Courtesan
From the Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia that anyone can change
A courtesan was a high-class prostitute or mistress, especially one associated with rich, powerful, or noble men who gifted luxuries and status in exchange for her services. In Renaissance Europe, courtesans played an important role in high class society, sometimes taking the place of wives at social roles. Courtesans usually enjoyed more freedoms than was typical of women at the time. For example, they were did not have money problems and were more independent. Madame de Pompadour (1721–1764), the famous mistress and favorite of King Louis XV of France, is an example of courtesan. Courtesans also existed in many countries outside Europe, like India and Japan.
[change] See also
[change] References
- Griffin, Susan. The Book of the Courtesans: A Catalogue of Their Virtues. New York: Broadway Books, 2001.
- Hickman, Katie. Courtesans: Money, Sex, and Fame in the Nineteenth Century. New York: HarperCollins, 2003.
- Lawnes, Lynne. Lives of the Courtesans: Portraits of the Renaissance. New York: Rizzoli, 1987.
- Rounding, Virginia. Grandes Horizontales: The Lives and Legends of Four Nineteenth-Century Courtesans. London: Bloomsbury, 2003.
[change] Other websites
- Defining the Courtesan (Mt. Holyoke College)