Context

Is homosexuality becoming a more acceptable lifestyle by the families of young people?  

Gender and sexuality.

 There have been plenty of views and ideas on what homosexuality has been and it has often been defined at times as a mental illness. Gay’s are becoming more common and able to express their selves more to society which would suggest that the society is more accepting to the homosexual culture and way of life. Andrew Sullivan of America states "I think we've done a great deal of persuading people that we are not a countercultural force," who epitomizes the argument that homosexuals should embrace the existing institutions of heterosexual society. "We are a mainstream force." Even people in the influential places are more open to express their homosexuality to society and those people would feel the scorn of “coming out to society.”

 Connell (1995) and Rutherford (1988)[1] study hegemonic masculinity and that it’s seen as the dominant masculinity and the one that prevails over the alternative types of masculinity. In effect there is also a case of homosexuality and working class masculinity trends tend to arise also and also seem to challenge the hegemonic masculinity. With such words as wimp geek motherfucker etc the dominant masculinity tends to use this way to keep homosexuality subordinate and therefore keeping the dominance between the two types.

            Giddens studies relationships on the whole and studies the facts that relationships are not based on the genders as such unless they are of unusual factors and even then the mental element is considered instead of any differences in sexuality relationships in their element are considered by Giddens as relationship elements and not by physical or gender elements.

            There has been a changing gender order considered by Connel who suggests that at times going back to between 1450 and 1650 gender roles have been established as dominating masculine roles but also in that time there has been a change in the roles throughout sexuality and gender. Connel believes that in that time it was seen that it is ok for such relationships as woman to woman relationships and activities. Also it was seen that as the males had made a dominating role in their society known as the gentry masculinity which was established by the landowners of the society. These people where allowed to go outside their own wives and pursue   sexual relationships with other women this was seen as the norms males were seen as a dominating class with the freedom to do what they want. This could suggest that the social structure of that society would be accepting to abnormal tendencies as there was at that time so many different types at that time but even with all of these abnormalities in behavior there was no acceptance of homosexuality at that time. This is because of the fact that homosexuality was considered a large threat to the dominating masculinity which would suggest that they wouldn’t accept homosexuality and would ridicule the homosexuals to keep their own stability as a dominating class.

            Functionalism would consider the homosexuality family as wrong as the homosexual family does not contribute to today’s society as homosexuals cannot provide a family or provide teaching of the norms and values to the future generations as they go by different values. They also cannot contribute to the same social activities as heterosexual people in society. This contributes to my study as families may want their children to go on to have children and become families and as their children come out to them they may take on functionalist views and treat their children differently. Murdock's four key roles of the family are education, reproduction, economic and sexual.

Murdock sees that homosexuals would not fit the four roles. A homosexual person could not do the norms and values for the educational role the same as a heterosexual person. In their family the do not have the ability to reproduce. Also the homosexual family does not have the same way of contributing to the economic factor as the do not create the family with the children to give jobs for teachers and schools, also the do not have a family to support so they are not bound to their job. They only comply with the sexual role and that isn’t even through the conventional way of sex.

 An argument against the functionalist views that suggested by Weeks, Donovan and Brian Heaphey that as gay and lesbian couples are becoming more common over the years long term homosexual relationships should now be considered as cons6tituting families. Weeks considers the new homosexual family as a chosen and more intimate family. This is because in a homosexual family the people involved choose everything they choose who to be with and who is included in their inner circle, some see this as a consciously developing family. This would suggest that homosexuals may be accepted more as people in society are looking to view them as a new changing family. This would mean that society is accepting the relationships and could help cushion the acceptance of the family. However the family has the sexuality closer to home and may find it more difficult to accept than society who only has an observational participation.