Homosexuality

Homosexuality PDF Author: D. J. West
Publisher: Transaction Publishers
ISBN: 0202366456
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 306

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Book Description
The subject of homosexuality, and especially male homosexuality, has received a great deal of publicity in England and America. The furor began with Kinsey's famous reports on sexual behavior, which brought out the fact that a far higher proportion of the population than was commonly supposed deviated from accepted standards of normality and morality. Taking courage from the apparent safety of large numbers, the sexually unorthodox and their sympathizers began to challenge the criteria of normality, and to question whether sexual habits that were widespread and so deeply entrenched could justifiably be written off as immoral. D.J. West's Homosexuality dissects the myths and paranoia surrounding this topic by examining the nature and roots of homosexuality. The politico-legal controversy has tended to overshadow the more fundamental psychological questions concerning the nature and causes of homosexuality. In this field, no striking discoveries have resulted from the increased public interest. Nevertheless, a body of factual data has accumulated, and a number of theories are available. The author's main purpose is to summarize as clearly as possible what is known, to draw what practical conclusions may be possible, and to point out where we are still groping and ignorant. This book deals mainly with male homosexuality because in men the condition causes more clear cut social problems and has been studied more intensely by psychiatrists. Unfortunately, though strongly held opinions abound, hard facts about homosexuality and its possible causes are difficult to obtain. Even now, serious medical and sociological investigations in this subject are scandalously few considering the importance of the questions in human terms. Until a large section of the public is prepared to face the facts squarely and rationally and to support adequate research, our knowledge will remain rudimentary. This book clears away the debris of myth and misunderstanding in a vital area of social concern. D. J. West is professor at the University of Cambridge. He is the editor of Sociolegal Control of Homosexuality: A Multi-Nation Comparison (with Richard Green) and author of The Other Man, A Study of the Social, Legal, and Clinical Aspects of Homosexuality.

Homosexuality

Homosexuality PDF Author: D. J. West
Publisher: Transaction Publishers
ISBN: 0202366456
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 306

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Book Description
The subject of homosexuality, and especially male homosexuality, has received a great deal of publicity in England and America. The furor began with Kinsey's famous reports on sexual behavior, which brought out the fact that a far higher proportion of the population than was commonly supposed deviated from accepted standards of normality and morality. Taking courage from the apparent safety of large numbers, the sexually unorthodox and their sympathizers began to challenge the criteria of normality, and to question whether sexual habits that were widespread and so deeply entrenched could justifiably be written off as immoral. D.J. West's Homosexuality dissects the myths and paranoia surrounding this topic by examining the nature and roots of homosexuality. The politico-legal controversy has tended to overshadow the more fundamental psychological questions concerning the nature and causes of homosexuality. In this field, no striking discoveries have resulted from the increased public interest. Nevertheless, a body of factual data has accumulated, and a number of theories are available. The author's main purpose is to summarize as clearly as possible what is known, to draw what practical conclusions may be possible, and to point out where we are still groping and ignorant. This book deals mainly with male homosexuality because in men the condition causes more clear cut social problems and has been studied more intensely by psychiatrists. Unfortunately, though strongly held opinions abound, hard facts about homosexuality and its possible causes are difficult to obtain. Even now, serious medical and sociological investigations in this subject are scandalously few considering the importance of the questions in human terms. Until a large section of the public is prepared to face the facts squarely and rationally and to support adequate research, our knowledge will remain rudimentary. This book clears away the debris of myth and misunderstanding in a vital area of social concern. D. J. West is professor at the University of Cambridge. He is the editor of Sociolegal Control of Homosexuality: A Multi-Nation Comparison (with Richard Green) and author of The Other Man, A Study of the Social, Legal, and Clinical Aspects of Homosexuality.

The Nature and Causes of Homosexuality

The Nature and Causes of Homosexuality PDF Author: Noretta Koertge
Publisher: Psychology Press
ISBN: 9780866561488
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 118

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Book Description
For a balanced discussion of the main social, medical, and philosophical aspects of homosexuality, here is the ideal book. Written by philosophers of science, each comprehensive chapter takes a critical look at research on the etiology of homosexuality. Read Philosophy and Homosexuality and examine the evidence for both the sociobiological and hormonal explanations of homosexuality and study the definitions of sexual orientation and how they have affected research.

What Causes Sexual Orientation? Genetics, Biology, Psychology

What Causes Sexual Orientation? Genetics, Biology, Psychology PDF Author: Bill Palmer
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1422296679
Category : Juvenile Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 61

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Book Description
The debate over "nature versus nature" continues over the causes of homosexuality. Is there a gay gene? Is there something about the way a child is raised that can "turn" her gay? Or is being gay simply a "choice"? Taking a look at the major genetic, biological, and psychological theories of the origins of homosexuality, this book asks questions about gender, gender identity, and sexual orientation that are at the center of gay people's sense of identity and their struggle for civil rights and acceptance by society. While for centuries homosexuality was considered a mental illness, a moral failure, or a biological disorder, gay people in the twenty-first century have the evidence of scientific research and their authentic experiences of happy and fulfilling lives to support the pride and sense of community that is their rightful place in the modern world.

