In Michel de Certeau’s The Practice of Everyday Life, Vol. 1, Certeau draws the comparison between city walkers and voyeurs. He writes, “To what erotics of knowledge does the ecstasy of reading such a cosmos belong? Having taken voluptuous pleasure in it, I wonder what is the source of this pleasure…” (92). While here Certeau speaks of gazing at the city from above, his description of an “erotics of knowledge” could also delineate strolling through the sleazy façades of red light districts. Continue reading →