PROSTITUTION

Queen Mary I objected to the infamous Bridewell prison because she feared the numerous prostitutes held within its walls would reveal Catholic priests' sexual intrigues.1 In the 1500s prostitutes were often referred to as Winchester Geese. This euphemism was a direct reference to the Church of England's Bishop of Winchester's connection with prostitution.2 As mentioned in both Renaissance religion and religion and the construction of gender roles, the idea that a woman's body could be used as a conduit for all things baleful in society, for pleasure, or for pure economic gain permeated society. Jonson's Bartholomew Fair and Middleton's A Chaste Maid in Cheapside serve as examples of this fact.3 It is important to note that Bartholomew Fair was first staged nearly a century after the church's documented role in prostitution. However, ideas concerning female sexuality as a means to ease man's sinfulness did not drastically change over this time period.4

In Bartholomew Fair John Littlewit is a proctor—an attorney in the ecclesiastical courts. Ecclesiastical court agents such as Littlewit were charged with enforcing “attendance at church, high moral standards, and religious conformity.”5 Littlewit does not mirror these traits as he lies to a religious zealot and his mother-in-law in order to attend the sinfully-perceived Fair. He states that his wife, Win, is suffering from cravings as a result of her pregnancy and, therefore, they must attend the Fair to eat pig.

The play opens with Littlewit telling Win to don a particular cap and high shoes because he finds them appealing (I.i.20-27). As Act I develops Littlewit encourages an unwilling Win to kiss Winwife with the statement “I envy no man my delicates, sir” (I.i.12).   This statement and the fact that Win's body is used as an excuse to visit the Fair alludes to the possession and offering of a woman's body for another's gain. Littlewit's actions tie into prostitution as soon as he leads Win to Ursula's stand, which also doubles as a brothel. Coincidentally, he unknowingly leaves his reluctant wife at the booth with two pimps, believing they are “good company” (IV.v. 3-5). For a space of time, Win becomes a prostitute. A proctor's wife as prostitute is ironic since these were the people he was supposed to judge in the ecclesiastical courts. Jonson uses such ironic twists throughout his work to serve as a platform from which he satirizes not only religion, but also the various socially constructed paradigms concerning the household and the theater in relation to gender and sexuality in the English Renaissance.

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