positions Essays:Part ll The Traffic in Money Boys Lisa Rofel Why do so many gay men in China speak anxiously about what they call, using the English term,"money boys"?"Money boys"is a colloquialism in China for men who sell sex to other men.What is it about money boys' activities that lead (other)Chinese gay men to go out of their way to con- demn them and even deny that those who wish to identify as gay deserve to be called"gay"?I have had the pleasure of spending time in various gay ven- ues in Beijing,and in all of them-whether a salon discussion,film view- ing,gay bar,or private gathering in someone's home-the issue of money boys invariably emerges.The vehemence of the condemnations is striking. Gay men I have spoken with about money boys claim they inappropriately blur the boundaries between sex and love,they exploit gay men,they are dangerous,and they are rural migrants just looking for work in the big city-implying both that they are not really gay and that they should either p0 sition518:2Do110.12151o679847-2010-009 Copyright zoto by Duke University Press Published by Duke University Press
Essays: Part II The Traffic in Money Boys Lisa Rofel Why do so many gay men in China speak anxiously about what they call, using the English term, “money boys”? “Money boys” is a colloquialism in China for men who sell sex to other men. What is it about money boys’ activities that lead (other) Chinese gay men to go out of their way to condemn them and even deny that those who wish to identify as gay deserve to be called “gay”? I have had the pleasure of spending time in various gay venues in Beijing, and in all of them— whether a salon discussion, film viewing, gay bar, or private gathering in someone’s home— the issue of money boys invariably emerges. The vehemence of the condemnations is striking. Gay men I have spoken with about money boys claim they inappropriately blur the boundaries between sex and love, they exploit gay men, they are dangerous, and they are rural migrants just looking for work in the big city—implying both that they are not really gay and that they should either positions 18:2 doi 10.1215/10679847-2010-009 Copyright 2010 by Duke University Press positions Published by Duke University Press
positions positions 18:2 Fall 2010 426 return to their rural homes or find a"real"job.Most importantly,those who denigrate money boys argue that they sully the reputation of Chinese gay men.Money boys,it is claimed,hinder the aspirations of other gay men to make a gay sexual orientation acceptable in China.In other words,money boys turn the terrain of sex and desire in China into one that is fraught with ambiguity.Do money boys pervert what otherwise should be the perfectly acceptable desire to have an erotic interchange with men by bringing it into the impure world of commodification and money?Is their desire-for sex, for money,or for sex that involves money-really possible to cordon off from other kinds of desires that appear to be more normalized?Finally, how do they affect the endeavors of other gay men in China to create an identity that will be acceptable within what they view as the norms of Chi- nese culture? In this essay,I argue that money boys are a pressing issue for gay men in China because homophobia and dilemmas about the proper ways to chal- lenge it are framed by the tremendous transformations that have occurred in China over the last twenty-five years that prominent scholars in China have begun to call neoliberalism.These transformations include the pro- motion of a market economy,the steady move toward privatization,the search for profits that includes rent-seeking and corruption,the increasingly stark social inequalities evident in China,the rise of consumerism and a consumer-oriented popular culture,the turn away from post-Bandung third-world alliances toward parity with the West,the vast amount of for- eign direct investment in China,and conversely,China's increasing invest- ments in non-Western countries as they search for energy resources,and, finally,China's entry into the World Trade Organization(WTO),with its attendant neoliberal rules and regulations about so-called free trade. These transformations suture China more tightly into a post-Cold War world in which neoliberal ideologies,backed by an imperial United States and implemented by U.S.-dominated transnational institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank,seem ascendant. However,my approach to neoliberalism in China differs from the most prominent theories about neoliberalism.2 First,in contrast to the common assumption that neoliberalism is a fully formed phenomenon delivered from the West to the third world,I argue that neoliberalism is a histori- Published by Duke University Press
positions 18:2 Fall 2010 426 return to their rural homes or find a “real” job. Most importantly, those who denigrate money boys argue that they sully the reputation of Chinese gay men. Money boys, it is claimed, hinder the aspirations of other gay men to make a gay sexual orientation acceptable in China. In other words, money boys turn the terrain of sex and desire in China into one that is fraught with ambiguity. Do money boys pervert what otherwise should be the perfectly acceptable desire to have an erotic interchange with men by bringing it into the impure world of commodification and money? Is their desire—for sex, for money, or for sex that involves money— really possible to cordon off from other kinds of desires that appear to be more normalized? Finally, how do they affect the endeavors of other gay men in China to create an identity that will be acceptable within what they view as the norms of Chinese culture? In this essay, I argue that money boys are a pressing issue for gay men in China because homophobia and dilemmas about the proper ways to