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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
1/29
Northern Illinois University Center for Southeast Asian Studies
LABOR, LOVE, AND ENTANGLEMENT: Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of SelfhoodAuthor(s): Marc AskewSource: Crossroads: An Interdisciplinary Journal of Southeast Asian Studies, Vol. 13, No. 2(1999), pp. 1-28Published by: Northern Illinois University Center for Southeast Asian StudiesStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/40800434 .
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
2/29
LABOR, LOVE, AND ENTANGLEMENT
Bangkok
Bar
Workers
nd
the
Negotiation
of
Selfhood
Marc Askew*
Foreign-oriented
rostitutes
n
Bangkok
llustrate the
dynamic,
multiple,
nd relational
imensions
f
the
ongoingprocess
of
self-
formation.
any of
hesewomen
ntered
rostitution
ut
of rustration
and
disillusionment,
utonce
they
ad
adapted o thebarsubculture,
some
of
them
sed
the
nterpersonal
trategies f
the ex
business
o
entangle
the
inances,
motions,
nd
presence
f
selected
foreign
customers
n their wn
projects
f
building
ew
selves.
They
hereby
demonstrated
heir
gency
s
they
sed
ex work
o
mprove
heir
ocial
status,
gain
financial
and
emotional
ecurity,
nd
meet
their
ilial
obligations
o
amily.
Introduction
Thai womenworkingn foreign-orientedrostitution triveto
overcome
heir ituation
hrough trategies
f
self-construction.
or
many
of these
women,
ntry
nto
prostitution
as
preceded
by
a
background
f
nger
nd
disillusionment
t
personal
ircumstances.
Once
they
became
part
of
the bar
scene
these
women
creatively
maneuvered o
personalize
elationships,
hereby
making
lovers
(faen)
ut
of
customers
khaek).
cting
n
ways
nformed
y
Thai
notions
f
reciprocity,
hewomen
entangled
Thomas
1991)
their
lovers'
financial,
motional,
nd
symbolic
esources
n
ongoing
projects
irected oward
nhancing ersonal
tatus nd
constructingnew selves.
This
view of
Thai
prostitutes'
gency
ontrasts
ith
popular
and
scholarlywriting
hat
stresses
the
prostitutes'
ictimhood.
*
Marc
Askew
s
Senior
Lecturer,
epartment
f
Asian
and
International
Studies,
Victoria
University
f
Technology,
Melbourne,
Australia.
This
article s
part
f an
on-going omparative
tudy
f
he
ub-culturesf
Thai
women's
sex work n
Bangkok,
Hat Yai
ana
Singapore.
Thanks
to
the
womenwho
shared heir
tories,
houghts,
nd
experiences.
hanks
lso to
Leif
Jonsson
or
elpful
iscussion nd
for
is
uggestions
or
mproving
he
manuscript.amgratefuloEdwinZehnernd thefournonymouseferees
who
helped
me
clarify
oints
n
my rgument.
Crossroads: n
Interdisciplinary
ournal
f
outheast
sian
Studies
13(2):l-28
©
Copyright
999
y
the
Center
or
outheast
sian
tudies
Northern
llinois
niversity
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
3/29
Marc Askew
Marxist-Feministsuch as Truong 1990) pictureThai prostitutes s
trapped
in
sex work
by
economic
pressures,
class
structures,
nd
gender
hierarchies
for
a
recent
re-statement
f
this
position,
see
Bishop
and Robinson 1998:
92-111).
Recent
literature from
the
perspective
of women's
grass-roots
development organizations
in
Thailand
(for
example,
Skrobanek,
Boonpakdi,
and
Janthakeero
1997)
similarlyportrays
he sex workers
s
good
rural
girls
trapped
in
prostitution
nd
yearning
o return o
the bosom of
the
family
n
the
rural
village.
Still other
scholars
highlight
ideological
and
religious expectations
that
compel daughters
more than
sons
to
support the family financially (Hantrakul 1983; Muecke 1992;
Santasombat
1992;
Thitsa
1980).
And,
as Rachel Harrison
has
shown
(1995,
1996),
Thai
literary
works also
contribute o the
victimhood
model
by portraying
prostitutes
as fallen women
permanently
excluded
from heThai moral order.
While these
points
are
valid,
they
are
only
part
of the
story,
and
it would
be
wrong
to assume that
the women sex
workers are
passive
victims f circumstancewho lack resources
to
improve
their
situation.
Women's voices have been
largely
absent from
the
literature
n
Thai
prostitution,
s
Nerida
Cook has noted
1998:251),
and the
voices
heard
in
the research
forthis article
uggest
that
the
women
engage
actively
with their ircumstances. rom
1993 to
1997
1 observed
and
informally
nterviewed
fifty
omen and
their
male
companions
in the Sukhumvit Road district of
Bangkok.
The
conversations
with
the women took
place mostly
n
Central Thai
or
in the
Northeastern
dialect.
A
subset both of the diverse
world of
Thai
prostitutes
nd of the subclass of
foreign-oriented
ex
workers,
my
informants
worked
primarily
s hostesses
in
expatriate
bars,
dancers
in
ago-go
bars,
or freelance
prostitutes
icking up
men in
beerbarsand coffee hops.
I learned
from this
ethnographic
research
that
although
the
women's
environment
s marked
by
material
disadvantages
and
power
inequalities,
the women neverthelessexercise a
significant
degree
of
agency,
making ndependent
decisions both as
they
enter
sex
work
and as
they
earn to
maneuver
in
their
encounters with
clients.
Once
the women
have
migrated
to the bar
trade,
they
earn
relational
strategies
hat
maximize
personal
freedom and
enhance
income.
Women
sex
workers often
employ
the same
strategies
to
transform
elected
male
customers nto
monogamous
mates,
thereby
entangling the men's presence and their social and financial
2
Crossroads
3:2
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
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Bangkok
ar
Workersnd the
Negotiation
f
elfhood
resources o enhance hewomen's elf-imagendtheirtatus nthe
eyes
of
family
nd friends.
The
present tudygoes
beyond
arlier
nes n
several
ways.
Erik Cohen
(1982)
has
highlighted
he
ambiguity
nherent n
tourist-prostitute
ncounters
n
Thailand.
While
dopting
his
four-
part typology
f
prostitute-client
elationships,
he
present
rticle
goes
beyond
that
typology y
stressing
he
dynamism
n
these
encounters nd the role
of
women's
agency
in
transforming
relationships.
he
present
rticle lso
goes
beyond
Cohen'swork
by
showing
that the
women
exploit
the
ambiguities
of
their
relationships ithWesternmen n such a wayas toground heir
ongoing
elf-reconstruction
rojects
n
the
elationships
hemselves.
The article
ontributes
urthermore
y
showing
he
multiple
social nd
psychological
rientationsf
he
elf-construction
rocess.
