The Acceptance Of Prostitution And Child Prostitution In The Ancient Greek And Roman Empires

The Roman Empire was a time when children were viewed as a threat. Parents forced many children into prostitution. The family of the child’s birth could not afford the cost of raising them. (Grille. In ancient Rome, the government taxed child prostitutes. The Roman Empire was very accepting of child prostitution.

In ancient Rome, having a prostitute child was considered a noble and fashionable accessory for the wealthy (Jackson 2006, p.44). In Roman times, parents sold their children as slaves to slave-owners to become child prostitutes. Jackson states that these slave children were made to do everything they could to please their masters. The children were forced to perform sexual acts and have sexual relations for their masters. The Romans accepted this practice, even though it’s illegal today. The family of the daughter had more money because she was a prostitute, so they could better support their daughter.

Children who were captured in wartimes would also be sold for prostitution (Ditmore 2006, p.38). Some of these kids were captured and placed in cages to entertain Roman citizens. Others were sold into prostitution by slave owners. Slave-owners sold captured child prostitutes for money. They then placed them in public to attract clients and make money.

It is known that the Greeks and Romans were in favor of sexual relations with young boys. The fact that many writers have written about child sexual abuse and prostitution is a good indication.

Brett Kahr claims that Aristotle and Plato both advocated anal sex between men. This is called pederasty. Plato believed in sharing boys amongst many men. Aristotle endorsed the sexual abuse of children. But Kahr claims that Aristotle was the first writer to warn against the sexual relationship between a father and son. Kahr continues to state that ancient Romans used children and the use was integrated into their culture. One example was establishing a public holiday to honor child prostitutes.”

My opinion is that, if Plato, Aristotle and other great philosophers in the Greek-Roman era support child prostitution it would be reasonable to assume the majority Greek and Roman citizens agree. In ancient Greece and Rome, child prostitution is a practice that was widely accepted.

DeMause claimed that Romans were known to borrow young boys from neighbors for sexual purposes. It is difficult to prove that incest was also practiced in an infanticidal manner, as what happened in the bed of the family often leaves no historical trace. DeMause (1998) states that all records show this to be the case. Child prostitutes were not immune to abuse. It was commonplace and had gone on for many years.

“It started at around seven years of age, lasted for a number of years, then stopped when puberty set in, as the boy’s pubic and facial hairs began appearing. Rent-a-boys, child brothels and sexslavery were all commonplace in ancient cities. In antiquity, child brothels, rent-a-boy services and sex slavery flourished in every city.

In Roman Times, child prostitutes were not considered a criminal offense. Slave owners bought and sold child prostitutes to make money (Grille 2005, n.p.). Justin Martyr describes sex among prostitutes as “godless, infamous and impure” (ctd. Bakke 2005, page 122). My opinion is that the Romans used prostitution to get sex from a child, regardless of whether it was willing or not.

Since ancient times, child prostitution has been a thing. The Romans were not the first to practice child prostitution. Today, it is still going on. Child prostitution in Roman times was not only accepted, but also encouraged. Romans accepted child prostitution (Ditmore, 2006). The Romans were not considered wrong for having sexual relations with their children. It is human nature to look down at people today.