Study Guide

Chapter 1  Before Identity: The Ancient World Through the 19th Century
From introduction of textbook: Review and define the concept of Perverse presentism.
Know the history of the word “queer” and how it has been used past and present, and the
acceptability and lack thereof for different elements of the LGBT community.
Review the importance of Cross cultural issues and demographic factors, and what is
meant by characterizing LGBT studies as an interdisciplinary field.
Begin Chapter 1:
Again, note the caution recommended by the concept of perverse presentism, and why we
should avoid using specific contemporary terms such as gay, lesbian or homosexual when
examining past same sex desires, and if we see what appears to be past evidence of gender
variance, we should not employ the terms transgender or transsexual. But note importance of
having some documented historical evidence of what appears to be instances of same sex
desire and gender variance, for many cultures have an “official” history that excludes or
stigmatizes those of us that are different.
Review the material under Earliest Documents of Human Sexuality and Gender Varian
Identities, especially noting Greek Paiderastia, and know the definition of pederasty, and the
terms erastes, and eromenos and how the relationship benefitted both parties. Review the role
and depiction of females in Greek society, and especially the significance of Sappho, where she
lived, what she was known for, how much of her work has survived, and who studied with her.
From your homework assignment, be sure to review again the material on pederasty in other
early cultures: the Middle East and Asia and the section “Gender Variance Globally” that
examines gender variance in Pre-Colombian America and India, and also the African continent.
Review the quiz you took on this in class as you may see some of the same questions on the
exam.
Review the material on Same-Sex Relationships and Desires in Judeo-Christian Cultures,
and note the biblical references to same sex sexual behaviors and practices. Note that sexual
practices between same-sex partners are viewed as sinful, and how long such perceptions
persisted.
Know the definition of the “crime” of sodomy and the punishments for men prosecuted for it,
and how same sex female sexuality was characterized and the practice and consequences of
cross-dressing. Lastly here, note how the church apparently both acknowledged and
celebrated same sex relationships.
Review the material under Desires for Identity and the case of Franciscan friar Rocco, the
novel he wrote, and why it is considered the first “gay” novel and depiction of the first “modern”
gay man. Note that women were largely disenfranchised, how they were treated and perceived from the perspective of official church doctrine, and that some women could escape such
confines by trying to “pass” as a man. Note that the first “modern” lesbian was Anne Lister.
Review the material on Romantic Friendships and Boston Marriages, and be able to
characterize those who pursued romantic friendships. Be able to indicate why there was a lack
of disapproval of these relationships between women. Lastly here, be able to characterize
“Boston Marriages.”
Review the material on Molly-Houses: Early Homoerotic Subculture in England. Know
what the Buggery Act was meant to do, and how this created a good deal of underground
same sex activity. Be sure you can define both a Molly House and a Molly.
Note that there was a growing climate of acceptance of homoeroticism, but, there was a parallel
growth of homophobia. Note the punishments for those arrested/convicted for sodomy, and
how this compared to the prosecution and punishment of other crimes.
Note 19th century trends in urbanization and what this afforded for those wanting to express
same-sex desires. And, know when the word “gay” came into use and to whom it referred.
Finally, be aware that during this period a real gay subculture was “officially” coming into
existence, with real networks and ways to connect, and this was the foundation for the modern:
1. gay culture and 2. Gay identity of today.
Chapter 2  Sexology in the 19th Century
Homosexuality had been characterized as a “love that dare not speak its name.” Be sure to
know the reasons for this detailed in your text and lecture. Related here, know the definitions of
sexual inversion, and sexologists (and be familiar with how the sexologists characterized
those with same sex desires and gender variance)
Review the material on Victorian Sex: Some Background and be familiar with the state of
professional consensus about sex and its practices. Be able to identify some of the “myths” the
Victorian thinkers held here (e.g., masturbation causes insanity, female orgasm was considered
deviant and could lead to damage of the reproductive system, etc.
Also, note the importance of the scientific ascendance occurring during these times that was
challenging the formerly unquestioned reliance upon religion and traditions that had been used
as the lens to understand human behavior, and that some of these new scientific ideas
informed the public, and impacted how people saw themselves and others. Be able to define
sexology and its role as part of this new scientific approach.
