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Homosexuality In Annie Proulx's Brokeback Mountain

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Barack Obama who served our country for eight years once said, "When all Americans are treated as equal, no matter who they are or whom they love, we are all more free." While America is known for freedom, not everyone has been treated with respect and dignity. Throughout American history, individuals have been subjected to hatred and have not been allowed to live in freedom without being persecuted: just for who they are. The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer communities know this feeling all too well. They have had to live in fear, not knowing what would happen to them. The experience of homosexuals in the United States has been documented and written about for centuries. Annie Proulx who wrote, “Brokeback Mountain,” exemplfies …show more content…

One could only imagine how they must felt as a result of the intolerance of gay individuals. They arrived at Farm and Ranch Employment as depressed individuals looking for work. Coming from abusive environments, they knew the struggles and the fear of exposing their true selves. Although they grew up on small, poor ranches and are confused about their sexuality, they are very different, leading to numerous conflicts. The attributes of Jack Twist is very fitting with its symbolic meaning. The word, “Jack” means “man” which fits into the narrative that Jack is willing to man up and be fearless. He does not let his sexuality deter him from being a tough cowboy. For him, seeing Ennis two times a year is not enough for him. He wants to settle down and live as an openly gay couple. On the other hand, Ennis tries to isolate himself from society and mostly keeps to himself. Symbolically, the character, “Ennis” stems from Ennis Del Mar, an island out in the sea with no life. Ennis does not have anything and is afraid for his life. His fears is best explained when he says, “Jack, I don’t want a be like them guys you see around sometimes. And I don’t want to be dead” (Proulx 13). This is a sad reminder of how they could not have an open relationship due to the attitude of homsexuals in the United States. Ennis was careful and incognito about his relationship with Jack. When …show more content…

When Ennis found out about his partner’s death, he was speechless. Ennis drove twelve hundred miles to Jack’s childhood home to find out who Jack really was. As Ennis was talking to Jack’s parents, Jack’s mom asked Ennis if he wanted to go upstairs to Jack’s room. Ennis goes into his room and everything seems to be normal. Then, he goes inside of his closet and that is where Jack’s identity is revealed. In the story, the closet is described as, “...a shallow cavity with a wooden rod braced across, a faded cretone curtain on a string closing it off from the rest of the room” (Proulx 25). This is a clear reference that like the closet, Jack closes himself off from the rest of society. The curtain allows Jack to hide his true feelings without being abused. All of the sudden, Ennis saw a shirt that was hanging in his closet. He quickly realizes that it is Jack’s old shirt from Brokeback. Similar to the shirt, Jack never comes out of the closet. He was too afraid to come out and tell people that he was gay. During this time period, a majority of society did not like homosexuals so, Jack had to do everything he could to hide his love and desires. Back then, individuals would say demeaning words such as, “fa**ot,” or “fairy.” Not long after, Ennis discovered his own plaid shirt where he thought was in a laundromat. It was, “...stolen by Jack and hidden here inside Jack’s

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