Wednesday, March 30, 2011
Khris Tate - Performing Committment
In this essay I really noticed how much our society is still engulfed in the old fashioned man marry woman norm. After reading how the author grew up in a church home and saw what she thought was supposed to happen one day to all girls, I can see where a gay person would be very confused growing up in this setting. Although I do not personally agree with the choices people make to be gay and have relationships, I respect the freedom of choice. As this author grew up and had feelings that maybe were leaning towards women and not towards men, she may not have even ever thought that she might be a lesbian. Because growing up in that kind of home and attending so many weddings, this individual may have had a very tough time even wrapping her mind around the concept that her emotions and urges were not only okay, but her right as a person and American. But growing up in such a home, it was probably even harder for her to accept those emotions and made it that much harder to accept who she was or becoming. The ending statement of the essay really shows an interesting point. The essay is all about rituals and changing of those rituals. I always wondered about kids who were raised by same sex parents, if they had to change the rituals in the household to compensate for not having a father/mother figure in the home. The last statement shows the author seeming to change her ritual as a mother, to be more of the fatherly figure in the home. I can only imagine what all rituals would be changed to accomodate raising children in a gay home. Not only for the home life, but preparing them for their own choices and lives to lead when they grow up. Discussion Questions 1. What are some problems that may occur in a gay home with raising children when a set father (lesbian marriage) or mother (Gay men marriage) is not present? 2. In a home like in question 1, would these children have a difficult time accepting the normal rituals of modern day society after being raised in a home like this? Or would it be that much more beneficial?
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In response to your first question, I have a feeling that if I grew up with lesbian or gay parents, I would certainly be different in various ways. But I wasn't convinced in what areas of my life I would be different, so I looked up studies on that topic. The new study by two University of Southern California sociologists says children with lesbian or gay parents show more empathy for social diversity, are less confined by gender stereotypes, and are probably more likely to explore homosexual activity themselves.
ReplyDeleteYour first question really interested me, I guess I hadn't really thought of that, and I find Tom's comment very interesting as well. I think it is great that the empathy for diversity is growing, and really what better environment to nurture that in. It makes me wonder what heterosexual parents could do in order to nurture this strength as well.
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