Review the material on Sexology: Defining a Field of Study. Be familiar with how sexology
characterized those practicing inversion, and that these notions became deeply rooted and that
it became the basis of a presumed correlation between homosexuality and deviation from
sex/gender norms that persisted into the studies and thinking into the 21st century.
Be familiar with the beliefs/assumptions of the early sexologists, such as Krafft-Ebing (e.g., he
deemed same-sex attraction as perversion; an abnormal congenital manifestation). Note that

the consequence of this thinking was that it fueled a mindset among many practitioners that
same-sex desires were abnormal and a mental illness. Also note famous German sexologist
Karl Ulrich, who believed homosexuality represented a “third sex” that he termed Urnings.
Note that b/c of the emerging language and theorizing of these sexologists, it is believed by
contemporary thinkers that these turn of the century thinkers “gave birth” to the modern
homosexual (e.g., note the beliefs of philosopher Michel Foucault). Be aware,
as noted in text, some used the pathologizing of homosexuality as the basis for a “reverse”
discourse where positive aspects of homosexuality were stressed, within the context of its
natural/congenital existence, and thus a process of forming identity was emerging.
From your homework assignment, be sure to review again the section: Havelock Ellis. Review
the quiz you took on this in class as you may see some of the same questions on the exam.
Review the material on Paving the Way for Freud. Be familiar with how Freud perceived
homosexuality (e.g., it represented a problem with one of his psychosexual stages of
development), his idea of “polymorphous perversity,” and whether he believed that
homosexuality was a mental illness.
Note that overall regarding the sexologists and Freud, all appeared to acknowledge the role of
social forces, and how these interact with some form of innate sexuality, thus promoting a
“nature + nurture” position. Importantly as noted in text, this “allowed” the possibility of a gay
identity.
Chapter 3  Sexology, Activism & Science
Review the material on Sexology and Early Sexual Rights Movements. Note as was
presented in lecture that despite the best efforts of pioneers who attempted to be sympathetic
to those expressing same sex desire or gender variations, there was a distinct
“heteronormative” view of human sexuality (i.e., hetero is “natural” and favored), thus,
homosexuality was labelled as a pathology. Note again that those pathologized used the
“labelling” as an opportunity to create a “reverse discourse” and early rights activists used this
to challenge laws that criminalized same sex behavior.
Be familiar with “Paragraph 175” in Germany regarding what it criminalized, and how this had
the effect of mobilizing some activists to form a “pro-homosexual” group, which became the first
homosexual rights group known in the Western world, and the role physician Hirschfeld played
in also challenging this law.
Know the contribution of authors Edward Carpenter, and Radclyffe Hall, and that Hall is famous
for what is considered the first lesbian novel, The Well of Loneliness.
Be familiar with the impact social upheaval, political unrest, and a march towards war had upon
any efforts to pursue “gay rights”: it just wasn’t the “right time nor place” to advance gay rights;

everyone was to maintain the status quo where everyone “knows their places;” and collectively
this halted progress for sexual freedom and legal rights at least until the 1950s and 60s.
Review the material under Kinsey noting his pioneering survey work on the sexuality of both
males and females that began in the late 1940s...and that he felt that all forms of human
sexuality reflect Stimulus – Response connections (S – R)...and that he 1. Pursued an
empirical, i.e., evidence based approach on which to draw any conclusions...he insisted on
letting the data speak for itself and 2. He pursued a descriptive research strategy, i.e., the goal
was to describe behavior, and not to provide an explanation or etiology. Note that he believed
homosexuality reflects variation along a continuum (i.e., a range of possibilities)... and he
proposed his most famous contribution: The Kinsey Scale (note on the scale that 0 =
exclusively hetero, 6 = exclusively gay, with other categories, 1 – 5 representing combinations
of same and opposite sex experiences...and this scale primarily measures experience based
not psychologically based attractions/desires).
Note that his scale became the “go to” instrument to use as a metric to locate a person’s same
and/or opposite sex attraction...
And some sample specifics of what he was able to infer from his data (e.g., 10% of males
between ages of 16 – 55 were predominantly homosexual hence the “10%” or 1 in 10 statistic
oft cited by activists.)
Review the material under Medical Models of Homosexuality noting that Kinsey’s scale was
not entirely original and it was instead influenced by the work of Magnus Hirschfeld, and note
the sample of participants he used suffers from sample bias, i.e., it is not the most
representative sample from the population: was not randomly sampled, e.g., prisoners were
used, mostly white well educated males. But, note his continuum metric was quite popular and
found to be useful by other scientists investigating human sexuality and especially gender
issues.
