Indecent proposal accepted?
US pop sensation and Juice favourite, Britney Spears was recently offered 7.5 million dollars to sleep with an American millionaire. However, the apparently virginal Miss Spears declined the offer, saying that she intends to wait until she is married before indulging in the physical act of love. It was only a matter of time before a revelation of this magnitude and the circumstances from which it originated caused debate among the student body as to what one would do in a similar position.
Her moral standing aside, there are some major differences between the Queen of Pop and the lowly student, which would undoubtedly influence a question of this nature. While she may not require any financial hand-outs, there are any number of penniless second years living solely on 'value' produce who would jump at the chance to branch out into the world of brand items. There would be no real adverse publicity to deal with, since we have no role model status to uphold, and only our stereotypical student lives to maintain. For many the general drudge of intellectual peaking and troughing throughout the term combined with copious amounts of alcohol, leads to a gradual erosion of the already-thinning moral fibre left over from school. Indeed, it sometimes appears that the number of metaphorical notches on the bedpost is in direct proportion to the number of student brownie points earned, and a drunken fumble always makes for humorous regaling the next day.
So, would the average student be willing to take this one step further and be prepared to embark on such enterprises in return for financial rewards? And if so, for what price? After a short focus-group style discussion with a few friends and acquaintances it appears that this is certainly the case. At a time when most of us spend hours of our precious vacations serving already-inebriated punters beer or stacking shelves in horrendously lit supermarkets for a pittance, the opportunity of making a quick buck from a potentially even quicker encounter is rather appealing. The interesting part of this investigation was to observe how the amount suggested for this service rapidly declined as the interviewees became increasingly aware of what certain amounts could buy. While a sum of £1 million was quickly and enthusiastically assented to, it became clear that the lower limit would be in the region of £50,000.
Of course, there are hypothetical 'ifs' and 'buts' to be considered especially by those who have other halves, in which case the majority of the group felt they would decline the offer. Another aspect felt to be significant was the appearance of the person doing the offering, with many saying that anyone who was particularly unattractive would be rejected. In some ways this may seem less 'moral' than the girl who claimed, 'I'd shag anyone for £1 million, even Jo Brand.' but it appears that human nature and the laws of attraction win out in the end.
The obvious parallel with prostitution is inevitably prominent in a debate of this kind, but as one of the group pointed out, the idea is that it would be a one-off situation and not a life plan. Of course, it really depends if you believe that prostitution is wrong.
So, are we all just mercenary wretches on the look-out for the next money-making scheme, moral or immoral? One girl appeared not to be, saying that there would be no amount of money and no circumstances which would induce her to enter into such an agreement. However, this idea does not seem to be the general consensus and there are those who would consider almost anything if it did not appear to affect the rest of their lives or anyone else. This is all fine in theory, but many thought that they might not go through with it if this kind of proposal was actually made.
Nevertheless, it's not just sex that is seen as commodity. One person declared 'I'd think about selling a kidney, but it would be a difficult decision' and last year the Oxford Student printed a story about couples advertising payment for the eggs of students at Oxford and Cambridge. It might be a little clichéd, but we are most certainly living in a material world and if the relative benefits outweigh the disadvantages then anything goes. On asking an interviewee whether they would allow their name to be printed their initial reaction was "no." But then, after some serious thought, this was qualified: "Well, there might be someone with a spare million who wants to contact me..." What can you say? Where there's a will, there's a way.
8th Jun 2000