Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood

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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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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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




4/29

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




5/29

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




6/29

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




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




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




9/29

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




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




11/29

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




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




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




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




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




16/29

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




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




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




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




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




21/29

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




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

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Bangkok Bar Workers and the Negotiation of Selfhood

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