On June 23rd, 1912 a boy named Alan Turing was born in Paddington, London. A boy known today as the founder of computer science, a war hero, and the creator of prominent technology in the twenty first century. Turing grew up fostered in various English homes as his father worked in the British Administration in India. Alan developed his intellect when he studied at King’s College, Cambridge. His childhood interests in physics led him to the logical foundations of quantum mechanics. As Turing further developed his interests, he discovered more about his identity, specifically his homosexuality. However, homosexuality was illegal at this time, and while it would raise many barriers in his later life, he was able to move past this fact and on with his studies inconsequentially. Through his academic …show more content…
One of the most well-known victims of this law was the English author and playwright Oscar Wilde. In 1895 Wilde was tried for “gross-indecency” (being homosexual) over a relationship he had with Lord Alfred Douglas, as well as possible ties to homosexuality in his bestselling book The Portrait of Dorian Gray. Like Turing, Wilde did not deny these charges but instead took a stand against the immorality of such a law. He was sentenced to two years of imprisonment and hard labor. He writes about some of the horrible things he had to do during these years in a letter he wrote to Lord Alfred Douglas called ‘De Profundis’ and is published today as a manuscript. After his release, Wilde was banished from English land and died only a year later of meningitis in France. Wilde has become a martyr for the gay rights movement for his outspokenness of his sexuality in his books and in his life, and has become an inspiration for many
We know that Oscar is married and has children but these letters he has written to different men strike him as gay to some. During this time period, many disagreed with this act, especially Lord Alfred Douglas of Queensberry, one of Wilde’s partners father. Some may say this lead to the theme of hate for the fact that Lord Alfred Douglas of Queensberry despised Wilde for sending these letters to his son and having these feelings towards him (Polashuk, 2007).
In nineteenth century, a discourse on homosexuality started to occur; meanwhile, boundaries between black and white became more and more clear. (16) It was the era when the issues that were considered as minority started to appear, and it was also the time when people were reinforcing their ideal “social norms” into the society. It was a dark age for LGBT people, African American people and female. In the article, Scientific Racism and the Homosexual Body, the author, Siobhan Sommerville, makes a strong connection between scientific racism and sexology and women’s bodies. “Although some historians of the scientific discourse on sexuality have included brief acknowledgement of nineteenth century discourses of racial difference in their work,
In the Bible the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were said to be destroyed by the Lord with brimstone and fire on account of the wicked and sinful natures of the men who resided in the cities. The wicked and sinful part of their nature is that the men of Sodom would rather have sex with other men than with the virginal daughters that Lot had offered them. This is where the word sodomy comes from and it is defined as a person given to the sin of Sodom, in other words someone who engages in homosexual acts (Norton, 2013). To combat this kind of “detestable” and “unnatural” behavior the English government created laws which strictly prohibited homosexual acts between men and also women. Although it should be noted that the church already viewed sodomy as a sin before the English judicial system did.
During the Holocaust many people were targeted including homosexual men. The estimated amount of homosexuals involved in the holocaust ranges from 5,000 to 15,000. They faced persecution not only from German soldiers but also from other prisoners living in the concentration camps. Between 1933 and 1945, an estimated 100,000 men were arrested as homosexuals, and of those 100,000 men, 50,000 were officially sentenced.
Throughout history people who manifested an attraction for others of the same sex usually have gone through a lot of maltreatments, discrimination, and have often been regarded as “sexual deviants.” Relationships between people of the same sex have been present since the beginning of history. Their lives have not always been easy, because they have been persecuted and sometimes even forced to go through a psychiatric evaluation. At the same time, in order to gain their rights and dignity, they had to take their fight to the legal system because as George Chauncey, a professor of history at Yale University mentioned, “although most people recognize that gay life was difficult before growth of the gay movement in the 1970s, they often have only the vaguest sense of why: that gay people were scorned and ridiculed, made to feel ashamed, afraid, and alone” (290). However, discrimination and maltreatment were not the only reasons homosexuals had to take their struggle to the courts. An American professor of history at Yale University, who has testified in a number of gay rights cases, has exposed the ins and outs of the legal system in the second half of the twentieth century. During this time, a great number of states had created laws, which authorized the indefinite detention of homosexuals in mental institutions, and conditioned their release upon proving that they were cured from homosexuality (Chauncey 294). This past history, together with studies conducted by some prestigious institutions have lead society to understand that the right to homosexual marriage is economically, ethically, and morally correct, because it would benefit the economy and society by increasing the federal budget and creating a legal status for homosexual c...