challenge it are framed by the tremendous transformations that have occurred in China over the last twenty-five years that prominent scholars in China have begun to call neoliberalism.1 These transformations include the promotion of a market economy, the steady move toward privatization, the search for profits that includes rent-seeking and corruption, the increasingly stark social inequalities evident in China, the rise of consumerism and a consumer-oriented popular culture, the turn away from post-Bandung third-world alliances toward parity with the West, the vast amount of foreign direct investment in China, and conversely, China’s increasing investments in non-Western countries as they search for energy resources, and, finally, China’s entry into the World Trade Organization (WTO), with its attendant neoliberal rules and regulations about so-called free trade. These transformations suture China more tightly into a post –Cold War world in which neoliberal ideologies, backed by an imperial United States and implemented by U.S.-dominated transnational institutions such as the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, seem ascendant. However, my approach to neoliberalism in China differs from the most prominent theories about neoliberalism.2 First, in contrast to the common assumption that neoliberalism is a fully formed phenomenon delivered from the West to the third world, I argue that neoliberalism is a historipositions Published by Duke University Press
positions Rofel I The Traffic in Money Boys 427 cally contingent,heterogeneous project whose coherence must be continu- ally asserted through transnational articulations between unequally situated nation-states.In China,as elsewhere,one of the central features of struggles to articulate transnational economic policies,only some of which we might label "neoliberal";profit-seeking activities,which are far from uniform;and new kinds of subjects is the simultaneous mobilization of cosmopolitanism, on the one hand,and Chinese civilization,culture,and national identity,on the other.My argument,in brief,is that the place of lesbians and gay men in China is intimately connected to cosmopolitanism because it is through the expression of desire that they,as well as other Chinese citizens,are able to feel part of a universal humanity.The fact that they must do so is itself a result of the embrace of neoliberalism,which changes the relation of China to the world economy and the terms by which its people can relate to each other.3 Neoliberalism thus produces a yearning for cosmopolitanism,which then gets encoded as a difference between licit and illicit desires. The mobilization of cosmopolitanism along with Chinese cultural and national identity occurs in several realms.Official discourse about"socialism with Chinese characteristics"is but one of them and should not be lightly dismissed,as there indeed exists cultural and historical specificity to the manner in which privatization activities occur.Both official and popular discourses also mobilize national identity and"traditional"Chinese moral- ity,which spans invocations of Confucian virtues,family values,Buddhism, and the history of Chinese culture prior to the socialist revolution.These categories,far from taken for granted,are themselves continually debated as various practices-gender,sexual,and otherwise-are deemed to be repre- sentative of Chinese culture or its antithesis that requires vigorous excision. The invocation of Chinese culture,morality,and national identity is meant not only to forestall the worst effects of neoliberalism (the historical ti/lyong dichotomy)but,indeed,more assertively to define its constitution within China and beyond it.That is,Chinese civilization is often seen as that which will save neoliberalism from pure barbarism.Thus,the challenge for lesbi- ans and gay men in China,as well as other citizens,is to prove at once their ability to transcend nation-state boundaries and embrace neoliberal cosmo- politanism but also to display their normativity as Chinese citizens.5 My second disagreement with other theories of neoliberalism is that,while Published by Duke University Press
Rofel ❘ The Traffic in Money Boys 427 cally contingent, heterogeneous project whose coherence must be continually asserted through transnational articulations between unequally situated nation-states. In China, as elsewhere, one of the central features of struggles to articulate transnational economic policies, only some of which we might label “neoliberal”; profit-seeking activities, which are far from uniform; and new kinds of subjects is the simultaneous mobilization of cosmopolitanism, on the one hand, and Chinese civilization, culture, and national identity, on the other. My argument, in brief, is that the place of lesbians and gay men in China is intimately connected to cosmopolitanism because it is through the expression of desire that they, as well as other Chinese citizens, are able to feel part of a universal humanity. The fact that they must do so is itself a result of the embrace of neoliberalism, which changes the relation of China to the world economy and the terms by which its people can relate to each other.3 Neoliberalism thus produces a yearning for cosmopolitanism, which then gets encoded as a difference between licit and illicit desires. The mobilization of cosmopolitanism along with Chinese cultural and national identity occurs in several realms. Official discourse about “socialism with Chinese characteristics” is but one of them and should not be lightly dismissed, as there indeed exists cultural and historical specificity to the manner in which privatization activities occur.4 Both official and popular discourses also mobilize national identity and “traditional” Chinese morality, which spans invocations of