The Sociological Issue Of Prostitution

The issue of prostitution has sparked different reactions from societies around the world, with each culture defining it in their unique way. However, most communities agree on the definition of prostitution as the act of directly engaging in sexual activities for financial gains. The practice has been in existence since time immemorial although the reaction of people in the society differs. Various theoretical approaches have tried to explain the concept of prostitution considering the principal causative agents and the sociological impacts and responses. This essay will describe the theoretical approaches relating to prostitution and the sociological understanding and effect of the practice to the society. Sociologically, prostitution is

Deviance is not usually pegged on the act itself but on the way the society reacts towards the act. Fundamentally, the society opposes prostitution reasons such as the moral degradation of women, threat to public health, the behavior of prostitutes that attract the involvement of law enforcement, effects on marital relations, and its effects on national values. Society looks at prostitution as a moral, health and security issue since it violates the social norms such as the sacred nature or sex for reproduction in marriage and the religious belief that the human body should be kept holy since it is the temple of the Holy Spirit. Most religious countries and denominations such as the Muslims condemn prostitution on morality, health and security grounds citing the dangers associated with the

Prostitution allows for a woman to engage in sexual immoralities with multiple partners provided they can afford to pay. This type of practice exposes people to various dangerous diseases which may not be treatable and the more people an individual has sex with, the higher the rate of transmission of such diseases including syphilis, gonorrhea, herpes, and HIV (Clements 60). For instance, an HIV positive woman can infect her child during birth or through breastfeeding after weaning. Married people who engage in sexual activities with other people may end up infecting their marital