The World's Oldest Profession

The World’s Oldest Profession

I have been a prostitute. My mother has been a prostitute. Practically every woman who has had sex has been a prostitute. The New Encyclopædia Britannica describes prostitution as “the practice of engaging in relatively indiscriminate sexual activity…in exchange for immediate payment in money or other valuables (737).” According to this definition of prostitution, any woman who has ever had sex with someone and received something of value is guilty of prostitution. Prostitution is a problem in every major city in America. Many people argue that legalizing prostitution would only cause more problems, but I feel that it could only help our country in a number of ways.
Frank Schmalleger, Ph.D. argues that prostitution is a victimization of the prostitute (583). This just is not so. A woman who chooses to become a prostitute normally does so of her own free will. When a prostitute chooses a “john”, she is choosing to ha...