Puta Life: Seeing Latinas, Working Sex

Juana María Rodríguez's Puta Life explores how sexual labor and Latina sexuality become visual phenomena, focusing on the figure of the puta. Her eclectic archive features the faces and stories of women whose lives have been mediated by sex work's stigmatization and criminalization, exposing feminine subjects to misogyny and violence. Rodríguez brings the language of affect and aesthetics to bear on understandings of gender, age, race, sexuality, labor, disability, and migration, highlighting the criminalization and stigmatization that surrounds sex work and inspiring more ethical forms of relation and care.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 288 pages
Publication date: 09 May 2023
Publisher: Duke University Press

In her groundbreaking work, Puta Life, Juana María Rodríguez delves into the intricate ways in which sexual labor and Latina sexuality manifest as visual phenomena. Through a diverse range of sources, including state archives, illustrated biographies, documentary films, photojournalistic essays, graphic novels, and digital spaces, Rodríguez centers her attention on the enigmatic figure of the puta—the whore, a phantasmatic embodiment of Latinized feminine excess. Her eclectic archive showcases the faces and stories of women whose lives have been intricately intertwined with the stigmatization and criminalization of sex work, encompassingwasherwomen, masked wrestlers, porn stars, and sexiles. By examining the visual tropes of racial and sexual deviance, Rodríguez uncovers the ways in which feminine subjects are subjected to misogyny and violence, challenging our perception of sexual labor through the lens of visual documentation.

Throughout this poignant and deeply personal text, Rodríguez employs the language of affect and aesthetics to shed light on understandings of gender, age, race, sexuality, labor, disability, and migration. She highlights the criminalization and stigmatization surrounding sex work, lingering on those traces of felt possibility that might inspire more ethical forms of relation and care. Puta Life serves as a powerful testament to Rodríguez's commitment to challenging dominant narratives and promoting a more inclusive and empathetic understanding of the complexities of gender, sexuality, and labor.

Weight: 445g
Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781478019497