Chauncy Reading

     There were several interesting aspects of Chauncy’s readings about homosexuality in Gay New York that caught my attention, one of which was the role of class among homosexuals. Class status has been mentioned in nearly all our readings, as it is clearly a prevalent divide in many areas. I was jotting down notes as I read, and looking back I think there is some level of irony in the class differences between homosexuals. For example, the fact that many men disliked the fairies and claimed they had no desire to behave in such a manner is ironic because those same men depended on the fairies to retain their “manly” status. If the fairies had not existed and were not willing to let other men act in the “manly” or dominate position, those other men would not be able to claim their manliness through domination of a weaker or more feminine group. Even many middle-class men were attracted to the fairies because they were more responsive and willing to engage in sexual relations with them. Despite the fact that middle-class homosexuals were supposedly considered better than the working-class fairies, they depended on them both to keep their “manly” appearance and their class ranking. If the fairies had not existed, how would the middle-class homosexuals have maintained their manliness and social standing?

          Another notable point from the reading was how the middle-class not only used lower-class people to confirm their dominance, but women as well. Men seem to think that having any characteristic associated with females is the worst thing that could happen, ever. Even between classes, men who engaged in sexual relations with another man were not considered abnormal…unless they were playing the more feminized part. The reading mentions that “wanting sex with a man was inherently a female desire.” I can’t help but wonder if this is why people objected so strongly to men wanting sex with other men. Was it really the act itself they disliked, or just the fact that it was seen as a feminine trait? If wanting sex with a man was NOT seen as feminine, would men have had such a problem with a man wanting another man?