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Isabel Deiss
Dr. Helene Schroeter
English 1010
16 December 2014
Prostitution: Should it be legalized?
The worlds oldest profession, and perhaps its most taboo, has come back into
the gaze of the American public as we begin to question the governments authority to
regulate the morals of its citizens. Should prostitution be made legal? People question
whether or not the government has a right to intervene in the moral affairs of Americans.
Others insist that this kind of regulation could save the country from disease and
behaviors that create unhealthy ways of living.
I was eager to develop my own opinion on the subject, so I read and analyzed two
articles discussing it. I found two articles, one titled Its time to legalize prostitution, and
one titled Legalize Prostitution? Not So Fast. I believe the author of the first article, Its
time to legalize prostitution, was more successful in his argument because of the
several rhetorical techniques he uses.
The first article I read was written by Jason Itzler, a man serving a prison sentence for
facilitating the solicitation of sex and money laundering. Itzel wrote his article, It's time to
legalize prostitution, for the New York Daily News in 2012, with the help of his defense
lawyer. Itzlers intended audience is most likely people who are open-minded and
interested in change, or people who simply do not have an opinion on the subject of

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prostitution. In his article, Itzler states that prostitution should be legalized for several
reasons.
The first reason Itzler gives is that the legalization of prostitution would help Americans
relieve themselves from some of the pressures of contemporary society through sexual
release, and thus make a healthier population. Itzler negates the argument that STDs
would be spread quickly throughout the adult population is prostitution were made legal
by referring to Nevada's practice of sending medical professionals into brothels monthly
to check for pregnancy and STDs. This practice, Itzler says, would make prostitution
much safer for the prostitutes and the customers. Itzlers second argument is for the
enlightenment of American society through the destruction of commonly held
misconceptions and stereotypes of those involved in the sex industry. Itzler believes that
American society would greatly benefit from allowing sex workers into the mainstream
American society, and create a more open-minded, inclusive nation.
Itzler uses several rhetorical tools to convince his readers of his position. Itzler
repeatedly refers to legitimate scientific studies to give credibility to his argument. Itzler
states in the second page of his article, Abraham Maslow... listed sex as as a
physiological need, right alongside breathing, food, water and sleep. He realizes that
his criminal past may deter the reader from believing what he has to say, so he supports
everything he states with information provided by legitimate, trustworthy sources. He
proves through this rhetorical tool that he is intelligent, rational, and credible. Itzler also
appeals to emotion, referring to sex slavery, a negative, intensely controversial and
emotional issue, and claiming that his solution to the problem would eradicate it. He
realizes that those who care about the women and men involved in sex slavery will be

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affected by the eradication of sex slavery. Itzler also utilizes humor to convince the
reader of his argument. In the first page of his article, Itzler writes Im something of an
expert/idiot savant on the subject (prostitution). I call myself the King of All Pimps and
have the prison term to prove it. Itzler uses a casual tone and references to pop-culture
figures, such as Tina Turner, to let the reader know that he is likable, and although he is
a criminal, he is not to be feared or disliked.
The second article I read was in favor of keeping prostitution illegal. It was written by a
man named Fred Schwarz. Schwarz is a conservative contributor to several online
media outlets. After doing some research on him, I found that Schwarz often takes a
more right wing position on many issues. This issue is no exception. Schwarz intented
audience is most likely people who share his values, are more conservative rather than
liberal and who are wavering on their opinion of prostitution. He is trying to get them to
remain confident in their position that prostitution should not be legalized. Schwarz
writes in his article Legalize prostitution? Not So Fast, for the National Review Online in
2013, that prostitution should be kept illegal because prostitution will "sleazify
neighborhoods, spread disease, and that keeping it illegal, although not eradicating the
behavior, significantly decreases the amount of activity.
Schwarz uses a few rhetorical techniques to convince his readers. Schwarz refers to the
era of prohibition to convince the reader that like alcohol in the 1920s, prostitution
should be illegal now. Schwarz states in the first page of his article No one is seriously
suggesting that Prohibition was a good thing, but there is ample historical evidence that
it did reduce Americans consumption of alcohol. Schwarz believes that although
many people still go to prostitutes, there would be an increase if prostitution were legal.

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He appeals to emotion by saying that it would affect family neighborhoods, thus tainting
the wholesome American family dynamic by exposing children to deviant sexual activity
at an early age. Schwarz utilizes tone to convince his audience. He says in the first
paragraph of his article, I dont entirely disagree with my man Charlie Cookes
suggestion that prostitution should be legalized but Im not sure I go along with
everything he said in his piece,. He refers to someone he disagrees with as my man,
which lays the foundation for a casual and relaxed tone throughout his piece. This
rhetorical technique establishes that Schwarz should not only be trusted by his readers,
but that he should be liked by them as well. He doesnt claim to be more intelligent than
anyone else, nor does he take any kind of aggressive tone when arguing his point. He
tries throughout the article to keep the reader on his side by remaining relatable.
I believe that Itzler was more effective than Schwarz in his argument. Itzler uses more
effective rhetorical techniques and keeps his argument consistent throughout his piece.
Schwarz sometimes deviates from the topic by delving into the Prohibition era too
much, and losing his audience in his historical analysis. Itzler refers to legitimate
sources to establish his claim, whereas Schwarz doesn't refer to any legitimate sources,
he assumes that the reader will trust him, and does not give them other sources to refer
to. Schwarz casual tone feels a bit forced and condescending, whereas Itzlers tone
feels natural and comfortable. Overall, Itzler was much more effective, and I feel that his
argument was stronger as a result of his multiple rhetorical techniques.

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Works Cited

Itzler, Jason. "It's Time to Legalize Prostitution." NY Daily News. 30 May 2012. Web. 15
Dec. 2014. <http://www.nydailynews.com/opinion/time-legalize-prostitution-article1.1086261>.

Schwarz, Fred. "Fred Schwarz - Legalize Prostitution? Not So Fast." National Review
Online. 19 July 2013. Web. 15 Dec. 2014.
<http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/353953/legalize-prostitution-not-so-fast-fredschwarz>.

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Reflection
I enjoyed writing this paper much more than I anticipated I would. I thought that I
would be extremely bored writing this paper, but in fact I found it very interesting
throughout. I have been fascinated by the issue of prostitution for a while now, and
being given the opportunity to develop my own opinion on the subject was very
interesting. I would not have taken the time to do the research that I had to do for this
project had it not been assigned, but Im glad that I was able to.
Being able to analyze rhetoric is very valuable. Before taking this class I didnt
know what rhetoric meant, but now that I understand the concept Ive started analyzing
everything I see around me. At first it was difficult to understand what exactly everything
meant. However, now I see things that I didnt initially see in commercials, speeches,
and billboards. I think that this skill will prove to be very valuable during my adulthood.
If I were to write this essay again, I would probably choose the same topic, but I
would choose different articles. I found it difficult to remain unbiased while writing this
paper because I agreed strongly with Itzler, and I think I shouldve picked two articles
with opinions that I didnt agree with in order to remain unbiased. However, I believe that
I did a decent job of keeping my personal bias hidden in my article.