Prostitution in the 19th Century

There are several new or soon-to-be-published books on Nineteenth-Century prostitution that I want to read this winter. Here is an overview of them.   

Last year a biography of one of the prominent social reformers and fighters for women's rights, Josephine Elizabeth Butler (1828-1906), was published. Although there have been several books written about her life -including an  autobiography - this new publication by Jane Robinson contains only 91 pages. (1) And even more striking: Josephine's life story from birth to death in chronicle order is told from pages 5-39. A remarkable book about a remarkable person.    Having a political reformer and abolitionist father combined with a Huguenot Christian mother, clearly influenced Josephine on her journey. At a young age, she marries George Butler, a schoolteacher and academic who would unconditionally support his wife's choices. The couple has four children of which their eldest daughter has a fatal accident in 1864. It is after this tragedy that Josephine starts becoming more actively involved in charity work and the abolitionist movement. "Women of the city" Josep...

What should you be reading during the summer holidays? I have listed my current favourite historic novels on prostitution, although, not all of them are set in the nineteenth century. Yet, the books have in common that they are character studies in which the main leads undergo a journey of transformation as a result of the choices they make. The stories are mainly told through the eyes of the protagonists and it even feels as if they are literally sitting next to you on a bench talking. As a reader, it seems rude to stand up and leave. Besides, you really really want to know how their stories evolve. So I can highly recommend these page-turners. Three of them are written in English and two in Dutch.  ENGLISH NOVELS 1. Michel Faber,  The crimson petal and the white (Edinburgh 2002) With almost 840 pages it is quite a journey you make with the main character. Yet it was one of the hardest books to put down. When the final chapter was nearing I had to put myself on a 'readi...

Dr. Julia Laite  recently published a true story about a sixteen-year-old girl, Lydia Harvey, who ends up in prostitution. (1) The story is set in 1910 when Lydia receives an attractive offer to travel abroad and earn a lot of money. The New Zealand girl, who longs for adventure and the chance to travel, gladly accepts the offer. The rise of commercial steamboats during that period makes journeys to other parts of the world easier. Lydia leaves her home country, takes the boat to Buenos Aires, and eventually ends up in London. Despite the traveling, life does not turn out as she had hoped. She even becomes a crown witness in a British court case against her procurers. Due to the extensive (archival) research, this book offers a real insight into the world of international prostitution at the beginning of the twentieth century. Different angles One of the things I enjoyed about this book is that it tells the story from different angles, not just from Lydia's.  (2) Each chapte...