Confucian virtues, family values, Buddhism, and the history of Chinese culture prior to the socialist revolution. These categories, far from taken for granted, are themselves continually debated as various practices— gender, sexual, and otherwise— are deemed to be representative of Chinese culture or its antithesis that requires vigorous excision. The invocation of Chinese culture, morality, and national identity is meant not only to forestall the worst effects of neoliberalism (the historical ti/yong dichotomy) but, indeed, more assertively to define its constitution within China and beyond it. That is, Chinese civilization is often seen as that which will save neoliberalism from pure barbarism. Thus, the challenge for lesbians and gay men in China, as well as other citizens, is to prove at once their ability to transcend nation-state boundaries and embrace neoliberal cosmopolitanism but also to display their normativity as Chinese citizens.5 My second disagreement with other theories of neoliberalism is that, while positions Published by Duke University Press
positions positions 18:2 Fall 2010 428 prominent theorists have made the important argument that neoliberalism creates new subjectivities,they tend to emphasize a rationalized subject who must discipline himself or herself into neoliberal modes of being and act- ing.These theories have the advantage that they do not treat neoliberalism as a purely economistic endeavor,but they nonetheless accept neoliberal ide- ologies'own ideas about rationality as that which subtends neoliberalism. Moreover,they tend to draw a direct and rather deterministic line from neo- liberal economic policies to these rational techniques of the self to neoliberal subjectivities.In contrast,I locate the specific appearance of neoliberalism in China in the production of desire.?Desire is the means through which people in China,as elsewhere,prove their cosmopolitan worldliness.But desire is a complicated realm.As psychoanalytical theory has long argued, desire can be unpredictable and difficult to control."Desire"is a historically, socially,and culturally produced field that articulates the new contradictions and inequalities in China to both resolve past dilemmas and create new ones. The desiring subject-whether sexual,affective,or possessive-thus func- tions variously as a trope,a normative ideal,and a horizon of possibility- or impossibility.It promises new freedoms even as it seems to be the only game in town.It also creates a terrain for powerful and dehumanizing exclu- sions.While the neoliberal enticement to have desires is prevalent every- where in China,debates about how to distinguish licit and illicit desires continue to animate public culture.Lesbians and gay men must grapple with the ambivalences,contradictions,and exclusions that the specificity of neoliberalism creates in China. This essay speaks as well to a hoary debate in queer studies,or perhaps I should say to the attacks on queer studies by those who used to accuse it of being"merely cultural"or idealist as opposed to materialist queer.s Those debates were never resolved;they merely faded.But they left certain dichot- omies in place:those who wanted so-called materialist studies of sexuality and desire used the term "materialist"in an obfuscatory manner.Those who had been criticized responded by pointing out that:attention to family, kinship,intimacy,and the body are as"material"as one can get.But what those who invoked materialism really meant,which they did also say,was that studies of desire should be grounded in a study of capitalist relations of production.Ironically,however,as soon as they set out that context,they Published by Duke University Press
positions 18:2 Fall 2010 428 prominent theorists have made the important argument that neoliberalism creates new subjectivities, they tend to emphasize a rationalized subject who must discipline himself or herself into neoliberal modes of being and acting.6 These theories have the advantage that they do not treat neoliberalism as a purely economistic endeavor, but they nonetheless accept neoliberal ideologies’ own ideas about rationality as that which subtends neoliberalism. Moreover, they tend to draw a direct and rather deterministic line from neoliberal economic policies to these rational techniques of the self to neoliberal subjectivities. In contrast, I locate the specific appearance of neoliberalism in China in the production of desire.7 Desire is the means through which people in China, as elsewhere, prove their cosmopolitan worldliness. But desire is a complicated realm. As psychoanalytical theory has long argued, desire can be unpredictable and difficult to control. “Desire” is a historically, socially, and culturally produced field that articulates the new contradictions and inequalities in China to both resolve past dilemmas and create new ones. The desiring subject— whether sexual, affective, or possessive— thus functions variously as a trope, a normative ideal, and a horizon of possibility— or impossibility. It promises new freedoms even as it seems to be the only game in town. It also creates a terrain for powerful and dehumanizing exclusions. While the neoliberal enticement to have desires is prevalent everywhere in China, debates about how to distinguish licit and illicit desires continue to animate public culture. Lesbians and gay men must grapple with the ambivalences, contradictions, and exclusions that the specificity of neoliberalism creates in China. This essay speaks as well to a hoary debate in queer studies, or perhaps I should say to the attacks on queer studies by those who used to accuse it of being “merely cultural” or idealist as opposed to materialist queer.8 Those debates were never resolved; they merely faded. But they left certain dichotomies in place: those who wanted so-called materialist studies of sexuality and desire used the term “materialist” in an obfuscatory manner. Those who had been criticized responded by pointing out that: attention to family, kinship, intimacy, and the body are as “material” as one can get. But what those who invoked materialism really meant, which they did also say, was that studies of desire should be grounded in a study of capitalist relations of production. Ironically, however, as soon as they set out that context, they positions Published by Duke University Press
