Geisha in Rivalry - Background Information

Background Information

Female entertainers in Japan emerged during the 7th and 13th century. They performed for the nobility. During the Edo period prostitution was legal and was mostly located within walled in districts such as Yoshiwara, which were licensed by the Tokugawa Shogunate, known as the pleasure quarters. In the 17th century, high-class courtesans known as oiran, or men working as geisha, would perform at parties. Then during the 18th century, dancing women called odoriko became popular and began entertaining men at banquets in unlicensed districts. From this time on, the word geisha referred to women entertainers. However, after the Meiji Restoration the government passed a law liberating prostitutes and Geisha. This caused many controversies because the distinction between geisha and prostitutes can be unclear. To clarify, the government intervened and stated that geisha were more refined than prostitutes; geisha were expected to be single and if they decided to marry then they had to drop their professions. They were not prostitutes, did not prepare food, and could not be considered wives. They performed at business banquets and were encouraged to have a danna for financial support, but that commitment remained optional. Later, greater misunderstandings between geisha and prostitution emerged out of the aftermath of WWII when the U.S. occupied Japan. Prostitutes hired to serve American GIs starting calling themselves geisha, which blurred the conceptual line between geisha and prostitutes.