Sociological Perspective of Homosexuality.doc

SC1101E Making Sense of SocietySemester I, 2012/2013Individual Short AssignmentLuo Yi Email: luo_.sg Tutor: Amritorupa Sen Sociological Perspective of HomosexualityHomosexuality is a widespread phenomenon in history. Although the term “homosexuality” was coined in 1860s, the first name-recorded homosexual couple was dated back to 2400 B.C. in Egypt (Dowson, 2006). Social attitudes towards homosexuality vary over time and religions. In Roman Empire and late 18th U.S, homosexuals were punished to death; in ancient China, homosexuality was tacitly permitted if a man had wives and sons; in ancient Greece, same-sex intimacy was even socially endorsed (Pickett & Brent, 2011). In recent years, there has been a global trend to recognize and even legalize homosexual partnerships and marriages. In 2001, the Netherlands passed full and equal rights for homosexual marriages. Later nine other countries followed suit. Additionally, over twenty countries allow some other forms of same-sex relationships (The Daily Beast, 2012). Homosexuality, a prevalent yet marginal subculture, is a concern of sociology. The following is to analyze homosexuality using sociological ideas such as social constructionism, norms, ethnocentrism, cultural relativism and change of culture.Sociologists believe homosexuality is not purely biological determined, but also socially constructed. Family education, schooling and mass media all shape conventional gender roles including heterosexual orientation. Kids live in a family with a father and a mother, listening to fairy tales that regale of princes and princesses live happily forever; textbooks classify homosexuality into a marginal category; movies show a hero saving a beauty and finally marrying her. Gradually, one social norm, heterosexuality, is implanted in childrens minds and becomes a taboo. Hence, when homosexual culture strikes, people tend to be resistant to it. Negative sanctions such as discrimination will then be employed. This is how the heterosexual norm contributes to homosexuality being repelled by the mainstream. Meanwhile, heterosexuals tend to take reproduction a necessity in marriage and life. They seek mental and physical supports from heterosexual relationships. Thus, homosexuality, an unproductive and useless behavior, is irrational. This tendency, “judging other cultures exclusively by the standards of ones own”, is known as ethnocentrism in sociology (Brym & Lie, 2007). However, for homosexuals, it is relationships with same-sexual partners that satisfy their mental and physical needs. Because of these requirements and some other reasons, they would rather have no genetic offspring. Homosexuality, in this sense, is reasonable. Like this, understanding a culture in its own cultural context is called cultural relativism. However, like many other norms, heterosexual norm is volatile. It is formed in social practice and will change due to social changes. After World War II, the prosperity of the U.S. brings individualism to all over the world. Individualism values freedom and happiness. It stresses that individuals must have rights to choose their way of life. This idea has profoundly fostered the homosexual rights revolution. On 28 June 1969, the Stonewall Riots near New York City marked the beginning of the modern gay rights movement. Later on November 2, the first gay pride parade was held in New York City (glbtq, 2004). Now the gay pride parade has become a global annual event for the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) community to express its determination of winning equal rights as heterosexuals. And it has embraced many successes, just like the legalization of same-sex marriages.BibliographyBrym, R. J., & Lie, J. (2007). Sociology: Your Compass For A New World (3rd Edition ed.). Thomson Wadsworth.Dowson, T. A. (2006). Archaeologists, Feminists, and Queers: sexual politics in the construction of the past. In Feminist Anthropology: Past, Present, and Future (pp. 96-98). University of Pennsylvania Press.glbtq. (2004). Stonewall Riots. Retrieved September 12, 2012, from glbtq, inc.: /social-sciences/stonewall_riots.htmlPickett, & Brent. (2011, Spring). Homosexuality. (E. N. Zalta, Editor) Retrieved September 9, 2012, from The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy: /archives/spr2011/entries/homosexuality/ The Daily Beast. (2012, May 9).