Abstract
Prostitution raises two questions in applied ethics: Should it be legally prohibited or restricted? Is it immoral? The former question is discussed in terms of four liberty-limiting principles: harm to others, offense, legal paternalism, and legal moralism. The latter question is examined from the standpoint of the view of sex as bound up with procreation and marriage and the view that ties it to love. Marxist and feminist arguments are also discussed: we should not engage in sex for ulterior purposes; prostitution is an extreme form of alienation of labor; and it expresses and reinforces the inequality, oppression, and degradation of women.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Encyclopedia of Applied Ethics |
| Subtitle of host publication | Volume 1-4, Second Edition |
| Publisher | Elsevier |
| Pages | 632-641 |
| Number of pages | 10 |
| Volume | 1-4 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9780123739322 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9780123736321 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1 Jan 2012 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2012 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Keywords
- Blocked exchange
- Double standard
- Feminism
- Harm to others principle
- Legal moralism
- Liberalism
- Liberty-limiting principles
- Marxism
- Offense principle
- Paternalism
- Prostitution
- Sex
- Sex industry
- Sex work