Chester Brown's latest graphic novel Paying For It: A Comic-Strip Memoir About Being A John isn't as much about buying into prostitution as it is about buying out of romantic love. Brown, who's done his share of personal-memoir comics as well as a bio on Canadian revolutionary Louis Riel, is less about titillation and more about social and personal questions than some of the publicity the book's received might suggest. And even as activists protest the exploitation of sex workers world-wide, Brown comes down firmly in support of the right-to-do business and the women involved in this (mostly) illegal activity. He's critical as well of the legal variants...think Nevada's highly regulated model. But, yes, it's about sex, too. Peek under its covers....
Brown's memoir, the kind of Gonzo journalism Hunter Thompson only dreamed of doing, chronicles his business relations with several women, a chapter each, between 1999 and 2003. The Canadian paints a hooker world quite contrary to the one seen in movies and reality shows (laws are different in Canada): believable, business-like yet personal, as friendly--and as full of pratfalls-- as dealings with any service industry employees. After one or two false starts, he takes the writings of Dan Savage as his guide into the world of pay-as-you-go sex. With some help, he's smart enough to figure it out. It doesn't take much, nor does it take much experience to outgrow the cliches. He's intelligent enough to keep asking himself questions as he goes on. He has friends-- cartoonist Seth and Joe Matt--who challenge his thinking.
Since it's release in May, Brown's book has gained its share of attention. Could it have anything to do with the subject matter? (We're trying to figure how much discussion of the actual issues it's generated.) I like to think its because of Brown's honest, reality-based embrace of prostitution as well as the various related issues he raises, including a discussion of the values of romantic love. You can read reviews here, here and here.
Brown states that prostitution should be decriminalized and not regulated (Brown ran for a seat in the Canadian parliament in 2008 as a Libertarian). "Regulation would mean licencing(sic)--not all prostitutes would want to licence...As a result, many would work in the black market." You might say, he's too smart for his own good.
While not as controversial (or maybe it is) Brown comes full-out against the concept of romantic love. As the story begins, his girlfriend asks if she can continue to live in the apartment if she starts to see someone else. Yes, Brown says; and says it again when the boyfriend wants to move in. He comes to see love and romantic love as "two very different emotions":
Love is about sharing, caring and giving. Romantic love is about owning hoarding and jealousy....I think it encourages a certain type of thinking, the desire to own another person.
Brown's courtesy is equal to his honesty. His consideration for the time of his partners brings him to the decision to include no more than 10 minutes of sex when paying for a 30 minute session. The other 20? Preliminaries as he talks to the workers to learn about the profession and their lives.
The drawings are appropriately serious, Brown's bald head and blank glasses the standard fixture. His penis takes a leading role and it's only here that we doubt his honesty in depiction (the words "six inches" make an appearance). He's taken pains to hide the workers real names and distinguishing characteristics, even physiques. Thought bubbles cover faces. The depictions of sex are all of a type, all from the same angles, not exactly erotic but somehow, strung together, not exactly not.
We read Brown's 1994 excellent teenage memoir of confusion and alienation I Never Liked You searching for clues to what might have influenced the beliefs that he holds. Yes, his mother is strange and distant. But I might have had better luck with his masturbatory, formative-years story The Playboy.
The one constant in all his books are the end notes. Those to Louis Riel are a detailed and informative look at the sources of his story. There are even end notes to I Never Liked You. The pages following Paying For It are where Brown lays out his detailed defense of prostitution and his anti-romantic love stance. There are many books out there dealing with the oldest profession. Few, especially from a John's standpoint, are as personal.
ILLUSTRATED IMAGINATION business...
We missed these series/diaries and ask that you not:
Manga and Anime Fans at Daily Kos The name says it all.
The Rise and Fall of Underground Comics: Zapping Back To a Squinky San Francisco Past. The glory days and promised land of underground comics. Mr. Natural save my life.
That leaves us looking for anyone anxious to take a week of the series and write about their favorite graphic novel, favorite graphic novelist, related graphic novel themes or discuss any genre of graphic novel. Hurry! Sign up for any Thursday, beginning with July 28, in the comments below.This series (tentatively) ends with August.
Finally, though not exactly in the back country, I'll be close enough when this diary is published that it's doubtful I'll have internet. You're on your own. I'll catch up with comments when possible. Thanks!
CABBAGE RABBIT REVIEW OF BOOKS AND MUSIC