Undermined (Hegemonic) masculinity and subjective reconstruction within prostitution

Resumen

In this article, we analyze how prostitution has been resignified as a scenario of subjective reconstruction for men in a social context of changes. To do this, prostitution is analyzed from a gender and feminist perspective, taking into account how gender inequality makes possible prostitution and how gender inequality is reproduced within prostitution. Also we analyze the construction of the masculinity arguing that masculinity is supported by some bases: identity linked to work and family provider; identity linked to the authority of the pater familias; identity linked to the exercise of violence or the threat of using it; identity linked to sexual activity (following androcentric and patriarchal patterns). It is argued that, some of these bases have failure and others (violence and sexual activity) have strengthen and prostitution appears at the crossroads between violence and patriarchal sexuality. Finally, we incorporate old and new frames of legitimization of the demand for prostitution into the analysis.