Earlier tudies
f
Thai
prostitutes
ave
dentified
he
family
nd
the
village
as the
primary
ocus of
women's
dentities
nd
loyalties
(Muecke
1992;
Phongpaichit
982;
Santasombat
992;
Skrobanek,
Boonpakdi
nd
Janthakeero
997;
Thitsa
1980),
while the
present
article howsthat
hewomen re
also
sensitive o
their
elationships
with oworkersnd customers. hearticlehows,finally,hat he
foreign-oriented
ex
workers'
personal
goals,
values,
and
relationshiptrategies arallel
thoseof
other
hai
women.
As
the
women
develop
onger-term
elationships
ith heir
ustomers,
he
women's material
and
emotional
expectations
become
so
intertwined hateach
expresses
the
other.
The
foreign
men
are
thereby
ade
mportant
upporters
f
he
women's
elf-construction
projects
espite
heir
osition
artly
nside
and
partly
utside
the
spheres
n
terms fwhich
he
women
onstructheir
elves.
SelfandAgencynThaiCulture
Drawing
on
feminist nd
anthropological
iterature,
define
he
self as
an
ever-changing,
ultiple,
nd
embodied
ite of
being.
This self an use social
strategies
o
maximize
ymbolic
apital
by
converting
conomic
nd material
esources nto
socially
valued
statusmarkers
Bourdieu
1990:112-121;
issanayake
1996;
Kondo
1990).
elves are
both
xpressed
n
and
transformed
y
the
projects
and maneuvers
he
women
enact
Ortner
995:187).
The
selves
interact
ynamically
ot
only
with
culturally
iven
roles
and
symbols
both
traditional
nd
modern)
but also
with
ndividual
experiencesndemotionsRosaldo1984:145).
Crossroads
3:2
3
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
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Marc
Askew
TheThai sexworkers' elationship ith heir atalculture s
marked
y
a
degree
fresistance.
any
ofthewomen interviewed
had
had
experience
iving
nd
working
n
Bangkok
efore
ntering
the
world
of commercialized
ex,
moving mong
different
ypes
f
work
n the
city
nd
elsewhere.
heirvalues
had
thereforeeen
shaped
by patterns
f
urban
onsumption,
nd their
ived
realities
included
range
of
nvolvements
ith
peers
and
in
work
ettings
that
istanced
heir ultural
rientations
rom hose ftheir
arents.
Their
dentities
re
therefore
ar more
complex
than
might
be
suggested
by
essentialist
representations
f
them as
village
women.
Yet
the
women
lso affirm
heir dentitiess
ordinary
hai
women,
and
their
projects
xhibit
grounding
n
Thai cultural
values.
Both
t
home
and
in
thebar
culture,
hey
are about tatus
and
honor
face )
s
generated
r
recognized
n
social nteraction
(see
Brummelhuis
984 nd
Mulder
996:70-77or he
mportance
f
these
values
in Thai
culture).
hey
conceive f social relations
n
terms
f
hierarchy,
eciprocity,
nd
respect
or
benevolence
see
Cohen
1982 nd
Hanks
1975
for iscussion
fthese
atterns
n
Thai
society). hey etain senseofobligationofamilyhat s reinforced
by
Buddhist-inspired
otions
f
returning
erit
top
haen
unkhun)
to
parents
see
Muecke
1992
for discussion of the
meanings
of
bunkhun).
They
share
with
Thai women
elsewhere dioms of
relational
ractice
hat
manipulate
ther
arties
oward esired nds
in the
context
f
roles that
re
felt,
xpressed,
nd understood
n
terms
f
mutual
bligation
see
Kemp
1984
and O'Connor1986on
the
broader
patterns).
nd
theyparticipate
n a
gender ystem
n
which,
s
Penny
Van
Esterik
uts
t,
Although
omendo nothave
high
status,
hey
get
[more]
tatus
hrough
manipulating
males
(1996:130).
The
women
draw
on,
and
are
guided
by,
the
full
range
of
these
culturally-based
otions
nd
expectations
s
they
onstruct
new
selves
through
heir
egotiated
elationships
ith
heir
amily,
with
heir
hai
coworkers,
nd with
oreign
ales.
Their
gency
s
a
partial
nd
compromised
ne,
but
it is a
real
agency
nonetheless.
The
maneuvering
trategies
nable
the
women
o
garner
motional
and
material
esources
hat
nable
ome to
escape
nto
ntirely
ew
identities,
dentities
hat
re
meaningful
nd honorable
oth
n
the
general
ontext
f
Thaiculture
nd
n
the
pecific
ontext
fthe ex-
orientedmarketsn which heywork nd ive.
4
Crossroads
3:2
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
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Bangkok
ar
Workersnd the
Negotiation
f elfhood
TypesofProstitutes
Tourist-oriented
rostitutes
omprise
mere two
percent
f the
150,000
o
800,000
women
engaged
n
sex work
n
Thailand
Post
Reporters
996;
Boonchalaksi nd Guest
1994:
39-49;
Forsyth
990).
Many
of the
tourist-oriented
ex workers abor n
the districts
f
Patpong
off
Silom
Road)
and
SukhumvitRoad. Some
work in
massage
parlors,
scorts
ervices,
go-go
bars,
outdoorbeer
bars,
coffee
hops,
and restaurants. therswork
n
expensive
ocktail
lounges,
member
lubs,
nd karaoke
lubs.There s also
disguised
prostitution
rarely
ounted
n
government
tatistics)
n
restaurants
and hairdressinghops.Some establishmentsmploy hewomen
directly
or
sex
work. At
others,
he women are
employed
as
hostesses
ut are
allowed to make their wn
sexual
arrangements
with
ustomers,
ho
pay
a barfine o
the
stablishmentach
time
they
ake
a woman
away
for ex. At still ther
stablishments,
he
women
work
ntirely
reelance.
Many
writershave
argued
that rural
poverty
and
the
importance
f
women's role as dutiful
daughters
upporting
parents
nd
family
re the
primary
actors
riving
women
nto
prostitutionfor xample, hitsa, 980;Phongpaichit,982;Muecke,
1992).
Whilethese conomic nd
ideological
actorsndeed
play
a
role
even
among
he
foreign-oriented
rostitutes
studied,
mostof
the
women
had additional motivesfor
entering
ex
work.
My
informants
rouped
he women
n
terms f two
primary
motives
that orrelated
oughly
ith
ge
and
life
xperience.
he
phuying
a
ngoen
a sanuk
women
ooking
for
money
nd
fun)
were
mostly
teenagers
Skrobanek,
oonpakdi,
nd
Janthakeero
997:32
also
mentions
this
group).
The
phuying
hi mi
panha
(women
with
problems)
ended to be older and to have
experienced
broken
relationshipeforenteringex work.Aninformantuggested hat
30
percent
fthewomenwhere he worked
wereof
the
fun-seeking
type,
while
the other 70
percent
were
motivated
y
problems.
Almost
all
my
informantsonsidered
hemselves
women
with
problems,
nd theremainder f this
rticle ocuses
xclusively
n
their
erspectives
nd
strategies.
