Browse Exhibits (1 total)

Madams and Pimps: Contextualized Identities

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Broadly speaking, a madam or pimp is a third-party intermediary between a prostitute and a client who, in return for arranging meetings and setting up a network of clients, takes part of a prostitute’s earnings. It would be easy to mark the distinction between a madam and a pimp as a gendered one - madams representing the female figure and pimps the male one. But these two identites are much more historically and socially charged than can be initially perceived - which is why we chose to designate them as "contextualised identites" in the title.

In this exhibit, we mainly seek to compare the role of the 19th century madam in Paris to the contemporary pimp in the United States. We seek to demonstrate that, although the main purpose of the pimp - i.e. making profit off of prostitutes’ work as a managerial intermediary - has remained identical, many other changes have unfolded in their activity. Notably, their way of conducting the business, their social status and gender-related perceptions, as well as their relation to law enforcement have all evolved over time. 

This exhibit will therefore highlight these evolutions in the economic, social, and legal domains.

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