On Being Different

On Being Different PDF Author: Merle Miller
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101603569
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 98

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Book Description
The groundbreaking work on being homosexual in America—available again only from Penguin Classics and with a new foreword by Dan Savage Originally published in 1971, Merle Miller’s On Being Different is a pioneering and thought-provoking book about being homosexual in the United States. Just two years after the Stonewall riots, Miller wrote a poignant essay for the New York Times Magazine entitled “What It Means To Be a Homosexual” in response to a homophobic article published in Harper’s Magazine. Described as “the most widely read and discussed essay of the decade,” it carried the seed that would blossom into On Being Different—one of the earliest memoirs to affirm the importance of coming out. For more than sixty-five years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,500 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

The Health of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender People

The Health of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender People PDF Author: Institute of Medicine
Publisher: National Academies Press
ISBN: 0309210658
Category : Medical
Languages : en
Pages : 293

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Book Description
At a time when lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender individuals-often referred to under the umbrella acronym LGBT-are becoming more visible in society and more socially acknowledged, clinicians and researchers are faced with incomplete information about their health status. While LGBT populations often are combined as a single entity for research and advocacy purposes, each is a distinct population group with its own specific health needs. Furthermore, the experiences of LGBT individuals are not uniform and are shaped by factors of race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, geographical location, and age, any of which can have an effect on health-related concerns and needs. The Health of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender People assesses the state of science on the health status of LGBT populations, identifies research gaps and opportunities, and outlines a research agenda for the National Institute of Health. The report examines the health status of these populations in three life stages: childhood and adolescence, early/middle adulthood, and later adulthood. At each life stage, the committee studied mental health, physical health, risks and protective factors, health services, and contextual influences. To advance understanding of the health needs of all LGBT individuals, the report finds that researchers need more data about the demographics of these populations, improved methods for collecting and analyzing data, and an increased participation of sexual and gender minorities in research. The Health of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender People is a valuable resource for policymakers, federal agencies including the National Institute of Health (NIH), LGBT advocacy groups, clinicians, and service providers.

Making Gay Okay

Making Gay Okay PDF Author: Robert Reilly
Publisher: Ignatius Press
ISBN: 1586178334
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 293

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Book Description
Why are Americans being forced to consider homosexual acts as morally acceptable? Why has the US Supreme Court accepted the validity of same-sex "marriage", which, until a decade ago, was unheard of in the history of Western or any other civilization? Where has the "gay rights" movement come from, and how has it so easily conquered America? The answers are in the dynamics of the rationalization of sexual misbehavior. The power of rationalization-the means by which one mentally transforms wrong into right-drives the gay rights movement, gives it its revolutionary character, and makes its advocates indefatigable. The homosexual cause moved naturally from a plea for tolerance to cultural conquest because the security of its rationalization requires universal acceptance. In other words, we all must say that the bad is good. At stake in the rationalization of homosexual behavior is the notion that human beings are ordered to a purpose that is given by their Nature. The understanding that things have an in-built purpose is being replaced by the idea that everything is subject to man's will and power, which is considered to be without limits. This is what the debate over homosexuality is really about-the Nature of reality itself. The outcome of this dispute will have consequences that reach far beyond the issue at hand. Already America's major institutions have been transformed-its courts, its schools, its military, its civic institutions, and even its diplomacy. The further institutionalization of homosexuality will mean the triumph of force over reason, thus undermining the very foundations of the American Republic.

Homosexuality and Civilization

Homosexuality and Civilization PDF Author: Louis Crompton
Publisher: Harvard University Press
ISBN: 9780674030060
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 652

