Semantic Change: How Gay Became Homosexual

Though same-sex relationships have been a prominent aspect of many cultures almost since the beginning of time, there has historically been a significant taboo surrounding the phenomenon in the Western world. "From the Fourteenth Century on, Western Europe was gripped by a rabid and obsessive negative preoccupation with homosexuality as the most horrible of sins" (Boswell 262). The majority of people did not understand or accept the idea, and consequentially did not have an appropriate way of talking about it. Over the years, as various cultures identified and even implemented practices currently associated with homosexuality, there arose a need for common terminology. Until the eighteenth century, it was referred to through the practices

The first word that comes to my mind that is used differently with my friends than it was used by my parents is the word gay. In this day and time, the word gay is used to describe a person who is interested in the same gender. When my parents were growing up, being gay meant that someone was happy. The second word that comes to my mind that is used differently with my friends than it was used by my parents

The meaning gay has changed tremendously over time. In the past, the term gay was not used as frequently and as freely as it is used today. The term originated from the Old French and dates back to the 1600s, “Deriving ultimately from Germanic source” (Wikipedia). The word means “Joyful, carefree, bright and showy” (Wikipedia). Gay also means to be “Addicted to social pleasure and dissipations,” as a noun “of a person:

Heterosexism, according to Warren J. Blumenfeld, is the system of advantages given to heterosexuals based on the social construct of gender roles and heterosexual norms, while marginalizing and oppressing homosexuals and others who do not fit into the heterosexual culture (373). The enforcement of this system is known as heteronormality. This is seen in the binary system, which is a social construct that divides people into different strictly bordered categories organized by “social roles, values, stereotypes, and behavioral and attitudinal imperatives, expressions, and expectations” (Blumenfeld 373). Those who stick to the binary system, maintain power and privilege. People who may live in the binary system, but also intentionally

Martha Irvine, a graduate of the University of Michigan published an article titled Queer Evolution which talked about how the word “Queer” itself has evolved into the mainstream. Originally the word’s definition was to describe something as odd or weird. Society utilized the word “Queer” as an insult to the LGBTQ community. As more sexual orientations are being discovered, “Queer” became a more accepted word in the gay community in order to make things simpler. Irvine’s essay showed that whatever word we use, can affect a person depending on the intention, and the tone of how it’s being said. Irvine’s essay is very similar to Deborah Tannen’s essay You’re Wearing That which talks about the relationship between mother and daughter and how words have established expectations for women based on their appearance and behavior. Another essay that well connects with Tannen and Irvine’s articles is a section from a book written by Michael Kimmel titled Bros Before Hos’’: The Guy Code. Kimmel talks about “The Guy Code”, rules that a man should always follow in order to be considered a real man. Words are the reason why these standards have been established for all genders and sexualities. The relationships between parents and children would be better if words were replaced, which would abolish the expectations that society has for men and women.

The word “gay” has gone through drastic changes. Traditionally, it was a positive term that meant to be “happily excited” or “jolly” (Merriam Webster, “Gay”). It was used regularly to express one’s feelings about life. Today, it has a far different meaning. Now people use the word gay to label homosexuals, those with feminine qualities, or those who do something thought to be outside of the norm for their gender. “Being gay” went from expressing someone’s happiness to describing his sexual preference. The definition of gay has changed so much that its original meaning has become archaic and lost to the times.

So if one guy called another guy a “fag” it is not necessarily to say that he is literally gay; it’s a charge that he is not being “a real man”. In essence the word “fag” is not only a homophobic slur, it is a homophobic slur that also attacks behavior as not being masculine. This is why Pascoe used the phrase gendered homophobia throughout the book to describe the masculinity the male students showed on a daily basis.

Whilst facilitating an enrichment project for KS4 learners, it was my pleasure to work in collaboration with a ex-pupil of mine (who had left the school two years previous.) in order to explore the issue of homosexuality, homophobia and briefly touch on stereotypical views in society.

