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Samurai Male Prostitutes

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Male prostitutes, or kagema, helped relieve the sexual tension built up within the samurai. The kagame looked theatrical performers who normally took part in kabuki plays due to their heavy use of makeup and feminine appearance. There are cases of Noh performers resorting to prostitution after a show in order to please an important person. The substantial difference between the samurai’s relationship with a chigo and a kagema is that the kagema system was “based on gender differentiation” as “the beauty of the kagema, namely, was compared to that of a courtesan: it trespassed on heterosexual ground. (Furukawa Makoto 3)” Even though it crossed into heterosexual territory, kagema were not actively sought out and prosecuted for their acts until …show more content…

This is due in part to their punctilious behavior in following military demands. “Duty and loyalty are thus highly regarded. (Furukawa Makoto 3)” Commanders wanted the samurai to form deep connections with one another, obey authority indefinitely, and keep up a masculine figure. Whereas chigo in terms of a monk and a child refers to a young boy, the definition of a chigo with a samurai slightly changes. A chigo who is with a samurai means “beautiful youth”, who has a certain type of beauty that only a man and a samurai can obtain. Normally, the chigo would dress up like a female in order to soothe their dominants need for heterosexual attention. Much like the chigo of the monks, they would apply makeup to their face, blacken their teeth, style their hair more feminine, and wear colorful robes in order to look like a woman. This practice, in contrast to the monk’s version of chigo, was not to just appease their sexual desire. Politically, the samurai looked better walking with a “woman” at their side as opposed to a boy in the eyes of foreign visitors. As seen in They Came To Japan, a Spanish observer points out that “they …show more content…

“Kills with bow and arrows was much more valued than courtly arts such as composing waka poems and playing music. (Sachi Schmidt-Hori 90)” Hypermasculinity was a major issue before the creation of Bushido as every man was expected to fit a certain standard of physical strength and kill potential. In the land of Yamato, the stronger the samurai was and the more threatening he looked, the more likely he would be hired. This is also true for the literature produced during the early period of Japan. Authors exaggerated the image of a samurai in this time period to make them seem more honorable and masculine. In reality, they were farmers, artisans, and common folk. It was not until after the Genpei war that samurai began to become a integral part of society. At first they were hired mercenaries, then a hired army, and then the warriors made known by writers standards, such as seen in the Tale of the Heike. With homosexuality, samurai were always the dominant in the relationship. Even though homosexuality was not looked down upon, if a samurai submits himself to a person who is more feminine than him, then he is demoralizing and shaming his samurai

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