This text analyses attempts to eradicate prostitution from English society, and includes a discussion of early attempts at reform and prevention through to the campaigns of the social purists. ''Prostitution'' looks in-depth at the various reform institutions which were set up to house prostitutes, analysing the motives of the reformers as well as daily life within these penitentiaries. Attempts at prevention are revealed through close study of the Ladies Association for the Care of Friendless Girls which tried to educate society morally and campaigned for protective legislation for prostitutes. This book reveals: reformers' attitudes towards prostitutes and prostitution; daily life inside reform institutions; attempts at moral education; developments in moral health theories; influence of eugenics; attempts at suppressing prostitution. It is a new addition to the study of prostitution in history, providing the reader with an up-to-date account of the social and political efforts to eradicate it from society.