The Women
with
Problems Their
Motives
or
ntry
The women
with
roblems
ntered he
business f
elling
ex
with
hesitation,
nger,
hate,
and
resignation,
ever
calmly
or
without
fear.Mostofthem xpressednanger nddisillusionmentootedn
a
broken
relationship
itha Thai
man,
though
ome
cited
other
Crossroads
3:2
5
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7/29
Marc
Askew
problems. hosewho hadexperiencedelationshiprises xpressed
an
attitude
f
prachot
hizvit
spiting
ife),
while
many
f
the
women
frustrated
y
other
roblems
xpressed
n
attitude f
seng
chizvit
(frustrated
ith
life).
The
women's
movement
to
places
of
difference,
anger,
nd
excitement,
uch s the
night
pots
nd bars
of
the
foreign-oriented
ex
trade,
s
strongly
ooted
in
these
disappointments.
he
mportance
fbroken
elationships
cited
by
eighty ercent
f
my
nformants)
istinguishes
y
nformants
rom
the
younger
women
working
in
brothels,
who
rarely
cite
relationship
ssues
(see
Boonchalaksi
and
Guest 1994:
56-57;
Phongpaichit982: 4-16). he women's ife rises sually roduced
a
loss of
status, onor,
nd
self-respect.
heir
ntry
nto ex
work
was
eventually
made thefirst
tep
n a
strategy
f
elf-construction
aimed owards
ecovery
fbothmaterialnd
social/sexual
tatus.
Relationship
roblems
Prachot
hiwit,
r
spiting
ife,
is a
disposition
toward self-
destructive
cts that
s motivated
y anger
t another
erson.
The
disposition
s often
raced
o a
specific
ct or event hat
ymbolizes
the
rait
r
transgression
hat
ngers
hewoman.
Through
orbidden
sex,
excessive
drinking
see
example
n Mills
1997:50),
r even
cutting
her
wrists,
he
woman
spiting
ife
victimizesherself
instead
of the
person
who has caused
her
problem.
Yet for
my
informants
he deliberate
ransgression
f
the
boundary
etween
ordinary
ife
nd
prostitution
s also
a
symbolic unishment
ftheir
former
overs.
ex
with
oreigners
s therefore
n actboth f
spiting
life nd
of
piting
he nes
eft t home.
This
spiteful
ttitude as
common
mong
he
ighty ercent
of
my
nformants
ho
had suffered roken
marriages
nd other
emotionalcrises.Most of thesewomen had left theirpartners
because
of the
man's
infidelity,
is favoritism
oward his
own
relatives,
is
violent
ehavior,
r the
woman's wn desire o
escape
an
unwanted
marriage.
oi
left erhusbandbecause
he refused
o
abandon
his
mistress.
on
left ome fter
erhusband
brought
is
mistress
o
live
with
hem.Wan
eft er nattentive
oyfriend
fter
she
found
hathe
was
already egally
married o
a Thai
woman
n
the
United
States.
Duk
had
argued
withher husbandbecause he
gave
money
to his
relatives
but would
not
help
her
equally
distressed
nes.
Nom
eft
ome fter er
drunken usband eat
her
(shemadesure o hitbackfirst).uk had been o severelyeaten y
6 Crossroads
3:2
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
8/29
Bangkok
ar
Workers
nd the
Negotiationf
elfhood
herhusband hat hehad tobe hospitalized. iphad,aftereveral
abortive
ttempts,
inallyscaped
n
unwanted
rranged
marriage.
These
relationship
reakdowns aused not
only
n
emotional
and
financialrisis
ut lso a loss offace
sia
na,
na
taek).
Many
of
he
women
found
themselves
inancially ependent
n their
parents
after
he
relationship
roke
down. Most
also had children
rom he
broken
elationship.
hilemostof
them ould
rely
n
family
nd
relatives
o
provide
hild
are,
hewomen elt
esponsibility
or heir
children,
nd
in
many
ases
they
were
working
o raise
money
or
the child's
care.
Theyrecognized
urthermorehat
heir
exuality
was devaluedand that hey ad little opeofremarriage ithThai
men.
Thai
men
ctively
ngage
n
premarital
ex,
but
they refer
o
marry irgins.
Premaritalex thereforeevalues a
woman,
while
widows
and
single
mothersre seen as
second-hand
omen
ven
if
they
id
not
engage
n
extra-maritalex.
Whether
hey
ave
been
deserted
by
husbands,
been
widowed,
or
actively
ended
the
relationships
hemselves,
hewomen re
acutely
onscious
f their
socially
evalued
position.
ivorcedwomen re n an
especially
ad
position:
hough
ivorce
may
be
increasinglyccepted
n
the Thai
middle
class,
divorced women
among peasants
and
the
urban
poor
particularly
hosewith hildren knowthat
hey
re ooked
down
upon
especially y
Thai
malesof he ame
class.
Widowhood,
divorce,
nd other
relationship
reakdowns
therefore
evalue
hesewomen's
exuality
nd social
tatus,
nd
this
devaluation
motivates
heir
ubsequent reparedness
o
commodify
their
exuality hrough rostitution
Boonchalaksi
nd
Guest
1994:
has cited
his ame
motivation).
omen n
such
ituations
may
eek
a
complete
hange
f
ifestyle,
aving
he
ttitude
xpressed
y
Tip:
Chang
man,
hiwit han ia
laeo,
thatn ai sia
sut-siit ei
( To
hell
with
it.Life s spoiled nyway,owhynot poil tcompletely? ).uch an
attitude
eavesthewomen
pen
to
experimenting
ith hebar
scene,
perhaps
nitially
s a
tentative nd
experimental
time-out
rom
normal
omestic
ffairs,
ut
potentially
s a
long-term
nvolvement
in
prostitution.
Life's
rustrations
The
seng
chiwit
frustrated
ith
ife)
motivation
eacts
o
longer-
lasting
ircumstances,
sually
focusing
n
situations
ather
han
individuals.
Young,
never-married omen
used
the
term
when
talking f their oredomwithfactory,onstruction,rotherwork
that
nvolved
ong
hours or ittle
ay.
Their
motivation
evertheless
Crossroads
3:2
7
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Marc
Askew
focused n theunbearablenessf he ld situationather han nthe
attractionsf
henew one.
Older r
previously
arried
omen
sed
the
ermwhen
alking
bout
personal
inancial
roblems
r
about
lackof
motional
upport
rom
heir amilies.
oth
roups
f
women
expressed
rustrationith he
social
expectation
hat
hey
hould
live as
virtuouswomen even
though hey
had
experienced
o
tangible
enefits
or heir
irtue
n
the
past.
Money,
xcitement,
nd
Recovery
f
tatus
Financial
considerations lso
motivate
entry
nto
sex work.
Prostitutions theonlypotentiallyigh-earningccupationpento
these
women,
whose education
evels are
almost
universally
ow.
Most of
my
informants ad not studied
past
the
fourth
ear
of
primary
school,
though
a few
had
secondary
or
university
education.
Many
aid
they
ad wanted o
continue
tudy,
ut
their
families'
conomic
eedshad
forced hem o eave
chool.