Aldous Leonard Huxley was born, in the English countryside, on July 26, 1894 to Leonard and Julia Huxley. He was their third child. His siblings were Julian, Trevenen, and Margaret. His father was the son of T. H. Huxley, a brilliant scientist, and his mother, Julia, was the great-niece of Matthew Arnold, a poet-philosopher. He was unusual and bright but not immediately academically distinguished (Hara 4). His mother had started a school for girls and that is where Huxley first started to bloom. In 1908 his mother died of cancer and she told Huxley, “Don’t be too critical of people and love much” (Garrett 87). His academic career was stopped in 1911 when he got Keratitis punctata (an eye ailment). It left him blinded but he still stayed in school. He had two tutors, his homework and braille. In 1913, he stayed with his brother while his vision improved. He started to travel more when his father remarried (Garrett 87).
One of the hottest topics that modern science has been focusing on for a long time is the field of artificial intelligence, the study of intelligence in machines or, according to Minsky, “the science of making machines do things that would require intelligence if done by men”.(qtd in Copeland 1). Artificial Intelligence has a lot of applications and is used in many areas. “We often don’t notice it but AI is all around us. It is present in computer games, in the cruise control in our cars and the servers that route our email.” (BBC 1). Different goals have been set for the science of Artificial Intelligence, but according to Whitby the most mentioned idea about the goal of AI is provided by the Turing Test. This test is also called the imitation game, since it is basically a game in which a computer imitates a conversating human. In an analysis of the Turing Test I will focus on its features, its historical background and the evaluation of its validity and importance.
Amongst many in the medical community, homosexuality was considered a mental illness. Homosexuals were routinely institutionalized and became the recipients of unethical practices including lobotomies and castrations. Some were given drugs that caused violent reactions to condition homosexuals to avoid romantic relationships with those of the same sex. Many institutionalized homosexuals attempted suicide because of the barbaric repercussions that arose from being gay.
During the 19th century, of course, homosexuality was acknowledged by heterosexuals (particularly of the upper classes) as an existing activity among the lower classes - an activity that thrived in London's own East End. Those who were thought to be homosexuals were often blackmailed. With the Labouchere Amendment in 1885, homosexuals faced a greater threat of exposure through blackmail. In fact, "the threat of exposure as a sodomite is the basis of more than half of the prosecutions throughout the eighteenth century" ("Jekyll & Hyde," par. 8). Other Victorian writers, like Oscar Wilde, faced this threat, which often damaged their reputations if the affair ever made it to a court.
The movie also reflects the values of society and the roles men are expected to play. At the end of the movie, Alan ends his life by committing suicide, a consequence of his receiving chemical castration to correct his gender identity. Great Britain might have seen more incredible inventions if Alan hadn’t died at such a young age. The Imitation Game reflects the important role of gender norms as they play out in Alan Turing’s life. Because he is unable to follow what society considers acceptable gender socialization, Alan is eliminated from society. Despite his remarkable invention, his life is in vain because of the strict and harsh expectations about gender
When the Aesthete, Oscar Wilde, first showed up with his loving association with art it was seen by many as almost “unhealthy” and dangerous, “Wilde himself was accused of corrupting a young man (Lord Alfred Douglas), and his writings (including The Picture of Dorian Gray) were help up as evidence of his dangerous ideas” (Boilard). Some of his writings were frowned upon because they focused on subjects of sensual love, lust and cruelty. It was said that Wilde did not...
Alan Turing left an indelible mark on the world with technological inventions, extraordinary talent, and productive habits. His dedication to hard work and perseverance against the discouragement of bullying provide fantastic examples for anyone to emulate. Also, the inventions of the Turing Machine and the Bombe were the primary reasons why computers existed during the last sixty years, and were important factors in the demise of Nazi Germany. Finally, for one to truly understand why Turing was important in world history, he should envision life without modern technology and
In order to work on cracking the code Alan’s sexuality must be hidden deep in the closet. Alan Turing’s homosexuality makes up a big part of who he is. Turing always felt uncomfortable around other men, because his old friend Christopher was the only one that filled his heart with love. From a social conflict perspective, we can see how the
Oscar Wilde (1854 - 1900) is a central figure in aesthetic writing. Wilde was a poet, fiction writer, essayist and editor. In the opening scenes of the movie Velvet Goldmine, Todd Haynes suggested that Wilde was one of the first pop idols. Oscar Wilde is often seen as a homosexual icon although as many men of his day he was also a husband and father. Wilde’s life ended at odds with Victorian morals that surrounded him. He died in exile.
Perhaps, like many artists, Oscar Wilde was ahead of his time. Today, his flamboyant ways, pride, and homosexuality would be seen as part of his creative outlet and as eccentric, not as something to fear as Victorian society did. Like Ellen DeGeneres’ homosexuality and Lady GaGa’s bizarre way of dressing, many artists today find their outward appearance to be part of their persona and society today is more likely to embrace the differences in artists and praise them for their creativity. However he was perceived in his time, today Oscar Wilde is considered one of the most gifted and most often quoted users of the English language (Wright 54).