Can religions and cultures be anything more than their history? Why do we have a concept of history in the first place? Obviously history exists, but like the human ability to conceive of the future, history seems to be a rare phenomenon tied with our ability for language and the telling of stories. What’s even more fascinating is the human ability to make up a history or to tell a story, such as a creation myth, that seeks to explain something that has not been witnessed by anyone and does not
There are many labels, names and categories that have been assigned or given to lesbians. What is "lesbian"? Is it a certain type of woman? Does one lesbian have an identical feature or character as another lesbian? Does a lesbian have something extra or something missing from heterosexual women? This notion that we can classify a human being by their sexual preference is absolutely ludicrous and unsubstantiated! Women are just that, women. Sexual attraction to humans, be it the same sex or not,
answers to this mystery, the most obvious being that it was written by and is about a lesbian. America has never fully allowed people to "come out" without reprimand and up until the time of this novel, the only fiction that focused on lesbians emphasized their shame and grief over their sexual identity. The idea that Rubyfruit Jungle has not been looked at in academic circles simply because it is a novel about a lesbian who feels no shame or guilt about her sexuality is only part of the problem, it
In every 45 seconds, someone is sexually violated in the United States. Out of every 6 women, one has experienced an attempted rape or complete rape. Lesbians and bisexual women remain at increased risk of sexual victimization compared to heterosexual women. In order for a woman to determine the direction of her life, she must first determine her sexuality. Sexuality is a deep, integral part of any human’s life. This should not be a subject of coercion or debate. The society must recognize that a
A Social Worker's Perspective on the Gay and Lesbian Community The community I chose to research is the Gay and Lesbian community. I chose to look at this community because, as I meet more and more people in my life, I have found that I come into contact with many Gay and Lesbian people, and to understand their issues, would be beneficial to a social worker. As Berkman and Zinberg (1997), states, social workers are "susceptible to absorbing the explicit and implicit biases held by mainstream
concern by the U.S. Surgeon General in 1992 (Peterman & Dixon, 2003). Not only is it a rapidly growing health problem but it is a growing societal concern as well. Extending beyond the effect felt by the victims and their families, it impacts our communities, government, law enforcement and public service agencies. However, domestic violence is not a new issue within our society. For centuries, women have been regarded as the property of men, offering them leeway in the enforcement of domestic abuse
best be described as nebulous. Although most know that a lesbian is a woman that loves other women, the public opinion surrounding lesbianism mainly consists of half-formed stereotypes and vague disapproval or begrudging acceptance. When considering the LGBT community, most people picture the gay male and neglect the rest of the acronym. There a multitude of reasons for this nebulous perception of the modern day lesbian, but in actuality, lesbian culture is a vast and solid connection between woman that
Among Lesbians and Gay Men Sari D. Gold Brian A. Feinstein Christopher Skidmore Brian P. Marx Psychological Trauma: Theory, Research, Practice, and Policy Vol 3(1), Fall 2015 Dr. Wiltshire Review Summary This study explores the lives of sexual minority individuals who have endured childhood physical abuse, and the long term psychological effects in which it creates. This study in particular sampled members who were solely apart of the LGBT community - 112 adult lesbians and 115
The LGBTQ community has always existed in society, however it fluctuated in its prevalence and acceptance throughout the 20th century. Prior to the 1920s numerous accounts were given stating that being homosexual was a concealed topic, it was not discussed, and if the topic of being gay or lesbian was brought up it could lead to imprisonment or a ruined life for the individual. Similarly, before the 1920s in the U.S. the LGBTQ community couldn’t even be referred to by their preferred sexual identities
While sexual difference may not exist between lesbians all other forms of difference do. These include differences of identity: race, class origins, employment status, age, religion, physical abilities - and while we may struggle against these differences within our individual ‘spaces’ they have a material and institutional reality that cannot be wished away What, to you, seems important about the terms gay and lesbian in literature? In the face of a homophobic society we need creative and critical
Understand the lesbian identity “…sex attains meaning in social relations, which implies that we can only make appropriate choices around sexuality by understanding its social, cultueral and political context.” (Quote: 9293 jeffrey weeks) The idea around the sexual tradition has drastically changed over the years; for centuries homosexuality was considered as a sinful act; but with developments in the scientific, cultural and social world this ‘act’ developed into an identity, a way of being based
men. Truth be told, feminism can mean a whole deal of things. It can mean women fighting for jobs that were mainly held by men with equal pay. It can mean women fighting for equal education in a so called male dominant world. Feminism can give lesbian women the chance to adopt and have children. These are just a few definitions of feminism. Audre Lorde gives her opinion about the meaning of feminism throughout her essays and books that she writes. She consistently challenged a number of things
Upon reading the article “Daring to Be Different: A Look at Three Lesbian Artists” by Laurel Lampel, the author’s main purpose is to discuss that unlike other female historical artists during the mid-19th century there were three artists whom dress and lived as lesbians, changing the norm of gender roles, and presented themselves differently to society (Lampel, 2). In addition to those experiences, it created a major impact for the artists’ new perceptions towards art history and art education (Lampel
are str8 and most people think that being gay or lesbian is wrong and it is not right to show it off and be proud of it. Another point why this topic is very controversial is when gay people marry each other. Many people believe and many religions believe it is very wrong to marry the same sex person. For example in the Roman Catholic followings. The church is totally against gay and lesbian relationships, because it if you do follow the gay and lesbian side its considered a big sin because in the teachings
Living in this generation as African American Lesbian women has proven to be more difficult as the years go by. We have heard so many horrifying stories about how African American women were treated during the slavery period. Who would have thought that things would be even worse as an African American Lesbian? As decades passed circumstances were to have improved but unfortunately, segregation is still being enforced in this new era. It is very unfortunate that we still live in a society that
unequivocal conclusion about gay parenting: the children of lesbian and gay parents grow up as successfully as the children of heterosexual parents. In fact, not a single study has found the children of lesbian or gay parents to be disadvantaged because of their parents' sexual orientation. Other key findings include: · There is no evidence to suggest that lesbians and gay men are unfit to be parents. · Home environments with lesbian and gay parents are as likely to successfully support a child's
diverse communities with different perceptions of body image. One particular community very diverse community that is unique is the LGBT community. Just focusing on the lesbians and bisexual women, there is lots of variation of body image ideals. Within the lesbian community alone, there are lots of Diversity within the community some stereotypes, which are solely based on body image and presentation that include the lipstick lesbian, the Chapstick lesbian, Butch lesbian and the boi lesbian. However
Though, every queer character may not fit one description. In the novel, The Well of Loneliness, Hall, describes the book as Lesbian fiction. This initial glance at the cover may narrow the mind of a reader who is trying to unveil what it means to be a lesbian, transgender, or even a queer person. After looking into the array of relationships that Stephen comes across as she developes from adolescents. I recognized that one of Stephen’s most
and aim behind many films portraying in some ways the queer community. However, there are also films that, in spite of having, for example, homosexual characters, do not “act queerly”; in fact, some of these even reinforce heteronormativity and are thus counter-productive to the LGBT community. One example is Pawel Pawlikowski’s My Summer of Love (2004) (based on the novel of the same title by Helen Cross), which centers on the lesbian love story between two teenagers girl, Mona and Tamsin. In what
Free Essays - The Church and Gays, Lesbians The Catholic Church loves LGBT people with a profound love, just like it loves all of its other children. Various organizations within the church have as their main purpose the delivery of the Gospel to LGBT's. All of us are sacred creations of God, and therefore deserve respect on the basis of our human nature. This essay treats an outreach effort of the church in this area. In the rite of baptism, the liturgy joyfully proclaims, "you are God's