Once
the
general
motivefor
entering
ex work
has
been
established,
everal immediate onsiderations
ead
women
to
specialize
n
foreigners.
irst,
hewomen an
earnmore
money
rom
sex
with
foreigners
han
from ex with Thai men.
Second and
perhaps
more
mportant, any
fthesewomen void sexwithThai
men because
of
negative
attitudes rooted
in
their
previous
disappointments.
hird,
nvolvement ith
foreigners
ppeals
as a
new,
exciting,
ven
frighteningxperience
n
a
place
of
difference
and
danger.
Summary
It s
important
ot o overstresshevictimhood
otivating
he
move
into
oreign-oriented
rostitution.
s
I
have
ust
noted,
he
women's
personaldisillusionment aybe supplemented y the need for
money, y prostitution's
mage
s
a
lucrative orm f
adventurous
sexual
ife,
nd
by
its
availability
s
a
tool to
symbolicallyunish
former
overs.
Commodification
f the
body through rostitution
also
need not
entail
permanentevaluing
f
exuality.
s
I
discuss
below,
the women
make
clear
distinctions etweenthe sex
they
sell
to
customers
n
emotionally
istanced ransactionsnd the
ex
they
give
o
the
foreign
enwithwhom
hey
ecome
motionally
involved.
he
development
f
relationships
n
which he ex s
given
rather
han old
s
part
f he
process
f
recovering
elf nd status.
8 Crossroads
3:2
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
10/29
Bangkok
ar
Workersnd
the
Negotiation
f
elfhood
Routes ofEntry
Throughout
orth nd
Northeast
hailand
here s
widely
vailable
general
knowledge
bout
places
and
types
of
work in
the
city,
including
hevarious
orms f ex
work.
his
knowledge
onstitutes
a folklore f women's
nvolvement
n
foreign-oriented
rostitution.
Friendship
networks,
cquaintances,
nd
even
woman
family
members
re
mportant
ources f
nformation
bout
where
o
begin
work n
foreign-oriented
rostitution.
any
women
had
followed
contacts
rovided
y
older
isters
r
friends.
eun
had
been
given
the address
of a
Bangkok
xpatriate
ar
by
its
manageress,
hom
she metby chance n herhometown n Southern hailand.Jim
began
herwork
n
a bar
where
close
friend
rom
er
village
had
been
working
or everal
years.
While
contacts
ike
these
might
appear
to
be
peerpressure,
my
nformants
onsidered
hem
imply
sources f nformationo be
used
or
gnored
s
the
women
aw
fit.
They
acted on the
information
nly
after
reaching
point
of
personal
crisis.
For
example,
Peun
did not
use
the
manageress's
address
until
more han
year
ater,
when
he
was
widowed
and
frustrated ithher
circumstances.
im
ikewise
id
not
contact
er
friend's ar until fter erhusbandhad abandonedherwith one-
month-old
hild.
The womenentered
he
work
hesitantly
nd
tentatively,
or
several
reasons.
First,
efore
ntering
ex
work
the
women
were
generally
eluctantven
to set
foot n
prostitution
enues
on
their
own,
due to the
tigma
ttached
o
the
places.
Second,
Thai
society
generally mphasizes
he
mportance
f
personal
onnections
or
enteringny
kind
ofwork.
Women
re
especially
eluctant
o
enter
sex work
lone,
no
matter
ow
strongly
heir
xperiences
ay
have
motivated hem. or
these
easons,
women
sually
oined
friendsn
the tradeor carried ersonal ntroductionsopotentialmployers.
The network
ynamics
re
therefore
est
seen
as
shared
collusion
among
womenwith
ommon
xperiences
o
overcome
heir
ear
f
transgressing
he
boundaries f
normative
emale
ehavior.
A
Typology
f Motives
nd
Relationships
The
types
of
encounters
etween
foreigners
nd
Thai
woman
sex
workers
ary
s
greatly
s do
the
venues
hemselves.
rik
Cohen
has
proposed
four-part
ypology
f
xchanges.
he
first e
describes s
Mercenary,
eing
a
purely
conomic
xchange.
The
second
is
the
Stagedrelationship,nwhichthewomendisguisetheir conomic
motive
by
feigning
social
or
love
relationship.
Women n
the
Crossroads
3:2
9
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
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Marc
Askew
stagedmodeaim to maximize ncome rom nwittingoreignmen
who
believe
he
elationship
s
emotionally
ased.
A
third
ype
s the
Mixed
orm
f
exchange,
hich ombines conomic
ewardswith
genuine
eciprocity
f ffection.hefourth
ype
s the
Emotional
ne,
which
values
the
relationship
bove its material
enefits,
lacing
minimal
inancial
emands n
themale
partner
Cohen
1982:
415-
416).
I have learned
from
my
informants,owever,
hat n
the
mixed
and
emotional
stages
the love
(khwamrak)
n
the
relationship
an be
reducedneither o
expressive
emotional)
now
instrumental
material)
motivations,
ecause each s to some
degree
anexpressionf he ther.
Some
women se
a
single ype
f
xchange
lmost
xclusively,
although
hey
re
open
to
other
ypes
f
the
expected
ayoffs
re
good
enough.
Nap,
for
example,
is clear that she
works for
business.
Her
objectives
nd
persona
are close
to
a
(western)
professional
model of
the
prostitute. good
conversationalist
with
fair ommand
f
English,Nap
has worked t beer
bars for
seven
years.
he
has saved
her
money
nd built wohouses n
Ubon
Rachathani.
he has
a 13
year-old
on whom she
is
determinedo
see
well educated.
A
Thai
manoncefell
eeply
n
ove withher
nd
askedherto eavethe
bar,
becausehis
family
id not
pprove.
he
refused.
More
recently Japanese
ustomer sked her to ive
with
himbut
would
only
give
her
monthly
llowance f
8,000
Baht. he
turned
own
this
offer,oo,
because
she considered he
needed at
least
10,000
aht
month
omeether
xpenses
nd educateher on.
Da
operates
rimarily
n
the
staged
mode.
Targeting
lder
menbecause
oftheir
money
nd
stability,
he
stages
omanceswith
men
from
Germany,
merica,
nd
Italy.
She has
gone
on
long
holidays
with
heseolder
men,
nd she even
traveled
o
Germany
with neofthem. herarelysksher ustomersopayfor ex with
cash.
nstead,
he
asks
them o
buy
her
presents, hough
n
one
case
she
also asked
a
live-in over o
pay
therent nher
partment.
She
sustains
her
array
f
ong-distance
elationships
y
means of
letters
n which
he
always
holdsoutthe
possibility
f
marriage.
he
results
f
her
strategy
ave been
highly
ewarding.
t
age
26 she
was
already
unning
laundromat
nd
saving
for
condominium,
while
lso
supporting
er
parents.
he
then
eft he
go-go
bar and
worked
art-time
anaging
er
aundry
nd
part-time
ntertaining
her
visiting
oyfriends.
fter he sold
her
laundry
usiness she
openeda hairdressingalonand visited electedbeer bars in the
evenings.
