Political Economy of Amazonian Women’s Bodies

Abstract

This article examines the historical development of female prostitution in the Brazilian Amazon, with a focus on the cities of Manaus and Belém, through the analytical lens of the “body-territory” concept. This framework conceives bodies as extensions of space, intrinsically implicated in processes of territorialization and exploitation. The article argues that historically, external economic interests centered on the extraction of natural resources have shaped demographic configurations and defined gendered social roles within both capital accumulation and the reproduction of life. Within this context, prostitution, far from occupying a marginal position, has constituted a central component of the Amazonian economy—functioning as an organic mechanism of social and economic reproduction, structured by intersecting racial and gender inequalities. By linking the exploitation of territory to the exploitation of women’s bodies, the study demonstrates that prostitution is embedded in the power relations that shape space, economic dynamics, and the lived experiences of racialized women in the region.