Be able to define what is the approach in using the medical model to address homosexuality,
and the implications of using this model. Note that this model was welcomed by many
homosexuals in the early 20th century for two reasons: It offered a “language” (e.g., the word
homosexual) that was useful in characterizing their lives, and it offered “lists” of characteristics
that could be used so that homosexuals could “recognize” or find each other. Be able to
distinguish between and define essentialism and strategic essentialism. Note the attempts
to treat or “cure” homosexuality: reparative therapy programs and “ex-gay” ministries, and note
the position of psychiatry at this time (e.g., categorized as a mental illness, it needed a cure, it
was believed to be the result of faulty parenting). Also be able to characterize the “’Gay is Sick’
Shrinks” movement and its consequences for homosexuals, and also for transsexuals and
transgender individuals.
Be aware of the “gender disorientation scale” used to measure Transsexuality by Harry
Benjamin. Note that Benjamin’s metrics were used to assess gender dysphoric men (those
experiencing personal distress with their sex of birth that is in conflict with their gender identity)
and only later did gender dysphoric women receive any serious attention, and that the

Benjamin gender disorientation scale is the “gold standard” used to assess those for
consideration of sex reassignment surgery. Note text details the Benjamin standards required a
Kinsey score of 6 to be considered a genuine candidate for reassignment surgery but many
transsexual men do not identify as homosexual (possessing same sex desires/attraction), but
would lie and report having these feelings in order to “qualify” for the surgery.
From your homework assignment, be sure to review the section: “Medical Models of
Homosexuality,” and find the information on Cass and Rich, and also review the material
presented on poet and lesbian activist Adrienne Rich, and the material presented on Landon
Parks’ “Purple-Red Sexuality Scale.” Review the quiz you took on this in class as you may
see some of the same questions on the exam.
Review the material under Science Amok? The Quest for the Gay Gene, noting that Kinsey
himself forecast the great difficulty in documenting genetic evidence for homosexuality, noting
the “conditions” required to determine this evidence. Review the evidence from 1. Animal
studies, 2. Family studies, 3. Hormones/anatomy. For animal studies, note text details
studies of insects, and animals that appear to show evidence of homosexuality...but note from
lecture that homosexual behavior has been documented in over 400+ species. For family
studies, note the concordance rates (similarity in traits/behavior from genetic relatedness) for
males: 52% if Identical twins, 22% if fraternal, 11% if adoptive; for females, 48% if identical,
16% if fraternal, 6% if adoptive. Be aware that there is strong evidence for possible genetic
factor, but at best 50-60% is genetic, thus the ENV must contribute for the rest...i.e., we
CANNOT conclude that genes are solely responsible for sexual orientation.
For hormones, know that there are no differences in hormone levels between gays and
straights, attempts to “cure” homosexuality using hormone therapy do not work, and in the past
it was often ordered as punishment for the crime or “illness” of homosexuality. Note prenatal
hormone theory in humans that speculates that “pre-homosexual” fetuses have brains that
display atypical growth/development b/c of either unusual levels of prenatal hormone exposure
OR b/c these brains respond atypically to prenatal hormones.
For the brain note the significant, and controversial work done by Simon LeVay in 1991 who
claimed to have discovered the first anatomical evidence of difference between the gay and
straight brain, the anterior portion of the hypothalamus , where specifically its size is more like
that of hetero women. Know the caveats here that question his findings and fuel the controversy
surrounding the implications of his findings: 1. Sample bias #1: some of his Ss were gay males
and had died of AIDS, thus HIV could have affected/damaged the hypothalamus and therefore
its size has no relevance to sexual orientation. 2. Sample bias #2: his Ss were not randomly
sampled, instead they were convenience samples (such as his friends and then their friends, or
using pre-existing groups of LGBT persons such as activist groups). 3. He uses a sexual
inversion model that is seen as dated and limiting regarding female and male behavior. 4.
Cross culture generalizability: our ideas of sexual orientation reflect Western assumptions that
may not apply to those in non-Western cultures.

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For the exam, review the material under Sexology Now: What’s at Stake? In the nature-
nurture debate regarding the origins of homosexuality, activists on both sides have seized on
the biological evidence from science to support either their “gay agenda” or “anti-gay agenda.”
