The Gray Area Between Geisha and Prostitution

Many people unfamiliar with Japanese culture believe that Geisha is just another term for prostitute. However, Memoirs of a Geisha heavily defines the line between a Geisha and a prostitute. The main reason Arthur Golden wrote the book was to familiarize people with the Japanese culture surrounding Geisha, which is not something present in Western culture.

• Geisha are known as the physical embodiment of art
• There are many distinct differences made between Geisha and prostitutes, a big part of why many think that the art of Geisha is simply prostitution is because in many cities, prostitutes would pose as Geisha, but be unfamiliar with the art and practices of Geisha.
• Geisha are also strictly forbidden to have sexual relations of any kind, with the exception of their danna.

In Japanese culture, Geisha are known as the physical embodiment of ever practice of art. Potential Geisha start training in the arts from a very young age. They spend many hours per day practicing dance, music, and tea ceremony. Mameha, Sayuri’s older sister when she’s an apprentice, tries to explain the importance of the arts to Sayuri. “Dance has everything to do with it. If you look around at the most successful geisha in Gion, every one of them is a dancer (Golden, 150).” After many years as a Geisha, Sayuri herself tries to explan to the audience the importance of the arts. “You must remember that a geisha, above all, is an entertainer and a performer. We may pour sake or tea for a man, but we never go and fetch another serving of pickles (Golden, 143).” Although the main goal for Geisha is to attract the attention of and please men, it’s done in a more humble way that is not connected to prostitution. Their aim is to attract the men’s attention, and then keep them entranced with their artistic value.

There are many distinct differences made between Geisha and prostitutes throughout the book. One of the differences between the two is the way the obi is tied. On a prostitute, the obi is tied at the front, to make it easy for the women to take it on and off. On a Geisha, however, it’s tied in the back, so she can’t take it on and off herself. “They wore kimono and hair ornaments similar to Geisha, but their obi were tied in the front rather than the back. I’d never seen this before and didn’t understand it, but it’s the mark of a prostitute. A woman who must take her sash on and off all night can’t be bothered with tying it behind her again and again (Golden, 83).” Sayuri mentions many a time in the book how the Western view of Geisha is very skewed. “Since moving to New York I’ve learned what the word “geisha” really means to most Westerners. From time to time at elegant parties, I’ve been introduced to some young woman or other in a splendid dress and jewelry. When she learns I was once a geisha in Kyoto, she forms her mouth into a sort of smile, although the corners don’t turn up quite as they should. She has no idea what to say! …this woman is thinking, “My goodness... I’m talking with a prostitute..” A moment later she’s rescued by her escort, a wealthy man a good thirty or forty years older than she is. Well, I often find myself wondering why she can’t sense how much we really have in common. She is a kept woman, you see, and in my day, so was I (Golden, 291).” A big part of the reason there’s confusion in the gray area between a Geisha and a prostitute is because women would pose as Geisha, but actually be prostitutes who were not trained in any arts or practices. However, there are subtle differences in the way a Geisha looks.

Geisha are strictly forbidden to have any sexual relations. Although a Geisha sells her mizuage to the highest bidder to truly ‘become a woman’, from then on she is only permitted to have sexual relations with her danna, in exchange for financial care. Even a man’s presence in the okiya is strictly forbidden. “I haven’t even tried to make your life miserable yet. But if you ever mention that a man came here, or even that he stopped in before the end of the evening that will change (Golden, ).” Sayuri makes the cage that a geisha has to live in really clear when she talks of a man she met and desired. “I felt such a combination of anger at Mother and longing for Yasuda-san that I made up my mind right then to do the very thing Mother had ordered me most explicitly not to do. I asked him to meet me in that very teahouse at midnight, and I left him there alone (Golden, 307)." The life of a Geisha is so restricted in terms of sexual relations that it keeps it as far away from prostitution as possible. Much of a Geisha’s worth is based on how ‘unused’ she is.

There may be gray area between the terms ‘geisha’ and ‘prostitute’, but a geisha is very far from a prostitute. Geisha are not prostitutes, which is apparent in their ethics, their arts and practices, and even their appearance. The art of the Geisha is to attract the men, while prostitution is to please the men.  

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