Housekeepers and butlers.
Hmm.
- Mood:thoughtful
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My own lj would probably bore you, so I'm not expecting a mutual addition. My kink life has been non-existent for years and these days, I mostly write about horses, ceremonial magick, life itself, and my relentless accounting of being single in Las Vegas.
I thought I would drop you a note, as I find it disconcerting when people add me to their list and I have no clue who they are.
Several of the books I have read by and about professional servants mention variations on the same theme - it's nice to be able to live a life surrounded by the comforts and habits of wealth when you are not actually wealthy yourself. Travel, good food, good care and personal living arrangements - all these things may come with a good position as a household manager.
Also, a clear yet limited scope of responsibilities in which you are encouraged to excel and may in fact become a hot commodity if you have the ability to improve yourself. These are not simple jobs, but neither are they subject to sudden or dramatic changes. The very tasks which drove "housewives" into despair and boredom take on a different shade when you are well paid for them.
And finally - I have to wonder if some segment of this population actually prefers *service* - to a person or small set of persons who appreciate their work and reward them for it with the salary and benefits. And of course, the undocumented and nebulous world of praise, gratitude, "job well done" satisfaction and feeling completely absorbed into the role.
I do think that some folks are driven to be in service professions for a variety of reasons. Within the context of household staff, especially if you are at the top of that chain, you get to serve but also to exercise authority and you have power. Not the ultimate authority or power true but in day to day, week to week, matters you are the one making decisions about a wide range of things.
The money, the recognition of your skills helps a lot too. I've heard/read there is a damage for highly skilled domestic help, or there used to be when the economy was better, so you didn't proper recognition, take your skills elsewhere.
Thank you for sharing this article. It's given me something to think about as I'm working on my first serialized story.