This topic is important because it covers a multitude of aspects of American life in the 20th century. Prostitution presents an interesting case study on the class system in the United States (prostitutes vs. reform efforts). Prostitution as a profession, along with the increase of prostitution due to rapid urbanization, reflects how the rise of the Industrial Revolution and the Gilded Age began to transform social roles and economic opportunities. The choice made by females to enter into prostitution compared to female reform efforts reveals the difference in attitudes between the old Victorian society and the new immigrant populations. Reform efforts signal serious attempts to reconcile drastic economic and industrial shifts with social change. Prostitutes also served as the ideal ‘new’ American woman. They ignored the old Victorian gender ideals and morals in order to climb the social ladder. An additional reason why this topic is important is that it does not receive enough attention in textbooks and school curriculums. Prostitution is a very taboo subject and is seen as offensive to many. However, if emphasis is placed upon prostitution as it relates to the social, political, and economic spheres of American society (rather than the sexual and often times violent nature of the profession itself), prostitution and reform efforts can reveal a lot of vital information about the social and cultural clashes that were spawned out of the Industrial Revolution, increased immigration, and rising urbanization.