positions Rofel I The Traffic in Money Boys 429 also let desire drop out of the picture,because they couldn't really figure out, within a certain classical Marxism,how to study the myriad forms desire takes.Thus,Donald Morton,for example,establishes a dichotomy between need and desire and asserts that need is what we,excuse the pun,need to study,but desire is merely an ideological by-product of capitalism.It was difficult to get past such homophobia and so the debate petered out after both sides had had their say.The debate was ironic,because it was based on a basic opposition between the instrumental and the affective:that which is instrumental belongs to a study of capitalism proper-the rational subject with needs-while that which is affective is relegated to a realm that is not part of capitalist relations of production proper.I say it is ironic to base a critique of queer studies on the instrumental versus the affective because,as Marshall Sahlins pointed out a long time ago,this opposition was produced out of capitalism itself.0 Queer studies,on the other hand,has not really figured out how to get past the homophobia implicit in so many of these critiques and analyze the relationship between capitalism and desire.My hope is that this essay contributes to bridging that division. The desiring subject has taken center stage in China because of the his- torically specific allegory constructed to reject Maoism.This allegory revises historical memory through the emancipatory tale that Maoism suppressed a natural human nature and that,by rejecting the socialist state,people can unshackle their gendered and sexual selves.l1 Given the specificity of this history-and its revisionist historiography-the goal in China appears to be not merely to end the suppression of so-called innate gendered and sexual selves,but the positive development of subjects with elaborate sexual, material,and affective self-interests.After the June 4th crisis of legitimacy in 1989,the constitution of a postsocialist humanity in China entailed the intensification of this goal in order to create cosmopolitan citizens of a post-Cold War world.12 For these historical reasons,homoeroticism has created a great deal of ambivalence in China.This ambivalence is evident in public culture debates about well-known legal cases concerning homoerotic desire and gay identity, as well as in informal conversation.3 Indeed,homoeroticism plays a cen- tral role in public discussions about licit and illicit,or proper and improper desires.There are no laws against homosexuality in China.But some con- Published by Duke University Press
Rofel ❘ The Traffic in Money Boys 429 also let desire drop out of the picture, because they couldn’t really figure out, within a certain classical Marxism, how to study the myriad forms desire takes. Thus, Donald Morton, for example, establishes a dichotomy between need and desire and asserts that need is what we, excuse the pun, need to study, but desire is merely an ideological by-product of capitalism.9 It was difficult to get past such homophobia and so the debate petered out after both sides had had their say. The debate was ironic, because it was based on a basic opposition between the instrumental and the affective: that which is instrumental belongs to a study of capitalism proper— the rational subject with needs— while that which is affective is relegated to a realm that is not part of capitalist relations of production proper. I say it is ironic to base a critique of queer studies on the instrumental versus the affective because, as Marshall Sahlins pointed out a long time ago, this opposition was produced out of capitalism itself.10 Queer studies, on the other hand, has not really figured out how to get past the homophobia implicit in so many of these critiques and analyze the relationship between capitalism and desire. My hope is that this essay contributes to bridging that division. The desiring subject has taken center stage in China because of the historically specific allegory constructed to reject Maoism. This allegory revises historical memory through the emancipatory tale that Maoism suppressed a natural human nature and that, by rejecting the socialist state, people can unshackle their gendered and sexual selves.11 Given the specificity of this history— and its revisionist historiography— the goal in China appears to be not merely to end the suppression of so-called innate gendered and sexual selves, but the positive development of subjects with elaborate sexual, material, and affective self-interests. After the June 4th crisis of legitimacy in 1989, the constitution of a postsocialist humanity in China entailed the intensification of this goal in order to create cosmopolitan citizens of a post –Cold War world.12 For these historical reasons, homoeroticism has created a great deal of ambivalence in China. This ambivalence is evident in public culture debates about well-known legal cases concerning homoerotic desire and gay identity, as well as in informal conversation.13 Indeed, homoeroticism plays a central role in public discussions about licit and illicit, or proper and improper desires. There are no laws against homosexuality in China. But some conpositions Published by Duke University Press