From
ago-go
dancer
she had
re-invented erself s a
10
Crossroads
3:2
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
12/29
Bangkok
ar
Workersnd the
Negotiation
f
elfhood
businesswoman and woman-about-town,hile continuing o
juggle
a collection
f
her
older and
relatively
ffluent
verseas
boyfriends.
Most
nvolvementsetween
my
nformantsnd
Western
men
fall
ntoCohen's
mixed
classification,
nvolving
oth
pecuniary
and emotional
imensions,
r
less
commonly)
nto
he
emotional
mode,
n which financial onsiderations
re
subordinated
o
the
relationship.
n
both these modes the
women
genuinely
ecome
emotionally
ttached o the
men,
while
also
placing
the men in
patron
olesnot
necessarily
f the
men's own
making.
n
so
doing,
thewomenreconstructetween hetwoparties heThaitraditions
of
unequalreciprocal
xchanges
f
carefor ach
partner's
motional
and
material
elfare.
Maneuvering trategies
While
hewomen
cknowledge
he
tigmatized
ature f
heir
ork,
and
also the conomic eed that
makes t
necessary,
hey
o not
ee
themselves
s
outcasts.
ome
may
blame their
ituation
n fate
(kam),
ut most
display pragmatic
eterminationo
overcome he
difficulties.s Jaiaffirmed,I've got arms, egs,a head, and a
brain,
dding,
I must
fight.
Chum
declared,
I
can
wash
an
elephant,
meaning
he should
handle
enormous
hallenges.
Nit
confirmed
hat these
days
women can
do
anything,
uggesting
both freedom
rom lder moral
restrictionsnd
a
confidence
o
achieve
her
goals.
Thai women bar workers nd
freelance
rostitutes
argain
and
maneuver with their
bodies and
their
capacity
to
act
as
companions
and
escorts. These
personal
resources
constitute
assets
or stakes
n
the
exchanges
with
ustomers.
woman's
gains n the xchange ependonher xperience,earned killssuch
as the
ability
o hustle or
cajole
customersnto
buying
drinks,
having
sex,
or
buying
presents),
pportunity,
nd
ability
to
improvise.
Enhancing
ncome
There re four
ways
that woman
can
enhance he
tability
f
the
flow f ncome:
)
She can
try
o
maximize he
mount f
drinks
nd
tips
she is
given by being
an
alluring
and
attractive
even
aggressive)
ntertainer,
)
she can
find s
many
ustomers
orher
sexual services as possible,forexample by going short-time
(staying
or
-2
hours)
with
everal
ustomersn
the
ame
evening,
Crossroads
3:2
11
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13/29
Marc
Askew
3) shecan cultivate egular ustomersoensure flowof ncome,
and
4)
she
can cultivate
ne
steady
ustomer
n
theform f
holiday
sponsor,
usband,
r
guardian.
While ll four
trategies
an
be used
in
self-construction,
he atter woreceive
pecial
ttentionn
the est
of his
rticle.
Preserving
ersonal
reedom
The women
also
have
strategies
or
preserving ersonal
freedom.
For
example,
women
may
minimize
ossibilities
f
sex with a
particular
lient
y getting
im
o drunk hat
e
cannot
erform
he
sexual act when theyfinally eturn o his hotel. She may also
discourage
ndesirable
lients
ypleading
llness r
menstruation.
Personalizing
elationships
Many
women
frame he
relationships
ith heir
artners
y
means
of
ncreasinglyersonalized
dioms, ehaviors,
nd
symbols
hat
commit
oth
parties
o continued
eciprocal
xchanges.
he
women
encourage
men o
move
gradually
rom
complete
ack
of nterest
n
the
woman
s a
person
indifference/neutrality ),
hrough
fun
r
indulgence
rientation
sociability ),
o
a
personal
nterest
n
the
womanand her ife
regard ),
nd
finally
oa
general
nterestn
her
well-being
( concern ).
The women
who
personalize
relationshipsnterpret,
espond,
nd maneuver oward
harnessing
these
our
ispositions
o
their
dvantage.
There
re
manyways
that
hese
relationships
ith
regular
customers
khaekprajam)
nd friends
pheuan)
an be used
to
improve
women's
ircumstances
oth
n
the
hort nd
ong
term. n
the short
erm
women
who have limited
anguage
skillscan use
their
amiliarity
itha customer o
generate dvantages.
One of
Joo's egularustomersaidforherEnglish anguage essons.Bom
had a
Western
friend
ho
paid
herbar fine
a
feemen
pay
thebar
to take
he
women
ut)
whenever he
was
ill
or
suffering
enstrual
pain,
so
that
he
wouldn't
have to work
at all that
night.
These
customers
id
not
require
he
degree
f
persuasion
r
manipulation
that
would
have been
needed
to
get
the
same results rom
otal
strangers.
n the
onger
erm,
s
we will see
in
later
ections,
he
good
will ecured
ypersonalizing
elationships
s a
precondition
o
more
extensive
maneuvers
hat
produce
even
more
significant
results
or he
woman.
12 Crossroads
3:2
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
14/29
Bangkok
ar
Workersnd the
Negotiation
f elfhood
Deception
Deception
is at
the heart of the
personalized
style
of
Thai
prostitution,
s thewoman
mphasizes
he
special
haracter
fthe
customer
nd flattersis
masculinity.
rostitute
eceptions
re
not
restricted
o
the
foreign-oriented
arket: heard
many
tories
rom
chauffeurs,
axi
drivers,
nd otherThai
men who
had been
parted
from heir
moneyby sweet-talking
ar
workers nd
restaurant
singers
who
had cultivated heir
ity long
with
heir
esires
nd
affection.
he
women ie about
ge,
number f
children,
nd
length
of time
they
have been
working
n
the
bar,
in
order
to
keepthemselvesesirablend marketablen a competitivenvironment.
More elaborate
eceptions
for
xample,
bout
whether r
not
the
woman
has
other overs r
regular
ustomers)
re
an
elaboration f
this
need
to
disguise
etails bout
hemselvesnd their
labor.
Exploiting
ealousy
Men
often
tep
nto
boyfriend
nd
husband ole utof
desire
for
woman's
exclusive
ttention.
articularly
ttractive omen
an
exploit
market onditions
y
playing
men off
gainst
ne
another.
Admiringustomersftenbuy suchwomen ut ofthemarketo
that
other
men will not be
an
emotional
hreat. he
love-struck
admirers
ersuade
the
woman
to leave bar work
nd
in
exchange
provide
them
with a
salary
and often n
apartment.
here s
no
doubt
that
these basic
impulses
of
foreign
male
anxiety
are
harnessed
y
all thewomen s an additional
ool
n
their
uest
for
security.
Converting
ustomers
Khaek)
o
Boyfriends
Faen)
and
Husbands
(Santi)
As thewomenpersonalizeheir elationshipsith oreignmen, he
exchange
f
staged
emotion or
money
ften
ecomes
ransmuted
into
more
complexrelationships
n
which the
women
make real
material
nd emotional
nvestments.
any
of
hebar
workers
ay,
I
want
ust
one
foreign
man
(chan
tongkanarang
ak
khon),
oping
that
relationship
ith
foreigner
ould
change
he
direction f
their
ife.
