Whether it is bisexuals and trans* individuals on one side, with gay men and lesbians - both monosexual identities - on the other, or with bisexuals paired with gay men and lesbians as a cohesive group of deviant sexualities against heterosexism, or with bisexuals grouped with all of the other identities that ‘love men’ against lesbians, or with bisexuals against all monosexuals, the understanding of their identity sheds light on the dualistic nature of Western thought. Until the idea of ‘homosexual’ and ‘heterosexual’ became widespread in the United States and Europe, bisexuality could not even be considered. Even still, the binary way Western Culture perceives most things is incongruous with…
Starting with functional theory, sexual identity is “learned in the family and other social institutions, with deviant sexual identities contributing to social disorder”. Under conflict theory, individuals or specific institutions consider some forms of sexual behavior desirable therefore enforce heterosexism; while symbolic interaction theory views it as “socially constructed when people learn the sexual scripts produced in society” (Andersen,…
Combined with the conceptual repertoire, “what we can think and say…what we can do and who we can be,” (Burgess, Plunkett, page 3) these ideas aim to reevaluate one’s concept of sexual orientation so that the final concept achieves its respective purposes. This highlights the partial conservation in Dembroff’s project and how their foundation respects the morality of an individual’s sexuality. An adoption of bidimensional dispositionalism would encourage an alteration of the current taxonomy involving sexual orientation. Revising the content would provide a concrete idea of the concept in a way that doesn’t disrupt social or political research, or infringe on the legal and social protection of non-heterosexual individuals, and would reduce the presumption that the queer community is a minority engaging in sexually deviant behavior. These targets recognize the morality of non-heterosexuals and create a sociopolitical framework that would encourage the elimination of negative connotations and a coexistence of…
Heteronormativity is the assumption that everyone is heterosexual. This is obviously not the case in today’s society; Lesbian feminism is the resistance to this ideal, it “links sexual desire for other women, women’s independent lifestyles, and women’s friendships with the idea of women’s culture and knowledge, producing a movement of resistance to a gendered social order” (Lorber pg.152). Lesbian feminism moves to show society that there is no such thing as gendered roles without heteronormativity, with this comes a great debate on whether this is just a resistance to the conventional family or…
Axiomatic Sedgwick’s “Axiomatic” introduces the reader to the argument that one must understand analyses of the definition of sexuality and romantic attractions in order to understand facets of contemporary Western culture. The author opens her introduction by discussing how the identity of a homo- or hetero-sexuality has always existed and how it affects other supposed binaries across a variety of cultures. Sedgwick laid out seven ideas which she held to be self-evident truths about anti-homophobic analysis. I had not previously heard of some of these concepts, but nonetheless can make sense of them. I interpreted the first axiom as bringing up a critical idea of present equality movements: intersectionality.…
Sidney Duarte Mrs. Huddleston English 12AP Gender Studies & Queer Theory: Paul's Case From the second wave of feminism emerged a new school of criticism: gender studies and queer theory. This type of criticism explores the issues of gender roles, power, sexuality, and masculinity. In "Paul's Case", Willa Cather establishes a male character who tests the accepted norms for men and women in America; Paul's sexual orientation results in apathy for his community, contempt for his teachers, and an overall alienation.…
The way this practice disappears people that identify as queer is that it classifies their sexual practices as deviant; “sexual deviance in terms of unorthodox sexual desires” (195). Wilkerson also says,” Even less recognized is the strategic value of sexual stereotyping and other sexual harms as significant in perpetuating inequality in any oppressed group” (195). The more stereotypes are promoted the more it oppresses and divides a certain…
The unequal rights for the male and female homosexuals shows that there is a double standard in the performance of gender identity. “Girls touched, hugged, and linked arms with other girls on a regular basis in a way that boys did…
Essay Homophobia and Sexism in Suzanne Pharr article, she wrote that “heterosexism and homophobia work together to enforce compulsory heterosexuality and that bastion of patriarchal power, the nuclear family.” Ministers across the world have focused on two solely “problems”: abortion and homosexuality. Puberty is when the society pressure to be heterosexual and preparing for marriage hard for individuals who struggle with their identity. The Lavender Menace discussed about women who were feminist and were lesbians often hid their sexuality or spoke less at organizations to have a greater effect on the audience. “The Woman Identified Woman” help homosexual woman bring conscious what is was like to be a feminist and a lesbian.…
I’m incredibly tired of seeing myself bastardized and killed on TV. As an avid connoisseur of pop culture and popular television, the practice queerbaiting the audience and/or killing minority characters is a distressing trend that contributes to the continuing prejudice against LGBTQ people across the United States and around the world. Pop culture influences the citizens (and leaders) of our nation, who then vote and promote policy, which shapes the future citizenry, who then vote...and the cycle continues. If our culture continues to demonize those who seem different than the majority, how can we move towards acceptance and understanding? The media we consume and the political policies are all interconnected.…
Throughout the history of activism within the LGBT+ community, there has been a common goal to promote openness and acceptance. By employing a strategy modeled after the civil rights movement, which mainly focused on assimilation into the dominant institutions as a means of acceptance, activist groups have received their fair share of criticism. In 1997, Cathy J Cohen, a Black lesbian author and social activist, published the groundbreaking article “Punks, Bulldaggers, and Welfare Queens: The Radical Potential of Queer Politics?” a year after a controversy she introduces in the beginning of the essay. The famed Gay Men’s Health Crisis, best known for their active role in the treatment of HIV/AIDS during the AIDS crisis, came under fire after…
“Nobody is the same. If we were all the same it would be bloody boring.” –Peter Hook. On one episode of Fairly Odd Parents, Timmy Turner wished that everyone would be the same. His world soon twisted into a grey, dreary place.…
Jenna Mariotti Modern Family Literature Review #5 MLA Citation: Coates, Jacky, and Richard Sullivan. " Achieving Competent Family Practice With Same-Sex Parents: Some Promising Directions. " Journal Of GLBT Family Studies 1.2 (2005): 89. Publisher Provided Full Text Searching File.…
Sociologists need theory. Theory is the building block in our area of study. Theory gives us particular ways of looking at the world. Theory gives us the language to describe, explain, and critique our social world. Overall, theory helps us as sociologist with conceptualizing our research and developing our own argument or framework.…
The dominance of heteronormativity facilitates protection for those whom assimilate into its culture of binary masculinity and femininity; yet, it also necessitates a disruption of such a status quo, seen in the development of queer theory -- queer embodying identities incompatible with heterosexuality, such as lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender; and, theory critiquing connections…