Different Thoughts about Homosexuality

John Weir's story Homo in Heteroland was part of Ethan Mordden book, Waves: An Anthology of New Gay Literature. This book had 14 stories from different authors who identify themselves as gay. This book was published in 1994, during a time that many people were frightened by growing AIDS and HIV crisis spreading throughout inner cities in America. In the 1980's, deaths caused by AIDS was increasing raptly. According to the article, HIV and AIDS- United States, 1981 2000, the reason of AIDS and the large number of deaths was spreading more among men who were having sex with man. Monitories of ethnic and racial backgrounds had an in increased with woman contracting the disease due to heterosexual transmission. This influx lasted a couple of years until deaths decrease during the 1990's.
Every individual's' thoughts are different about homosexuality.

Many people during the AIDS and HIV epidemic of the 80's, didn't accept homosexuality. In later years, people eventually started to accept and get used to the idea of others having the right to choose their sexual preference without judgement. They have the right to be who they choose to be and many young people who are attracted by the same gender were discriminated and violence in 2010. In the article Gay and Lesbian Discrimination they said, study of 3134 young Australians found that 61 per cent had suffered verbal abuse because of their sexuality, 18 per cent suffered physical assault and 69 per cent suffered other forms of homophobia such as exclusion rumors and graffiti (Department of Health & Human services). No person deserves to experience discrimination or violence just because of their sexual preferences. Humans are all humans so, it shouldn't matter. This discrimination and violence can lead someone to commit suicide.

People who push homosexuals aside, don't understand how they feel and what they might be going thru. They need to be heard by someone for them not to be lonely and people should understand that they have the to choose to be homosexual. In the story Homo in Heteroland by John Weir there is a similar situation where the narrator feels lonely because his family doesn't belief in homosexuality. Besides loneliness, the story has a significant theme about family. Analyzing the narrator's feelings, we'll learn the narrator's feelings toward homosexuality and how he feels responsible for his nephew James, because the narrator doesn't ever want James to feel left out when he grows up.

Family is a very significant theme in Homo in Heteroland. It's important being a member of a family and having the responsible to influence the young and having a connection between every member to help each other and having the feeling of being in the right place or sense of belonging. In the beginning of the story the relations between the family aren't great, it begins as a weak relationship between them and throughout the story it starts to get strong. They start to develop characteristics between them that brings them together creating a strong bond. This is what the narrators wants and has been wanting because he doesn't want to feel lonely and he yearns for his family support.

The narrator begins by telling us about the trip to Atlanta with his brothers' family and expresses how he feels when he is with them by saying, It's easy to be a card-carrying queer on Avenue A, or a brave young fag at some suburban shopping mall, with comrades in to. But to burn the torch of gay identity in a blue Chrysler van, and keep it lit for sixteen hours straight, from the Tappan Zee Bridge to the Peachtree Center, through diaper changes and bottle feedings and yet another reading of Where's Waldo, was more than I could manage ( Weir). The narrator feels lonely and lost around them, because they don't accept his sexual preference.

When the narrator is with his family, he's not able to express how he feels about himself. The narrator's brother and sister in law don't give him the opportunity to talks towards his sexuality preferences, especially when he is in the car with them because they won't talk about any sexuality topics. He hasn't had the chance to share his beliefs and opinions. During the ride he starts compares himself with his family he says, He is the oldest of three boys; I am the younger of two. During the time that I spent with my nephews this summer, on vacation in Atlanta, I fell into ancient, regressive younger-brotherly patterns, not only with him, but with my own brother (who is, after all, older), and with my sister-in-law (the oldest of four) (Weir).

By this I think he is trying to say that they see him a I little kind which he is not and that his brother and sister in law never had time for him because most of their time went towards their children. During their free time there will always talk about their children, he states that for them The secret weapon of heterosexuality is children (Weir). Even when they have the chance to talk about it they don't give him the chance to talk. This made him noticed that the way their children are raise is prejudicing homosexuality. This is why he was always being alone because their family can't accept the fact that homosexuality is a natural. He just wants one opportunity to be heard and tell them about what is going on in his life. At one point of the story he says, I was married to a boy once and he needed someone to talk to about what happened in his marriage.

The narrator finds out that his nephew James is homosexual this is the moment where he starts to make a connection with his family. The narrator spent time taking care of his nephews most of the time during the trip. They go play in a pond and James starts to talk about marriage and says that he wants to marry Ethan, so his brother starts to make fun of him. This is the narrator moment that he has being waiting for, he tells them "Boys can marry boys. And girls can marry girls. It happens all the time. Sometimes boys marry girls and girls marry boys, and sometimes boys marry boys' and girls' girls. I was married to a boy once"(Weir). At this point the narrator doesn't feel lonely he has the chance to share his beliefs and explains to his nephews that is okay to marry someone the same gender as him. This is really brave of him telling his nephew that he has marry a guy before without caring if they were going to make fun of him or reject him since their parent are racing them against homosexuality. The narrator has been through a lot without the support of his family, he says I know what death feels like.

I know its monotony, its repetitiveness, the slow accretion of losses, until there's nothing to let go of but the foolish American faith that nobody dies (Weir). He doesn't want James to feel alone or feel like he doesn't exist just because others can't accept homosexuality as part of life. He doesn't want his nephew to feel the way he has been feeling through his life because it's hard when people can't accept who someone is as a person and their preferences. I feel that the narrator is being responsible by explaining to his nephews, John and James, that's okay to be homosexual by establishing that his job has an uncle is to take care of James and John, regardless of their preference. The narrator vows to support John and James, be there for them as they grow up and when old enough, talk to them about homosexuality and the tougher aspects of life.

When they are on the road, returning to New York, the narrator feels ...an odd revelation, in the back of the car, with James breathing steady and slow against my chest (Weir). The narrator has as established that he wants to take care of his nephews, particularly James. To protected and comfort James, so he won't have to experience the same loneliness that The Narrator felt most of his life with his brother and sister in law. These sentiments become reality when the narrator coddles James after James wet himself in the car. The narrator tries to calm him down, even holding James while he's covered in urine, showing his dedication to always be there for James.

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