Homophobia And Masculinity

Homophobia is everywhere! How would you feel if someone told you, you could not have what you want? Even if what you want has nothing to do with anyone else. You as a human have a right to pursue your own happiness. It says so in the preamble of our beautiful constitution. How would you feel if where ever you go, the people there will deny your happiness that you want? Where the people will only look at you through hateful eyes. This what homosexual people feel like everywhere they go. This is why we need to stop the hate and spread love for one another. No more senseless homophobic ideas.

People are constantly under the pressures from society to meet its expectations and conform to its standards. In James Baldwin’s novel, Giovanni’s Room, David, the protagonist of the narrative, experienced this first-hand as he navigated between his desires of the same sex and his frustrations with masculinity. Not only did Baldwin present a tale of sorrow; he used it as a social commentary on society’s constraints in the 20th century. Baldwin used Giovanni’s Room to criticize society’s heteronormative expectations of gender behaviors and its limitations on same-sex desires.

In the article “Gay ,Latino ,and Macho” by Albert Serna Jr. and the essay “Masculinity as Homophobia” by Michael S. Kimmel, the authors both address how Masculinity and Homophobia are both effect by the gender scripts that are established by institutions. However, Kimmel and Serna bring light upon the issues in different manners. Kimmel states that Masculinity is a mental burden upon men who are unable to truly express themselves without being seen by society as a “sissy, untough, uncool” (Kimmel, 44). Consequently, this leads many heterosexual males to develop an “irrational fear of gay men” (Kimmel,44).Contrary to Kimmel’s essay, Serna address how the Machismo Culture (a strong sense of masculinity) effects Josue Velazquez and Felix Rios (who are both Mexican males who are homosexual).Serna expands on how many homosexual Mexican males have been affected by the Machismo Culture by introducing the reader to the advancement of the underground queer nightclubs and bars and also to the evolution of art that is center around “sub-culture of gay Latino men”(Serna,54) that is done by Hector Silva. Through his art form, Silvia is able to bring a better look upon “the community” (Serna, 54) that the queer “nightclubs cannot” (Serna, 54).

In Michael Kimmel’s pieces “Masculinity as Homophobia: Fear, Shame, and Silence in the Construction of Gender Identity” and “Who’s Afraid of Men Doing Feminism” he gives us a description of masculinity and explains what this concept of masculinity means for both men and women. He argues that men can, and should be feminist; that they should advocate for gender equality, because gender equality will benefit both men and women. In this paper I will use Kimmel’s analysis of masculinity, which he uses in his arguments for the necessity of profeminist men, along with some assertions made by Jean-Jacques Rousseau about the education of young boys and girls, to show the strengths and weaknesses of Kimmel’s argument. His assertions can seem strong when read alone, however by looking at his argument for profeminist men together with his and Rousseau’s assertions about masculinity one can see a fundamental flaw in his argument. In his analysis of masculinity he not only points out the significant problems with the way men, especially American men, are forced to subscribe to this barbaric concept of manliness, he also expresses concern for this ‘boys club’ atmosphere. However, in his argument for profeminist men, he takes what could be a strong argument and weakens it when he feeds into this desperate need for reassurance by telling men that feminism will benefit them too.

On June 26, 2015 the Supreme Court legalized gay marriage across the nation. This impacted many people, in both good and bad ways. Many of those from the older generation learned to despise same-sex marriage and homosexual people, and then that generation proceeded to teach their children the same thing. Although many views have changed, homophobia is still a big issue in society, no matter whom it is learned from.

In the preface to “Doubt: a Parable,” John Patrick Shanley describes a significant factor to consider when reading his play: “I’ve set my story in 1964, when not just me, but the whole world seemed to be going through some kind of vast puberty” (Shanley viii). During that period in time, America experienced vast growth across all areas of life- from the home, to schools, to politics. Even the Catholic Church seemed to be embrace this time of change with the new attitudes developed from the Second Vatican Council. The Church set out to break from the old, rigid structures of the past and take on a more relatable and approachable presence for its surrounding community. In spite of welcoming these

In the recent years there has been a growing concern about the impact of homophobia. In the United States, few endeavors were made to make backing bunches supporting gay and lesbian connections until after World War II, albeit prewar gay life prospered in urban focuses, for example, Greenwich Village and Harlem amid the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s. The interruptions of World War II permitted earlier detached gay men and ladies to meet as fighters, war laborers, and different volunteers evacuated from residential communities and posted around the world. More noteworthy mindfulness, combined with Senator Joseph McCarthy 's examination of gay people holding government occupations amid the mid 1950s, prompted the primary American-based political requests for reasonable treatment in psychological wellbeing, open strategy, and vocation. Until the passing of the Sexual Offences Bill in 1967, male homosexual activity was illegal. Gay men were frequently imprisoned for consensual sex with another man. Lesbianism was not illegal, but was similarly subject to public disapproval, or ignored.

