Western University Scholarship@Western Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository 10-5-2018 1:00 PM Intelligible Variability: Narratives of Male Sex Work in London Ontario Canada Nathan Dawthorne The University of Western Ontario Supervisor Darnell, Regna The University of Western Ontario Graduate Program in Anthropology A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree in Doctor of Philosophy © Nathan Dawthorne 2018 Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd Part of the Gender and Sexuality Commons, and the Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons Recommended Citation Dawthorne, Nathan, "Intelligible Variability: Narratives of Male Sex Work in London Ontario Canada" (2018). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 5773. https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/5773 This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarship@Western. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository by an authorized administrator of Scholarship@Western. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Abstract Compared to women, there is limited knowledge concerning men working in the sex trade in Canada. London (Ontario) in particular has been the epicentre of campaigns and lobbying against the sex industry for its alleged exploitation of women. In this environment, most policymakers and service providers argue that men-who-sell-sex are non-existent or are so rare that they are not worth consideration, if they are acknowledged in the first place. Yet other gendered configurations of the sex industry do exist. Given the city’s lack of comprehensive inquiry, this dissertation sets about finding these men and documenting their life histories. This allows for the differentiation of what may be integral to the industry from what is specifically gendered. From 2015 through 2017, semi-structured and online interviews with 43 men were recorded. The life histories and accounts produced followed linear plots, separated into phases; these offered insight into their childhoods, entrance-into-the-trade, and the fundamentals of sex work. Various details of family life, issues of class, coming-out, sexual abuse, mental health, disability, homelessness, criminality, and addiction weaved throughout different stories. Accounts of choice, female clients, intimacy, friendship, and the non-sexual contradicted archetypes and popular discourse on the nature of the industry. Mapping the complex relationships men had with social classifications confirms that those in the sex trade face a multitude of stigmas. The subjugation of certain masculinities by hegemonic norms was a major component of this. Accounting for this vulnerability thus challenges assumptions that men are automatically in positions of power based on their gender. While being a man in any one social context made certain things more or less likely to happen, gender affected the interpretations men and others had for their actions. Feelings of oppression were ambiguous; structural vulnerabilities, choice, and need influenced the ways a man felt empowered or powerless. Regardless of sexuality, hegemonic norms of masculinity also served as tools to counter feminized tropes of helplessness and maintain a sense of dignity. Instead of compartmentalizing the identities and roles of sex workers and dehumanizing them, privileging their stories gave rare insight into their lives and the lives of their clients, proving that seamless and simplistic visions of harm and privilege have been inadequate, where one-size does not fit all. Keywords: Male sex work; Masculinity; Stigma management; Identity; Intersectionality; Narrative inquiry; Ethnography; Qualitative research; London Ontario; Gender studies; Sociocultural anthropology; Public policy; Social research ii Acknowledgements Thanks to the Ontario Graduate Scholarship program (2016), the Regna Darnell Graduate Award for Fieldwork in Sociocultural Anthropology (2014-2016), and the Graduate Research Award (2015). Regna, if it were not for your guiding hand I would not be where I am today. I thank you for being one of the very few who are not afraid to look reality in the face and fight for what is right. I am forever grateful that where others see naivete and I see an imposter, you see a sense of wonder. Douglass, all those years ago you showed me what it is to be a teacher, and what anthropology can be. Thank you for your inspiration and queered insights. Treena, thanks for your assistance with my comprehensive exams and introducing me to the quandaries of advocacy work. To the other members of my committee, Chris Atchison, Wendy Pearson, and Gerald McKinley: I am extremely appreciative for your time, support, and guidance. Thanks to Kim Clark and Karen Pennesi for your references. Kelly, my fellow Anthro-nerd and sister-friend. Thanks for knowing how to brighten this curmudgeon’s day and understanding all my Nathan-isms. You made graduate school a lot less lonely. Dakota, you are one of the strongest souls I have ever known. I’m sorry this dissertation took so much of my time. Michael, we survived! It is your love, support and patience that have made this dissertation possible. Thank you for being my champion for half of my life. Mom, it has been 12 years since you have gone but consider this your 55th birthday present. Thank you for my humility, creativity, and heart. Special thanks to those men who shared their lives with me. Though we may have only known each other for a short while, I will always carry your stories with me. iii Table of Contents Abstract ............................................................................................................................... ii Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................ iii List of acronyms ............................................................................................................... vii List of tables ..................................................................................................................... viii List of figures ..................................................................................................................... ix List of plates .........................................................................................................................x List of appendices .............................................................................................................. xi Preface............................................................................................................................... xii 1. Introduction ......................................................................................................................1 2. Historical perspective.......................................................................................................5 2.1. Pre-1900s ................................................................................................................. 5 2.2. Homosexuality ......................................................................................................... 9 2.3. Typologies.............................................................................................................. 13 2.4. Prostitution law ...................................................................................................... 15 2.5. Vectors of disease .................................................................................................. 17 2.6. Trafficking hysteria ................................................................................................ 19 2.6. Post-modern sensibilities ....................................................................................... 23 2.7. Summary ................................................................................................................ 26 3. Research praxis and recruitment activities ...................................................................28 3.1. Narrative methodology .......................................................................................... 32 3.2. Establishing interviews .......................................................................................... 35 3.3. Recruitment problematics ...................................................................................... 40 3.4. Interview considerations ........................................................................................ 44 3.5. Recruitment positionality ....................................................................................... 45 3.6. Demographics ........................................................................................................ 48 4. Intersubjective interview reflections ..............................................................................51 4.1. Queer sensibility .................................................................................................... 53 4.2. Rapport building as an outsider ............................................................................. 55 4.3. Emotional considerations ....................................................................................... 59 4.4. Conclusion ............................................................................................................. 62 5. Growing Up: Diverse Commonalities ..........................................................................64 iv 5.1. Unexceptional middle