Historical and Scientific Perspectives of Homosexuality
Week Five Assignment: Historical and Scientific Perspectives of Homosexuality Allison Hanson 265/ Psychology of Human Sexuality University of Phoenix/ Axia Online February 24th, 2013
“Ours too the glance none saw beside; The smile none else might understand;
The whisper 'd thought of hearts allied, The pressure of the thrilling hand;
The kiss so guiltless and refin 'd That Love each warmer wish forbore;
Those eyes proclaim 'd so pure a mind, Ev 'n passion blush 'd to plead for more”
Lord Byron, 1806
In the early eighteen hundreds, Lord Byron knew enough to keep these and other love letters a secret. Infatuated with a choirboy from Trinity College in Cambridge, letters penned to a John Edleston, under the feminine name Thyrza later became his famous poem, “The Adieu”, which was about their parting. Byron later left England in 1809, and it has been speculated that he was forced in some way. Either by an affair about to come public, or the overwhelming influence from the Church of England that his “kind”, was vile filth. The Church has been the forefront on the war on Homosexuality for centuries and has even managed to have a tight hold on today’s opinions.
“AIDS is the wrath of a just God against homosexuals. To oppose it would be like an Israelite jumping in the Red Sea to save one of Pharaoh 's charioteers ... AIDS is not just God 's punishment for homosexuals; it is God 's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals." Jerry Falwell, 2003
Unfortunately for most homosexuals throughout history, these attitudes played a huge role in how many saw themselves. To be told time and time again that they were evil, soulless and without redemption, most kept their sexual preference to themselves. Only in the last 50 years, has it become easier and more empowering for people who had lived their entire life in secret, or kept a part of
“Ours too the glance none saw beside; The smile none else might understand;
The whisper 'd thought of hearts allied, The pressure of the thrilling hand;
The kiss so guiltless and refin 'd That Love each warmer wish forbore;
Those eyes proclaim 'd so pure a mind, Ev 'n passion blush 'd to plead for more”
Lord Byron, 1806
In the early eighteen hundreds, Lord Byron knew enough to keep these and other love letters a secret. Infatuated with a choirboy from Trinity College in Cambridge, letters penned to a John Edleston, under the feminine name Thyrza later became his famous poem, “The Adieu”, which was about their parting. Byron later left England in 1809, and it has been speculated that he was forced in some way. Either by an affair about to come public, or the overwhelming influence from the Church of England that his “kind”, was vile filth. The Church has been the forefront on the war on Homosexuality for centuries and has even managed to have a tight hold on today’s opinions.
“AIDS is the wrath of a just God against homosexuals. To oppose it would be like an Israelite jumping in the Red Sea to save one of Pharaoh 's charioteers ... AIDS is not just God 's punishment for homosexuals; it is God 's punishment for the society that tolerates homosexuals." Jerry Falwell, 2003
Unfortunately for most homosexuals throughout history, these attitudes played a huge role in how many saw themselves. To be told time and time again that they were evil, soulless and without redemption, most kept their sexual preference to themselves. Only in the last 50 years, has it become easier and more empowering for people who had lived their entire life in secret, or kept a part of
References: http://rictornorton.co.uk/byron.htm Excerpts from My Dear Boy: Gay Love Letters through the Centuries (1998), Edited by Rictor Norton Copyright © 1997, 1998 by Rictor Norton. http://gaymarriage.procon.org/ 2013 ProCon.org, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit Rathus, S. A., Nevid, J.S., and Fichner-Rathus, L. (2011). Human sexuality in a world of diversity. (8th ed.) Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.