For those activists with a “gay agenda,” be able to describe at least two ways the biological
evidence has been used to support their position, likewise, for those activists with an “anti-gay
agenda,” be able to describe at least two ways the biological evidence has been used to
support their position.
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Note that how the results (i.e., data) of studies on the origins of homosexuality are interpreted
and used is going to reflect one’s activist position, including the discourse on limitations of these
studies, on what can and cannot be justifiably inferred or concluded from the data of these
studies, thus both sides may be ignoring what the science is really saying at times, i.e.,
not letting the data speak for itself, but rather using data selectively as a means to an end to
suit one’s agenda.
Chapter 4  Imagining Liberation
Note the 2 important social trends for women: Migration into the workplace and
College education. Be aware of the consequences of these trends, that included derogation
from some that felt these trends threatened the social order.
Note the opinions of Freud, Ellis and Hirschfeld, and that collectively they were far less
judgmental, even compassionate in their opinions of homosexuality.
From your homework assignment, be sure to review again Urban Life and Sexual
Expression. Review the quiz you took on this in class as you may see some of the same
questions on the exam.
Review the material under WWII and Homosexuality. Know that with the rise of the 3rd Reich
Paragraph 175 was rigorously enforced such that many homosexual men were sent to
concentration camps, that these men in the camps wore pink triangle to indicate they were
homosexual, and they were not freed upon Allied liberation but were sent to prison b/c of their
violation of paragraph 175.
Note that in U.S. during WWII women became part of the war effort, and know the reasons why
recruits were screened for homosexuality prior to and during enlistment. Also note why there
was little effort to discharge lesbians from the military.
From your homework assignment, be sure to review again McCarthy and the Purge of the
“Perverts.” Review the quiz you took on this in class as you may see some of the same
questions on the exam.
Review the material under The Homophile Movement. Note that feeling oppressed by a
dominant, heterosexual majority that was insensitive and wrongheaded about those who self
identified as LGBT fueled a mindset, that allowed a challenge to establishment views (i.e., the

“gay is sick” perpetuation by psychiatry/medicine) of themselves, and permitted those that were
sympathetic to raise their voices by resisting too. Especially here be able to define the
homophile movement, and note the significant groups here: The Mattachine Society, and
The DOB = Daughters of Bilitis. Define the assimilationist position, and know if the
Mattachine Society or the DOB were assimilationist.
Note there were “events” that happened during the 60s and 70s that “raised consciousness”
and impacted how OTHERS, i.e., “outsiders” perceived and thought about LGBT folks, AND the
Self-perceptions of those who identified as LGBT: Stonewall riots of 1969, and the
declassification of homosexuality as a mental illness from the DSM in 1973.
Review the material under Emerging Visibility and Activism, and note the significance of The
Stonewall Riots of 1969 as the beginning of the modern gay rights movement. Be aware of
the activist group, the Gay Liberation Front (GLF), and recall there were other activist groups
in existence at this time prior to stonewall: the Mattachine Society and Daughters of Bilitis
(DOB), noting the contrast between these groups and those that were active after Stonewall. Be
able to characterize Lesbian Feminism, and how it perceived other activist movements and
persons (e.g., the women’s movement was homophobic), and that they saw themselves as
having separate liberation agendas (both social and political) vs. their male counterparts.
Review the material under The Politics of Liberation, and note that post Stonewall the bars
became a “safer” place for gays and lesbians to congregate...and an important link to a sense
of community, but that there appeared to be a division between those who were politically
active vs. those who patronized the bars/clubs. Note the sections that detail the murders of SF
mayor Moscone and supervisor Milk that lead to riots in SF, and the “Save Our Children”
campaign by Anita Bryant to overturn a human rights ordinance (that included anti-
discrimination protections for lesbians and gays), and she and her followers were forerunners of
today’s “radical right.” Be aware that as queer visibility/political power increased, this led to
backlash from social conservatives.
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For the exam, review the material under Urban Life and Sexual Expression
that had been assigned for your homework. Be able to Describe how our textbook authors
address the issue of how “times change” regarding attitudes toward sexuality.
Also, review the material under McCarthy and the Purge of the “Perverts” that had been
assigned for your homework. Be able to Describe McCarthy’s overall goal regarding
communists and homosexuals, and the “rationale” or justification used to “purge” these persons
from Federal employment.
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