Both terms ‘gender’ and ‘sexuality’ are very common, broad and the meaning of it differs from person to person. Eugenically the term ‘gender’ is defined to have socially composed roles, activities, behaviours, and peculiarity that a given society considers right for men and women (WHO, 2015). Whereas the term ‘sexuality’ has various meanings, it is described as feeling or having attraction or having sexual thoughts and preferences towards same sex or opposite sex (reachout.com, 2015). This essay will explore Pascoe’s (2005) article on sexualised insult ‘fag’ by American teenage boys. It will also focus on the racialized nature of this ‘fag’ discourse. As it is not the only identity related to homosexual men but can briefly associate to heterosexual men as well. Another sexualised insult ‘slut’ depicted in Attwood’s (2007) work has many meanings and has changed overtime. This will be illustrated by highlighting how the word ‘slut’ was used to define women sexually and their struggle over class, race and generation. The term ‘bitch’ explored in Crawford & Popp (2003) study share similar perspective to Attwood’s work where talking about sexuality or gender would involve making assumption about race and class. This will help present the different identities which people use to define their sexuality and gender such as gay, fag, slut and bitch in terms of race and class. This will be explored in various academics work. This implies that understanding about sexuality and gender in

Across generations, we contend that education needs to be queered and queried in ways that disrupt normative presumptions regarding sexuality and that questions

Moving on to the third article, “The Sound of Silence: Talking About Sexual Orientation and School” by Renee DePalma and Elizabeth Atkinson primarily addresses how the parents feel about their students learning about sexuality. DePalma and Atkinson created an internet forum that let the parents express their opinions on statements regarding sexual orientation in their student’s curriculum. The purpose of this discussion was to find out where parents stood on this topic. DePalma and Atkinson (2006) clarify the statements varied from, “Discussing sexual orientation in class might make children gay. Children in school are too young to be thinking about things like sexual orientation. All teachers, pupils, and parents have a

Homosexual, gay, queer, faggot, fairy, queen, dyke, all words to describe an individual with same sex proclivities. To be a gay in the 1950s and 1960s was to be asking for a death wish. Gay individuals in America were subjected to an anti-homosexual legal system that denied these individuals with their basic rights and freedoms. In 1952, Homosexuality was considered a mental disorder by the American Psychistric Association in the Diagnostic and Statistic Manual. Communities were often the subject to the eradication of homosexuals from neighborhoods, parks, bars, and beaches. Local and State governments quickly organized and banned the wearing of opposite gender clothing with universities expelling professors

Over the last few decades, our society went through a huge transformation in culture, politics and media that no one else could have foreseen. There is an obvious increase in the acceptance of homosexuality. Even though lesbian and gay people have gradually moved onto the stage in growing numbers, there are still some problems exist in the ways that media perpetuate homosexual stereotypes. According to an article by Chong-suk Han, “The subjective storytelling found in ‘journalistic’ pieces reinforces social inequalities by ‘forstering such feelings of collective belonging—based on class, gender, sexual preference, subcultural lifestyle or whatever’”(Chong-suk Han, 2008). Nowadays, the media plays an important role in carrying and transforming the new cultural ideas toward the whole society, few could ignore the existence of lesbian and gay people. In order to prevent discriminating them from the other groups, more accurate representation of homosexuals should be provide on the mainstream media.

So how did the word ‘gay’ develop its meaning towards homosexuals? According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, gay means “sexually attracted to someone of the same sex; cheerful and lively; or relating to

Pascoe provides a great idea of how the discourse of gay slurs is a powerful central mechanism that makes adolescents masculine, but the evidence she presents is weakened by her use of inadequate examples that lack the quantity of different social context. All of Pascoe’s references and testimonies come from teenagers that attend Riverside High in north-central California, which doesn’t allow room for different perspectives because all of the information comes from the same background that revolves around the same social norm. Pacoe’s examples sound very redundant, even though she interviews kids from different social groups and genders, stating that “both boys and girls I interview told me that “fag” was the worst epithet one guy could direct at another” (Pascoe, 2016, p. 577). Obviously the whole high school has its own set of social norms and at this one, it is acceptable to call another guy a fag because that is the slang they use; however, if Pascoe visits another high school in another area of the country with kids from a different background then her argument could be justified if they too presented the same data as Riverside High.