Tissue paper peddling in Singapore : begging or a job?

Abstract

This paper looks at the existence of tissue paper peddlers in Singapore and attempts to put forth the argument that tissue peddling is a unique phenomenon that arises out of its social context and defies any attempts to classify it neatly into either category. The practice of tissue peddling extends beyond the conventional understanding of a job or an act of begging. Rather, it is a hybrid of the two. It is a job, a means of livelihood to a segment of the population in Singapore, which incorporates elements of begging. As much as tissue peddlers themselves view it as a job no different from the usual commodity exchange, it involves the commodification of emotions as part of the process of negotiating authenticity. Multiple understandings of the nature of tissue peddling stems from the active construction of identity by tissue peddlers themselves, as well as those around who attempts to decipher the meanings attached to the act of tissue peddling.