Sexuality and The Gay or Straight Question

This discussion started on Facebook but I decided I should develop it further for this blog. The conversation was about the controversy surrounded the film Bruno. A friend expressed the view that the depiction of homosexuals in the film was offensive in its stereotyping. But I felt that he missed the aspect of the film that was a social commentary on this, as well as other, stereotypes.

What I felt that was perhaps most offensive in the film is the artificiality of the human condition. Our concepts of sexuality are by and large artificial constructs developed through conditioning our psyche as we develop within our social context.



Why do we even care who is gay or straight? Is there even such a thing as either? why do we insist upon a choice? I dont believe anyone is entirely gay or straight, and that we are all at birth innately bisexual. For example, I recall on 60 minutes (or some such programme) a woman in prison saying how prison makes all woman gay. I am sure it is true for men also (the popular media certainly implies such) and it was true in the trenches.

We think the Ancient Greeks were Queer, but I am sure they would think the same of us. Did they contain some 'gay-gene' as some mentally retarded scientists seem to believe exists.



“Innate bisexuality (or predisposition to bisexuality) is a term introduced by Sigmund Freud (based on work by his associate Wilhelm Fliess), that expounds all humans are born bisexual but through psychological development (which includes both external and internal factors) become monosexual while the bisexuality remains in a latent state... Many modern uses of the term innate bisexuality are more indicative of Alfred Kinsey's research than Freud's. In this sense, it is a suggestion that most or all human beings are functionally bisexual to some degree, but may not express that bisexuality as behavior. Both theories have a great deal of controversy surrounding them, so it is particularly important to be aware of which is being discussed.” Link



Images from apollonius.net