On the Moral Geography of Cities

A Case Study of Three Singapore Hostess Pubs in a Suburban “High Street” Setting

Datos Bibliográficos

ID22010299
AutoresK E James (0000-0002-6953-484X, University of the West of Scotland), Rex Walsh (0000-0003-0887-256X, Western Sydney University)
Año2023
Volumen13
Número02
Páginas139-158
Fecha de publicación2023-01-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaAdvances in Applied Sociology (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 2165-4328 • E-ISSN: 2165-4336
EditorialScientific Research Publishing, Inc. (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.4236/aasoci.2023.132009
OpenAlexW4321380186
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas1
Referencias citadas35

We study three hostess pubs on Joo Chiat Road, Singapore—a “Vietnam pub” and two “Filipina pubs”, utilizing the concept of “assemblages” based on B?hling’s work on Copenhagen nightlife. We compare and contrast the customer demographics of each Night-Time Economy (NTE) establishment, and the resultant culture, which is a product of the race/ethnicity of the hostesses, the race/ethnicity and ages of the patrons, the policies and ethos of the owner/manager, and the pricing model whereby hostesses get financially rewarded. The Filipina pubs rely upon “ladies’ drinks” whereas the Vietnam pub fosters a tipping system. While the ladies’ drinks model suggests a hyper-capitalist business setting, the tipping model has feudal, honour-based, and debt-based elements. These observations derive from Marx’s historical materialism theory where aspects of feudal or pre-capitalist practices linger into the capitalist epoch

Demographics · Embeddedness · Ethnic group · Ethos · Feudalism · Honour · Materialism · Nightlife · Political science · Social science · Sociology · Anthropology · Demography · Gender Studies · Law · Night-time city culture