ABSTRACT

This study examined the internal moral debate that takes place among Israeli men who pay for sex (MWPS) while traveling abroad. We explored how they construct their sense of moral worth and present themselves as moral subjects in light of the intensified stigmatization of their actions. Using the theoretical frameworks of pragmatic morality and boundary work, we conceptualize four main moral justification regimes that MWPS use to construct themselves as moral subjects: Cultural normalization; Conditional freedom of choice; The altruistic act of charity; and Unpacking the Stigma Discourse. The findings highlight how these justification regimes are anchored in three intersecting fields – cultural, spatial, and power relations – which produce various matrices of conflict, compromise, or collaboration in different situations. Thus, the flexible switching between various justification regimes reveals how MWPS define themselves and their activities and negotiate various moral dispositions – akin to various cultural logics – in the context of moral taint and stigma.

摘要

这项研究调查了在出国旅行时支付性服务 (MWPS) 的以色列男性之间发生的内部道德辩论。我们探讨了他们如何建构他们的道德价值感，并根据他们行为的加剧污名化将自己呈现为道德主体。使用务实道德和边界工作的理论框架，我们将 MWPS 用来将自己构建为道德主体的四种主要道德正当化制度概念化：文化规范化；有条件的选择自由；慈善的利他行为；和拆开耻辱话语. 调查结果强调了这些正当化制度如何锚定在三个交叉领域——文化、空间和权力关系——这在不同情况下产生了各种冲突、妥协或合作矩阵。因此，各种正当化制度之间的灵活切换揭示了 MWPS 如何定义自己和他们的活动，并在道德污点和耻辱的背景下协商各种道德倾向——类似于各种文化逻辑。