Prostitution in city everyday life of perm province in the late 19th – early 20th century

Abstract

The article is devoted to the study of quantitative and quality indicators of female prostitution in the cities of Perm province in the late 19th – early 20th centuries. Based on statistics from 1889 and 1909, features of the spread of prostitution both in large industrial cities and in small towns for the period under review are revealed. The author presents a social portrait of women involved in commercial sex – their age, social origin, the time they became pros-titutes, education, economic status, etc. Attention is paid to the public opinion on the existence of prostitution in the cities of the Perm province. Possible reasons for the involvement in prostitution are examined, from the economic factor to the processes of emancipation of sexuality in the urban environment in the course of urbanization both in Russia as a whole and in the Perm province. The existence of illegal forms of prostitutions along with legal ones is assessed. The features of everyday life of women engaged in prostitution in the cities of the Perm province are char-acterized. The author considers their living conditions, places of residence, possible movements, and the contingent of their "clients". An assessment is given of how their daily life was affected by state laws, the purpose of which was both to maintain public order and healthcare. © 2020, Perm State University. All rights reserved.