The Imagination Of Europe By George Gordon Byron

This recognition of sodomy as the characterizing practice of homosexuals indicates society's general disregard of women as homosexuals. It was apparently beyond the capability of most people during the eighteenth century even to consider that women could engage in any practice so unnatural and strange. Women, themselves, used this disbelief to their advantage, as in the case of a woman suspected of homosexual involvement, a suspected "Mistress Clap, who was asked by a judge whether she had anything to say for herself. 'I hope it will be considered that I am a woman,' she replied briefly, 'and therefore it cannot be thought that I would ever be concerned with such practices"' (Hyde 64).

People who come from the early to mid 1900s were not exposed extensively to anything other than heterosexuality. For example, homosexuality was a foreign activity thought to be an illness. Therefore, no matter what kind of punishments gays received, they brought it upon themselves for choosing the ‘lifestyle’. Not only that, the media rarely wrote anything related to homosexuals; however, there were a few daring individuals who noted the issue. One of those people is an author named Norman Mailer, who, at the time, was just as guilty as his other contemporary peers rendering homosexuality as ‘unpleasant, ridiculous, or sinister connotations’ (source). He was one of the most promising and significant novelists to arise from World War II. He was also a brawler and commonly adopted a macho character that he valued highly, so it was no surprise that he did not view the

Politically, both in America and Britain, the idea of a Gay related illness was something which did not

Changes were happening all over Europe between World War I and World War II, and the book Europe in the Era of Two World Wars highlights a lot of them. Volker Berghahn, the author, discusses how violence escalated all across Europe during this time frame. The book digs into the desires and upsets of countries like Germany, Britain, France, and Russia, during war times more than others I have read do. Economies of each country and the escalading violence are the main focuses of the book. In the following review of Berghahn’s work, Europe in the Era of Two World Wars, I will highlight why the author is qualified to write the book, and survey the strengths and weakness of the information he provided.

In seventeenth-century England, the crime of sodomy was considered to be a heinous sin. In a time when religion governed law, homosexuality was not tolerated. The case against Lord Audley, Earl of Castlehaven, represents the treatment of those convicted in engaging in sexual behavior with men. Not only was sodomy frowned upon because it went against God’s laws, but it was also considered a crime against honor. Lord Audley’s trial shows that a crime of deviance is worse than a crime against another human being in seventeenth-century England.

Walt Whitman was born on May 31, 1819 and he died on March 26, 1892. He had a nickname that was "Bard of Democracy. When he was 11, his dad took him out of school so he could help around the house and the farm. He started to work as a journalist and he did not really like it because he always had a hard deadline. Whitman became angered about the slavery problems so that is what made him sit down and start writing his feeling which became a poem.

These sentiments continue until the medieval period, where Henry VIII formalises penalties and outlaws homosexual activity by passing the Buggery Act of 1533. The Act defined buggery as ‘an unnatural sexual act against the will of God and man’. This is a pivotal point, as it is no longer just a prohibition or social taboo, but these activities can be punishable with the death penalty.

Loneliness was an important characteristic of both poet's lives during the writing years. Whitman, whose sexuality has been questioned, was never one for social interaction. Much of his time was spent

Walt Whitman was born in 1819 in Long Island but moved to live in New Jersey where he spent most of his life. He was known as an American poet and journalist. He expressed himself in poetry by describing his life and American lives as a poem. His first published poem was Leaves of Grass in 1855, which later became known as Song of Myself. Ezra Pound was born in 1885 and died in Venice Italy, 1972. He was an American poet that criticized other poems and worked with other novelist and poets to help shape their work. Pound wrote an essay explaining his thoughts and opinions on Whitman’s poem. Pound believed that Whitman was a writer who developed a new style of writing. He describes Whitman as a writer who was not

homosexual, this phrase was the reason of his death. He was murdered by “homophobes” or

To understand why Byron wrote in this way you must first understand his upbringing and the things he learned growing up. Byron, born on January 22, 1788, in Aberdeen England, was born to the very aristocratic and wealthy Catherine Gordon and highly-ranked naval officer, John

This shows the rapid change in attitudes by the general public towards homosexuality which was still considered a mental illness in Britain until the early 1950s when official medical research discounted this theory (Stonewall- 2014). Despite these positive statistics, police particularly in England are still facing a shockingly high number of homophobic attacks with 174 incidents in the first ten months of 2014 alone in the West Midlands (Birmingham mail-

While the concept of homosexuality did not exist in the United States, changes were happening in Europe with the issue. Right around the 1870's affectionate relationships between males acquired a label.

?Byron returned to London in July 1811, but too late to see his mother, before she

George Gordon Byron, Lord Byron, was born on January 22, 1788 in London and passed away on April 19, 1824 due to a fever in Missologi, Greece according to Marchand. He had a rough life due to his father abandoning him and his mother having schizophrenia. He was self-conscious as a child due to his clubfoot and had a nurse who helped care for him and also abused him (Marchand). Byron is known for his great role in the Romantic Movement, and is considered a great inspiration for romantic poetry during his era (Marchand).