The State of Sex: Tourism, Sex and Sin in the New American Heartland

by Kathryn M. Hausbeck

The State of Sex is a study of Nevada’s brothels that situates the nation's only legal brothel industry in the political economy of contemporary tourism. Nevada is part of the "new American heartland," as its pastimes, people, and politics have become more central to the nation. The rise of a service and leisure economy over the past sixty years has propelled sexuality into the heart of contemporary markets. Yet, neoliberal laws in the United States promote business but limit sexual commerce.

How have Nevada's legal brothels survived, while the rest of the country criminalizes prostitution? How do brothels operate? Who works in them? This book brings social theory on globalizing economies, politics, leisure consumption, and emotional labor in interactive service work together with research on contemporary prostitution and sexual commerce. The authors employ an innovative, multi-method sociological approach, combining historical analysis of how the brothels came to be with over a decade's worth of ethnographic research on the current state of the industry.

Genres: Sex Work, Nonfiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Rachel Smith keller · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, extremely in-depth analysis of the historical, cultural, economic, and other aspects of prostitution in Nevada. I learned a TON from this book - thank you Brent's, Jackson, and Hausbeck. Lets hope this gets into the national discourse that's influencing prostitution policy.