A weird thing happened to me tonight

[BainsBane]

10. In 19th century France, seamstresses were believed to be prostitutes

Last edited Fri Jan 10, 2014, 11:05 AM - Edit history (1)

There is a well known historian who examines gendered representations in statistical surveys of workers during the mid-19th century. The article is interesting in a number of ways, one being how statistical data is as fraught with bias (in this case gender and class) as any other sort of documentation. But she also shows that authorities assumed women who worked as seamstresses were prostitutes.

http://books.google.com/books?id=o2lApVRwxEoC&pg=PA113&lpg=PA113&dq=joan+scott+la+statistique&source=bl&ots=mW97qbgXOZ&sig=xF-9N-ccy6QuVj7dgu9J9b_AD8I&hl=en&sa=X&ei=UbDPUsGBLa3JsQSk6YLQDA&ved=0CEIQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=joan%20scott%20la%20statistique&f=false

I wonder if there is a more pervasive rhetorical association between seamstresses and prostitutes? Your fantasy novel seems to suggest so.