varied and complex.

It is generally assumed that the purely physical attraction between the sexes dates back to prehistory and is connected with primitive spiritual life, as well as religion and art. This primitive sexual attraction forms the basis for "free sexual life" in all its forms, and its influences can also be discerned in various forms of regulated sexual activity (ie. Marriage).

Picture 1. Sexual life forms by I. Bloch (1913)

The history of prostitution shows it to be a remnant of this early sexual life. The economic aspect of prostitution is but a by-product of evolving social conventions. Incidentally, this process (the evolution of social conventions in the sexual sphere) has at least equal, if not greater significance to marriage than to prostitution.

Modern sexual life falls into three categories: "free" sexual life (often preceding marriage), sexual relations in married life, and prostitution. The first category is characterized by the free expression of feelings linked to sexual gratification and satisfaction, when a subject gives free reign to his/her biological urges. The second category refers primarily to sexual relations sanctioned by society, while the third gives the option to temporarily step outside the social and personal boundaries regarding sexual conduct.

It should be noted that the intensity of sexual activity of an individual belonging to one or another category of sexual relations may differ significantly from that of other individuals in the same category.

In 1913, having studied Roman, canonical, and German laws on the subject, Johann Bloch offered the following exhaustive definition of prostitution, in which the term "publicly" refers to the absence of a personal relationship between the man and woman:

"Prostitution is a special form of extra-marital relationship, unique in that the individual entering onto the path of prostitution constantly, indiscriminately, and publicly gives herself to an indefinitely large number of men, rarely without payment, in the majority of cases offering the sale of her body for copulation or other sexual activities, or generally provoking sexual arousal, and then satisfying it as a result of which perverse industry, she takes on a fixed, constant Type."

From a pragmatic point of view, prostitution exists because of the demand for such a service. If the primary reason for the demand for prostitution is rooted in sexuality - that is, in the biological imperative to "free love" (in the sense noted above) - the secondary reason lies hidden in social instability, cataclysms, and wars.

National Research Center on Addictions
Rehabilitation Dept.,
Moscow, Russia