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Book Description
How have major civilizations of the last two millennia treated people who were attracted to their own sex? In a narrative tour de force, Louis Crompton chronicles the lives and achievements of homosexual men and women alongside a darker history of persecution, as he compares the Christian West with the cultures of ancient Greece and Rome, Arab Spain, imperial China, and pre-Meiji Japan. Ancient Greek culture celebrated same-sex love in history, literature, and art, making high claims for its moral influence. By contrast, Jewish religious leaders in the sixth century B.C.E. branded male homosexuality as a capital offense and, later, blamed it for the destruction of the biblical city of Sodom. When these two traditions collided in Christian Rome during the late empire, the tragic repercussions were felt throughout Europe and the New World. Louis Crompton traces Church-inspired mutilation, torture, and burning of sodomites in sixth-century Byzantium, medieval France, Renaissance Italy, and in Spain under the Inquisition. But Protestant authorities were equally committed to the execution of homosexuals in the Netherlands, Calvin's Geneva, and Georgian England. The root cause was religious superstition, abetted by political ambition and sheer greed. Yet from this cauldron of fears and desires, homoerotic themes surfaced in the art of the Renaissance masters--Donatello, Leonardo, Michelangelo, Sodoma, Cellini, and Caravaggio--often intertwined with Christian motifs. Homosexuality also flourished in the court intrigues of Henry III of France, Queen Christina of Sweden, James I and William III of England, Queen Anne, and Frederick the Great. Anti-homosexual atrocities committed in the West contrast starkly with the more tolerant traditions of pre-modern China and Japan, as revealed in poetry, fiction, and art and in the lives of emperors, shoguns, Buddhist priests, scholars, and actors. In the samurai tradition of Japan, Crompton makes clear, the celebration of same-sex love rivaled that of ancient Greece. Sweeping in scope, elegantly crafted, and lavishly illustrated, Homosexuality and Civilization is a stunning exploration of a rich and terrible past.

God and the Gay Christian

God and the Gay Christian PDF Author: Matthew Vines
Publisher: Convergent
ISBN: 1601425163
Category : Christian gays
Languages : en
Pages : 226

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Book Description
Reinterpretations of key Bible texts related to sexual orientation, written by a Harvard student, present an accessible case for a modern Christian conservative acceptance of sexual diversity.

Queer Science

Queer Science PDF Author: Simon LeVay
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262121999
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 375

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Book Description
What makes people gay, lesbian, bisexual, or heterosexual? And who cares? Written by one of the leading scientists in the research of sexual orientation, Queer Science looks at how scientific discoveries about homosexuality influence society's attitude toward gays and lesbians, beginning with the theories of the German sexologist and gay-rights pioneer Magnus Hirschfeld and culminating with the latest discoveries in brain science, genetics, endocrinology, and cognitive psychology.

Homosexuality

Homosexuality PDF Author: John C. Gonsiorek
Publisher: SAGE Publications
ISBN: 1452252505
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 313

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Book Description
Does present important and relevant data on homosexuality that will help sensible professionals and lay people alike refute the specious arguments of....radical right politicians and religious leaders. --Book Reviews "John C. Gonsiorek and James D. Weinrich are skillful in their application of research to public policy . . . . This book is exceptionally readable. . . . [they] are to be particularly commended for their editorial expertise." --Contemporary Psychology "Gonsiorek and Weinrich′s book is a gem! It provides the most up-to-date discussions of all the crucial issues that anyone who deals with gay and lesbian issues must understand--the myths, prejudices, and the knotty issues of policy and the scientific research relevant to them. Whether one needs to know about ′child molestation,′ ′choice,′ ′role models,′ or any other ′old chestnut,′ this book provides a clear and scholarly treatment of the controversy and the research relevant to it. It is indispensable!" --Clinton Anderson, Officer for Gay and Lesbian Concerns American Psychological Association "Gonsiorek and Weinrich assemble a most distinguished group of contributors who, in turn, examine the most important issues regarding the subject of homosexuality from the perspective of psychological research. This book is an invaluable resource for forensic psychologists, lawyers and law makers. It offers a thorough exploration of the research necessary to formulate public policy on these issues. In addition, mental health service providers, instructors, and students alike will find that this book covers the basic issues in the psychology of lesbians and gay men with competence and care. A powerhouse of a book!" --Kristin Hancock, Ph.D., Past Chair, Association of Lesbian & Gay Psychologists and Past President, APA Division #44 "There are so many outstanding contributions to this book and so many reasons to get it. This work flies in the face of hearsay and shatters psychological myth with research. It clearly has many uses in the education and training of psychotherapists. It is the sort of work which would also prove to be an invaluable resource to those who need well-documented, clearly written reviews of available research on gay men and lesbians--whatever the reason." --American Psychological Association, Division #44 Newsletter Despite scientific study and scholarly research, homosexuality continues as the subject of an intense, and often bitter, debate. Current and concise, Homosexuality summarizes what science knows about homosexuality and its relevance for public policy. The chapters here focus on concerns that have been most central to current public policy debates about homosexuality, including: the nature and causes of sexual orientations; the reasons why homosexuality is not an illness; the ethics of various mental health approaches to homosexuality; the effects of social and legal discrimination; newer biological and psychological understandings of homosexuality; homosexual people as couples and parents; and the implications of the AIDS epidemic. Because the contributors hail from a variety of disciplines (social, clinical, and counseling psychology; law; psychiatry; social work; biology; nursing; and anthropology), this volume offers a balanced approach to an important--and controversial--issue. This intriguing and timely volume encourages readers to become discerning consumers of the scientific discourses on homosexuality--past, present, and future. As such, students, scholars, and professionals in psychology, sociology, counseling, and social work will use this volume time and again.