Despite the dangers and difficulties involved, gay men and women were able to find places to meet. The Minorities Research Group (MRG) was formed in 1964, and provided isolated lesbians with resources and information about female homosexuality and the opportunity to meet other women” (Allan Horsfall 2014). “Through the 1980s, as the gay male community was decimated by the AIDS epidemic, demands

To read Babio without recognizing the gender politics at work in the play would disregard much of how the play itself creates meaning. So much of the play’s plot and character dynamics are related to the way gender functions in this play. One major theme of Babio is the idea of masculinity and how masculinity is defined. Through the portrayal of Babio as an effeminate character, Babio is able to define masculinity through absences in Babio’s Character. Consequently, Babio makes the additional point that lovesickness is not an intrinsic aspect of medieval masculinity, despite the fact that love sickness is often attributed to men.

There are a lot of things that are wrong in our world today. From crime running wild on the streets to there being homelessness wherever we turn. There are things that we can fix, but there are others that just cannot be. We are humans after all; we all have our flaws, we all have our secrets, we have our weaknesses. There are just some things that can never be fixed. Hatred and unrationalizable actions being a few of these things. Every once in a while there is a major crime that sweeps the nation. The reasons for this can vary from mass shootings, police shootouts, the pure shock or the crime or many other reasons. One of these crimes that swept the nation was the horrible act committed against Matthew Shepard.

As with a great majority of men in the world today, it is easier for me to give hugs than to accept them. This is not my own doing, but rather centuries of men before myself being taught that the outward expression of emotion, in any facet, was a direct form of weakness. This has led to adverse affects in regards to a new generation of man that I find myself apart of now. This belief has forged a lack of sentiment within men, all in the name of “being a man.” Do not take it the wrong way, as if to say a lack of compassion is a bad thing, they teach young men. It is actually the contrary in a growing market economy. As we shift to a more global marketplace, empathy of any sort is the cog in the wheel that holds a man back in an attempt to

Chapter 3- Homophobia: Whose Unnatural Now Homophobia is the discrimination, fear or hatred of homosexuality, homosexual people, lesbian, gay and bisexual identity, and refers to the values and behaviours of the people that express this fear and hatred. It can be expressed as antipathy, contempt, prejudice or aversion. It can also be based on an irrational fear, and is sometimes related back to religious beliefs. It can form on many different levels such as personal or internalized homophobia (when gay or lesbians believes they are personally have sinful urges or thoughts), interpersonal homophobia (the exclusion, name calling or physical abuse of others based on sexual orientation ), institutional homophobia (government, business, churches and other organisations discriminating against others based on sexual orientation) and cultural homophobia (social standards and norms which dictate that being heterosexual is better than being lesbian, gay or bisexual).

In Foucault and Queer Theory Spargo defines queer theory as a nebulous group of cultural criticism and analysis of social power structures relating to sexuality . It is these power structures and aspects of culture that are responsible for the discourse that creates and informs ones understanding of gender, race, and sexuality. However these aspects of identity do not exist separately from one another, but are constructed in tandem throughout history. These layers of identity inform each other in a way that is difficult if not impossible to separate. They do not act independently with an additive effect but intersect constructing their own unique set of experiences and perspectives. In this paper I will be exploring queer theory

even though sexuality can be considered universal, the sexual behaviors affiliated with it offer different attitudes in various communities. Sexuality is aligned to sexual attraction where individuals can identify themselves with a broad range of sexuality that is bisexual, gay or being lesbian. Sexuality can change over time in a person depending on the circumstances surrounding him or her. It may be affected by the social circle and emotional imbalances that may occur in an individual. Interestingly there exists sexual inequality among many societies in the world. As observed, many societies encourage men to have multiple sex partners but forbid it in women. Moreover, pre-marital sex is promoted in men, but women are flaunted if they participate in pre-marital sex. Across the globe, Western Europe has embraced certain norms in sexuality such as homosexuality whereas African society embraces a negative attitude towards the same.

The play, placed at eminent place to the libertine, whose pursuit of sexual conquests seemed to reinforce the views of women as little more than sexual diversions for men. Despite Behn’s political investment in this upper-class concept of manhood, critics and scholars have ‘argued that her plays simply just offer celebrations of libertine masculinity.’ (Staves, 2004: 81)

In Kristen Day’s “Being feared: masculinity in a public space” performed through the Department of Planning, Policy, and Design at the University of California Irvine, she attempts to look at men's perspectives on being feared, or not feared, in a public space. Public space according to Day is, “generally accessible places outside of the home, which are used on a temporary basis” (Day, 569). Examples of public spaces she is referring to would be streets, elevators, and shopping malls perhaps. She also studies racial meanings in public spaces. Day is researching this topic after she has already studied women’s fear in public space. She gathers her research by performing one on one interviews with 82 male college students at The University of California, Irvine located in a segregated community in Orange County, California using a social constructionist approach. In simpler terms, a social constructionist approach follows the idea that every person’s involvement and encounters with others molds how they view the world around them (Day, 570). The participants ages ranged from 18 to 36 years old. Majority of the population she conducted her research on are Asian/American and white. Through her study, she stated that men are more feared in public space compared to women. The results of who was feared by race are: 53% of whites, 52% Asian/American, 100% of black men, 82% Hispanic/Latino, and 42% of multiple and other race groups. Majority of the men she interviewed, being