They
ay
thatwhite
foreigners
re
ai
di
(generous,
ind)
and
have the
virtueof
khzvamrapphitchop
responsibility).
hey
realize
that
not all
foreign
men
are like
this,
but
when
they
ee
friends t
work
developing
artnerships
ith
oreigners
r
hear
of
suchrelationshipshrough ork-placeossip,many xpress hope
for he ame
good
fortune.
hrough
monogamous
elationships
ith
Crossroads
3:2
13
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
15/29
Marc
Askew
thesementhey opeto eavebarwork ndenjoy he tatus erived
from
inancial
ecurity
nd
fromhe
bility
o
support
heir hildren
and
their
amilies.
specially
or lderand less attractive
omen,
the
reciprocal
xchange
f
care nd the ttainmentfthe tatus f
housewife
may
be
more
mportant
han he
money
eceived r
the
sexual
role
dopted
n
the
elationship.
Through
he
personalized
ex shared
with
pecial
overs,
he
Thai women
xpress
valuing
f
their
dentity
nd
sexuality.
he
man's
transformation
rom customer
khaek)
o
boyfriend faen)
and
husband
(santi)
s
strongly
nfluenced
y
the
woman's
behavior,nd theman snever ntirelyn control f he ransaction.
Once
a
woman
has
had a sexual
contactwith ne
of
the
foreigners,
she
tends
to
consider
him her
regular
ustomer nd acts more
intimately
oward
im.
Furthermore,
ost
fthe ther ar
workers,
expecting
hat
ustomers
belong
o
particular
omen,
ow treat
the
man
as
her ustomer.
n
some
ofthe maller ars ex s
totally
unavailable
ecause
all
thewomen
have
steady boyfriends
ho
regularly
isit
hem.
he bar
women
disapprove
f westernmales
who
change
theirwomen
regularly,
colding
them as
jao
chu
(unfaithfullayboy)
or
using
the
English
erm
butterfly.
his
stress
on
monogamy
s not
ust
an
income-enhancing
trategy.
t
minimizes
onflicts
mong
he
women,
nhances he
women's
elf-
esteem
both
n
the
work-place
nd
beyond,
nd is sometimes n
expression
f
genuine
motion.
The
kindof
boyfriend
faen)
esired
y
thebar workerss a
man
who
has one
woman as his
principal
artner.
oth
partners
make
compromises
s the
relationship evelops.
The woman
continues
working
s
a
prostitute,
et
he
extends o
her
boyfriend
special
ffection
whether
staged
r
authentic),
nd
she
may
visit
himregularlyfter arclosing.n return,e changeshisdrinking
patterns
nd
may
notattend
arsat
all. The
man
may
lso
pay
bar
fines
o
give
hera
night
ff
when he
feels
ll
or
tired,
nd he
may
help
her
financially
n other
ways.
These
payments
re now defined
as acts
of
care
or
support
du
lae;
Hang),
ot as
recompense
or
specific
exual
ervices
endered
kha
ua the
price
harged
or
ex).
In
exchange,
he
woman
may xpress
er
own care
nd
support
by
washing
he
man's lothes
r
cleaning
is
apartment.
The women
may
also
stop using
ondoms
with
their
egular
boyfriends.
any
of
hem aid
their eason
or his
ractice
as that
sex withone regular overwas far safer n terms f HIV/AIDS
avoidance.
However,
ondom
usage
among
hesewomen s also
a
14 Crossroads
3:2
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Bangkok
ar Workersnd the
Negotiation
f elfhood
symbolic istancingmechanism imilar o thebehaviors hathave
been
noted
among Filipina
bar
workers
Law
1997)
and
Western
prostitutes
McKeganey
nd
Barnard 996:
4-85).
he Thai
women
said
they referred
oyfriends
ho wereclean
sa-at)
nd
neat
riap
roi),
nd the
nd ofcondom
usage
signals judgment
hat
heman
has
made
the
grade.
A
special
ype
f
boyfriend
s thehusband
sami;
hua),
who
is a
monogamous
artner
nd
benefactor.
he shift
o the
husband
role,
which
may
be
preceded by
intense
visiting
r a
holiday
together,
nvolves
a transitionfrom
bar-based
meetings
to
interactionsrimarilyutside hewoman'sworkplace. he woman
usually
moves
in with her husband
to become a
mae
ban,
or
housewife,
status
that
brings
her both material
ecurity
nd
public
respect.
Women
may
mark
heir ransition rom
ancer
to
housewife
hrough
ew
(more
conservative)
modes of
dress and
hairstyles
see
Odzer
1994:16-17).
ome
housewives
may
even
abandondirect
ex work o take
up
related
oles uch
as
cashier r
mamasan.
These
special relationships
ometimes
evelop
very
uickly.
Anespeciallymportantelationship-buildinganeuvers theup-
country
isit o thewoman's
amily.
hese
visits,
hich re
meant o
gain
material
nd
emotional
dvantage
from
he
relationship,
an
help
solidify
he
relationship
hile also
sending
messages
to the
people
back
home.For
example,
t,
freelance
orker,
acked the
money
to
return
n
style
to
her
village
near
Chiang
Mai
at
the
festival
marking
he
beginning
f Buddhist
ent. So she
nvited
regular
ustomer,
eoff,
o
go
along
withher. n
paying
for
the
family's
eer
nd
whiskey,
nd also
formuch f
thefood
he
family
members
consumed
uring
he
festival,
eoff
nabledEt
to
make
the ontributionsxpected fher s thefamily'sldestdaughter. t
the ame
time,
he
rip
olidified he
motional
elationship
etween
the wo
of
hem,
venmore han t had
expected.
urthermore,
fter
the
trip
Et's
coworkers reated
her as Geoff's
teadygirlfriend.
Shortly
fter he
rip,
t
moved nto
Geoff's
partment
nd
thetwo
werereclassified
urthers husband
nd wife.
inally,
ow
that
he
had met he
family,
eoff ould
support
ith concern
he
family's
status
n
its
community.
or
example,
when Et's
father
ecame
village
headman,
Geoff cted on
Et's
mother's
uggestion
hat
he
buy
thefather
gold
watch
n
honor f
henew
status.
Crossroads
3:2
15
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
17/29
Marc Askew
MonogamyndReciprocity
Even
though
hey
hemselves
ay
continue
working
n
bars,
many
of
the women
expect
their overs to be
monogamous.
When
Nit
came
home
from
two-day
rip
o
find
her
Swiss
boyfriend
n
bed
with
another
bar
women,
she
rejected
him
immediately.
ther
women
may permit
n occasional
fling
withother
rostitutes,
o
long
as
the
man continues
providing support
and
avoids
embarrassing
er
with
publicly
isible
nfidelity.
ublic
nfidelity
presents
ot
only
sexual
threat,
ut also
a
threat o the
woman's
status
and
face. For
example,
Jai
split
withher
long-standing
Americanover,Sam,when she found thathe had takenhome
another
woman
from
her bar while she had been
visiting
her
parents.
n retaliation
or is
committing
is
nfidelity
n
front f
her
friends,
he
reduced
Sam to tears
by going
out with
another
customer
n his
presence.
