Introduction
The notion of
gender and sexuality are used interchangeably though for academic study it
would be important to draw distinctions between the two as it has a direct
impact on the construction of identities. Steven Seidman (2010:18) states that
“Feminists point out that all of us are introduced to the world as men or women
… Gender identity is not a superficial part of our lives; it shapes our
personality and social life in important ways”. I will aim to reaffirm the findings in my readings as in my
opinion the issue of sexuality, gender and identity cannot be viewed in
isolation. Gildert Herdt (1994:422) argues that “… the relationship between
cultural categories of sex and gender-identity development remains problematic …
does society have a two-sex or three-sex (or more) code …” It is my view that
the hetero-homosexual binary requires some adjusting as the idea of the
normative heterosexual still appears to be the prevailing pattern in a society
that has morphed beyond the pure need for procreation and perpetuation of the
human species. “… we are not born men or women; we acquire these gender
identities through a social process of learning and sometimes coercion” (Seidman
2010:18). Gender identity is not acquired, you are born with the knowledge of
who you are (though as a young person you may not have the words to verbalize your feelings and emotions that are at odds with the gender role heterosexual
society would impress on you) and grow into your true nature.
I propose to
construct a discourse on sexual dimorphism as it relates to lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgender (LGBT) peoples in current society without looking to
the past and to the events that shaped modern human understanding of what it
means to be Gay.
The purpose of
this paper is not to draw from antiquity except for the reflection on some of
the writings of Artemidorus Daldianus of Ephesus who wrote the Oneirocritica in the 2nd Century AD. I will essentially focus on the late 19th
century, through the 20th century to present day. Historical issues
of morality and how it has affected the subjugation and systematic culling of
homosexuals over the preceding decades to present day are explored and
important to my research and practice. “Some identities are classified as
normal, healthy, and good. These identities are protected and supported …”
(Seidman 2010:167).The stigma attached to being dissimilar to the perceived
norm and the labeling of HIV and AIDS as the “Gay Disease” in the 1980’s which
still today leaves the populace unwilling to disclose or seek treatment. In his
book Herdt (1994:24) states, “… the investigation of alternative, marginal, …
forms of sexual practice and social realities requires a different lens of
inquiry from that of normative social science.”
Unpacking the emergence of homosexual (queer)
culture from the 1960’s, the influence of modern media and how it has changed
perceptions as concept of homosexuality has become more mainstream and therefore
excepted in parts of the Western world. Seidman (2010:71) states, “They are
regularly seen on television and in movies; they are courted by politicians,
given grants and awards by foundations, and embraced by many…”
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