February 9, 2004
Norwegian historian Ringdal argues that prostitution is, in many cultures, a borrowed tradition, but his evidence suggests that prostitution emerged of its own accord in most cultures although in wide-ranging forms. Under European influence, for example, an Asian tradition of contracted temporary marriage evolved to direct pay for individual encounters. In Africa, according to Ringdal, European missionary campaigns against polygamy actually resulted in greater numbers of women entering prostitution. Ringdal considers varying perceptions of promiscuity and prostitution as well as economic, cultural and moral analyses of why women, and to a lesser extent men, enter the business. Given the book's scope, it goes almost without saying that some eras are treated in greater depth than others. Some chapters are based on very few sources, and while we might want greater analysis of ancient temple prostitution or greater care in identifying biblical figures, we get rather too much detail on how the Mayflower madam ran her business. Ringdal wrestles with but does not bring into clear focus the issue of choice in modern prostitution. In early chapters, he sets up a straw-man "feminist" argument, but not until the final chapters does he directly engage some of the researchers and activists with whom he differs. On the whole, however, this study provides both a fascinating range of evidence across world cultures and the opportunity to see broad patterns in attitudes toward sex for hire and the relation between these attitudes and women's freedoms. 32 pages of color and b&w illus. not seen by PW.