A
few of
the women re
willing
o be mistresses
o married
foreign
en.
These
relationships
onform
o
the
Thai
culturalmodel
thatCohen
(1993:
116)
has termed
master/mistress,
n
which
women
alibrate
heir evelofemotional
ependency
o the evel of
material
upport
eceived.
heir
motions
o not
quate
o
love
n
the
purest
westernomantic
ense,
utneitherre
they
aked
Cohen
1993:
16).
These
women,
who
may
be
supported
ith
partments
r
regular
money
remittances,
re
equivalent
o mia
noi,
or
minor
wives,
he
dependent
nmarried omen
maintained
y many
Thai
men.
My
nformants
erenot omfortable
ith hemianoi
abel,
nd
each
of
the
fifty
omen interviewed
enied that t
applied
to
themselves.
he
mianoi s a
socially espised
role,
nd
many
f
my
informants
ad
already xperienced
Thaihusband's
nfidelity
ith
such
a woman.
Nevertheless,
any
of the women were
n
effect
living hemia noi roleand could be highly ossessiveof the men
who
supported
hem.One
of them
ven warneda married over
who
was
returning
o
England
hat e should
not
play
round,
y
which
he
meant
he
should
not
engage
n additional
elationships
besides
the
ones
with his
English
wife
and his Thai lover. The
women
are
willing
o become
mistresses
artly
ecause,
already
knowing
heir
overs
re
married,
hey
void
worries bout
making
such
discovery
ater.
urthermore,
ome
viewthe
relationship
s a
temporary
nd
primarily
inancial
ne,
even
though
he motion s
real
nough
or hem
oconsider
t form f
marriage.
Cohabitationnd serialvisitingrrangementssuallyplace
the
foreign
en
n
patron
olesnot
necessarily
ftheir
wn
making.
16
Crossroads
3:2
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
18/29
Bangkok
ar Workersnd the
Negotiationf elfhood
Themenmay eek to demonstrate asculinityndpotencynthese
partnerships
f
asymmetrical
ower,
but
they
have
in
factbeen
assimilated
to
a dominant
Thai
culturalmodel that
assumes a
reciprocal
elationship
nd confers tatus and
security
n the
woman.
The combination
f
exual, motional,material,
ocial,
nd
symbolic
xchanges
n
the
developing elationship
ives
hewoman
greater
quality
of
power
and benefits han
may
at
first
ppear,
especially
ver
he
onger
erm.
Notions
f
commoditizationf
exuality,
s
applied
to
Thai
prostitute/Western
ale
relationships,
ften overlook
the
pre-
existing ommoditizationnherentn customaryransactionsnd
calculations
f
brideprice
nd
arrangedmarriage
for
details,
ee
Kaufman
960:151-152,
lausner
992:85-87,
nd
Sumalee
1995:96-
99).
Many
of
my
nformantsad no
say
n
their irst
marriage,
nd
many
ftheir
arents
ad chosen
pouses
for hem
xplicitly
n
the
basis
of
the man's
family
wealth. For both
mistresses
and
housewives
he
financialasis for he
elationships
ith
oreigners
s
rooted
n these
ustomary
arriage ractices.
Westernmen
who
try
to
avoid
the
financial
xpectations
isk
osing
the
relationship
altogether. in leftherlong-standing artnerwhenhe failedto
register
n hername thenew househe had
bought
n
Pattaya.
When
Da's German
oyfriend
rotested
seemingly
xorbitant
rideprice
payment,
he
felt o insulted hat he ended the
relationship
nd
refused
ven
to talkto
him
at thebar. WhenBill
told
Ray
thathe
couldn't
help
her n a financial
mergency,
he
complained
hathe
didn't
ove
her. When
John
efused o
help
his
girlfriend
ut in a
gambling
ebt,
he stole
ll
his audio
equipment,
onsidering
t
ust
compensation
or er ttentions.
The Western
men's
position
outside the Thai
moral
and
cultural rder hereforeasbothdangers nd advantagesfor he
women.
The
danger
is that the
man
may
not
understand he
significance
f
family
onds
or tolerate he
seemingly
onstant
requests
for
money
to
help
friends nd
relatives.
Almost all
my
informants
aid
their
boyfriends
id
not
fully
understand he
importance
f
familyoyalties,
nd several ad
lost
oversdue to
the
financial emands
from
women's
families. he
advantage
of
the
relationships
ies
in
theWestern
men's
tolerance. he
women
say
that
Thai
men look down
even on
widows and
single
mothers;
prostitutes
re even less
well
regarded.
The
women
prefer
he
Westernmen, who view them not as fallen women or
professional
rostitutes
ut
rather s
lovers,
hereby
ffirming
Crossroads
3:2 17
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
19/29
Marc Askew
their ersonal ndsexual dentitys ordinary, arriageable omen
who
happen
o
have
problems.
Ordinary
Women
nd
theThree
pheres
f
Self-Construction
The
disillusionment
temming
rom he
personal
nd
family
rises
that
underlay
he women's
movement
nto
prostitution
as shorn
away
many
of their
ld
assumptions
bout the
moral
and social
order.
hey
have
faced lienation nd aloneness
n
coming
o terms
with
prostitution
s
a
way
of
making
money.
The
sex workers
recovering
tatus
hrough
elations
ithWesternmen seek
neither
therestorationf n old worldnor returno a whole,harmonious
state
of
pre-prostitute
eing. They
are instead
building
new
identities
hat
win them
ew status nd
respect
n
each ofthe
reas
important
o
them.
Thesenew
dentitiesre
framedn
terms hared
by
all women
who
ive nd work
n
the
Thaiurban nvironment.
There
are at
least three
broad,
overlapping pheres
where
women
channel
nd convert he
material nd social resources f
their
artners
o
gain
tatus
nd
respect.
n
the
phere
f
parents
nd
family,
tatus
s
gained
through
ontributionso
house-building,
hospital ills,
chool
fees
for
iblings,
motor
ehicle
urchases,
nd
debt
payments.
ike women n otherforms f urban
work,
my
informants
spire
obe
financiallyndependent
ot
only
o
they
an
be
modern
onsumers
ut lso
so
they
an
fulfillheir
bligations
s
worthy
amily
members.
ven
more
mportant
han the
ties to
parents
nd
siblings
re
thewomen's
ies o their wn
children
rom
previous
elationships,
any
fwhomwere
iving
ackhome
n
the
village.
For
many
of these
women,
he children
were a source of
emotional
ustenance.
s Bom
pointed
out,
If I
didn'thave
my
child,
would
have
committed
uicide
by
now.
Most
nformants
saidclearlyhatf foreignman was not nterestednthe hildren,
then
here
would
be
no future
n
the
elationship.
In the
sphere
of
peers,
the
women
are,
like
their
actory-
working
isters
for
which ee
Ubonrat
989),
onscious f
the
ways
that
co-workers
nd
friends
valuate
them.For
my
informants,
status
is
affirmed
hrough
xpenditures
hat
emphasize
their
identity
s
women
whose
men
upport
hem
well. Modern
lothing,
jewelry,
nd
the
apacity
o treat
riendso
a meal
Hang heuan)
re
key
markers
n the
phere
f
peers.
Language
essons,
olidays,
nd
regular
oyfriends
ho
act as
sponsors
nd
companions
re also
important arkers.Women switch ackand forth etween he
submissive
oles
expected
n the
phere
f
parents
nd
family
nd
18 Crossroads
3:2
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20/29
Bangkok
ar Workersnd the
Negotiationf
Selfhood
the more flamboyant nes expectedin the sphere of friends,
emphasizing
ifferent
tatus
nd
dentity
arkers
n
each
sphere.
In
the
phere
f the
elf hewomenvalue acts nd
symbols
such
as
sex,
mutual
respect,
motional
bonding,
and material
security
that
ffirm
he
relationship'stability.
Womenwho have
formed
ermanent
elationships
ith
oreigners
ave recovered
sense
oftheir
elf-worth
s
daughters,
others,
nd
wives.Material
support
s so
crucial
n
affirming
his
enseof self-worth
hat
many
women
form
ong-termelationships
ithmen
they
alue
more s
friends,
ompanions,
nd
sources
f financial
ecurity
han
s men
theyoveromantically.hen askedDangif he oved hermiddle-
aged
fiancee,
he
responded,
ak hiwit
I
love life.
Likewise,
it
commented,
You
can't eat
love,
when
explainingwhy
she
had
avoided
nvolvement
ith
poor
man.
There
is
a
strong
element of self-interest
n
all
these
relationships,
s
the womenuse them o
improvewell-being
nd
enjoy
new
experiences.
he
relationships
nable them o
travel,
o
accumulate
ossessions,
ndto have
(and
be seen to
have)
security.
Yet the
women
do not
develop
these
relationships
ormaterial
reward lone. n Thaimarriagesheprovisionfmaterial ell-being
is
a
symbol
f
thehusband's
egard,
fhis
conferring
ace
na)
and
honor
kiat)
o the
woman. The
reciprocityegotiated
n
foreign-
oriented
rostitutes'
elationships
herefore
nvolvesthe Western
men
n their
hai
partners' rojects
o enhance heir
ersonal
alue
(khunkha).
hese
projects
entangle foreign
overs' financial
nd
emotional
esources,
isplaying
he oversand their
esources
s
meaningful
elf-enhancing
tatus markers n each
of the
three
spheres
mportant
o thewomen's dentities.
Entanglementnd thePassageofCommodities
Nicholas
Thomas
(1991)
argues
that
n
the
interactions
mong
societies
haped
by
differentistories
nd
by
different
ystems
f
meaning
nd action here an be mutual
ppropriation
f
things
into
the
competing pheres
of
exchange.
Thus
in
Thailand
the
Western
males,
their
money,
and their
emotions can
become
appropriated
entangled )
as status
resources
n
a
system
he
dimensions
f
which hemen
barely
pprehend.
here s
no
doubt
that
men can be treated
urely
s a
means of
obtaining
ash
and
other
enefits,
nd
certainly
he
Westernmen are seen
as
affluent
others whan some womenprefer ot to assimilate nto their
personal
lives or that of their
families.
However,
the notion
of
Crossroads
3:2
19
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Marc Askew
entanglement s most relevant o the women'sreciprocalnd
relatively nduring relationships
with
the
boyfriends
nd
husbands
whom
they
do
assimilate ntotheir
worlds.The
men
participate
n traditional
illage
marriage
ceremonies,
giving
immense
leasure
and
pride
to
their
doptive
n-laws.
They
also
assist
n
family
rojects
nd are often
enuinely
dopted
s
family
members.
The
deeper
these men's
involvementwith
theirThai
lovers,
he
deeper
becomes their
ngagement
and
obligations)
within
he
ignificant
etworks hich nform
he overs'
ives.The
material
enefits
fthe
elationship
hereforeecome used
with
he
emotional nd social ones, becausepersonalvalue,respect, nd
goodwill
re defined
nd
affirmed
y things.
The
translationf materialnto
motional onds s
best seen
by appreciating
he
multivalency
f
gold, specially
old
chains. n
Thai
society
he
possession
and
display
of
gold
ornamentss
of
crucial
significance.
hey
betoken
assets,
status,
and
secure
relationships.
n
material
erms,
old
canbe sold or
pawned
for
ash
in times f
need.
In
status
erms,
t
gives
thewearer
ace
na).
Gold
chains
can
also
symbolize
key relationships
nd
compacts.
Traditionally,
omenhave
expected
heir hai
suitors o
give
them
gold,
as a
gold
chain
signifies
hecommitmentnd
strength
f
regard
f
he over.
A
lover
maygive gold
chain o
his
sweetheart,
and
a
gold
chain s
also a central oken
iven
o a
bride-to-be
y
her
formally romised
groom.
Unlike the
customary
ash
payment
made
to a bride's
arents,
his
old
chain
given y
thefiancé
tays
n
thebride's
possession.
Westernuitors re
ikewise
xpected
o
give
gold
chains s
the
relationshipevelops,
o show the
depth
f
their
regard
or heir
pecial
overs.
Gold,
which s
perhaps quintessential
temof
congealed
laborvalue for ex workersafterMarx),can thereforeecome
entangled
etween he
Thai and Western
ymbolic
conomies.As
Christopher
oore noted
n his novels of
Bangkok
xpatriate
ife
(for
xample,
Moore
1992:
5),
the
mark
f successful arworker
s
the
mount
f
gold
she
wears.The
gold ewelry
unctionss a
badge
of
onquest
nd status.
he
foreign
endo not
produce
he
meaning
of
gold
as status
marker,
ut their nvolvement
n
its
symbolic
economy ighlights
he
process
f
ntanglement.
The
gold
chains
have emotional
nd transactional
ignificance
in each of
the three
pheres
f
self-construction.
or
Jai,
he
gold
chain givenby her Americanboyfriend, am, symbolizedthe
relationship's
ond of ove
and commitment.fter he
broke
up
20 Crossroads
3:2
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8/9/2019 Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood
22/29
Bangkok
ar
Workersnd the
Negotiation
j
Selfhood
withhim hehad taken ut anotherwomanfrom erbarwhile he
was
away),
the hain
had lost ts
ignificance,
nd
she
sold t to
pay
her
mother's
ospital
fees.
Jai's
mother id not
know that
Jai
had
broken
p
with
am
(whom
hemother ad met
on his
visit o
the
family
illage
n Prachinburi
rovince),
nd when
Jai
visitedher n
the
hospital
he
mother
sked
about he
missing
hain.
Her
question
affected
ai
eeply,
ecause
I
didn'twantmum
o
know hat
hings
were
starting
o