W&M ScholarWorks Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects 1972 Homophile "Dis-ease": A Product of the Social Environment T. R. DeRoche College of William & Mary - Arts & Sciences Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.wm.edu/etd Part of the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Studies Commons Recommended Citation DeRoche, T. R., "Homophile "Dis-ease": A Product of the Social Environment" (1972). Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects. Paper 1539624799. https://dx.doi.org/doi:10.21220/s2-xt99-t507 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Theses, Dissertations, & Master Projects at W&M ScholarWorks. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects by an authorized administrator of W&M ScholarWorks. For more information, please contact [email protected]. HOMOPHILE "DIS-EASE": A A PRODUCT OP THE SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT A Thesis Presented to The Faculty of the Department of Sociology The College of William and Mary in Virginia In Partial. Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts by T. R. DeRoche APPROVAL SHEET This thesis is submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts Author Approved, December 1973 Marion G. Vanfossen, Ph/D. '(Ghairrom) Joh ’ r , ph. D. Jawrence sTBecHTbuse, Ph*D. DEDICATION Dedications salute all those fallen energies who died in the midst of battle. Body counts oscillate as do the living, and certainly those alive laugh at the dead. Each soldier mans his strategy like pearl handled pistols... the cowboys drop one by one. Bombs explode and tanks rumble by charred remains...the sting of burning flesh lasts so very long. Miraculously,... one side wins, and eulogies and dedications flow like used fraternity beer. So the smoke clears, and poker chips roll to the teller, and the paratroopers all fly away... they seek to pull another cord* TABLE OP CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................... v LIST OP TABLES .............. ......... vi LIST OP FIGURES ............................ .. vii ABSTRACT ...................... ...... viii CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ................ 2 II. SURVEY OP THE LITERATURE ................ 5 Classical Foundations ...••••••• 5 Post-Kinsey Discussion ..«..••••• 36 St. Oscar Wilde •.•••*.••.... 69 III. METHODOLOGY......... ....................... .. 78 IV. BIOGRAPHY OP THE HAMPTONS COMMUNITY . v 89 V. OBSERVATIONS . ........... .......... 100 Sample Population Breakdown and Biological Gender Afiliation • ••..*•«.• 100 Race-culture Group ..••••• •«••. 102 Age Variable 101+ Educational Variable ...... ..... 105 Occupational Class of Sample Population . 107 Occupational Class of Parents »..••• 109 Religious Groups HO Religious Adherence .••..•••••. m Previous Heterosexual Relationships . 112 Male/Female Role Identification . • . • . H # Homophile Marriage The Community: Homosexual, Lesbian and Straight ^ Deviations Prom The Conservative Norm . • 1^3 Social Change And The Homophile Mind-Set • * VI. SUMMARY AND CONC LUSION S...................... 130 BIBLIOGRAPHY 138 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS I would like to extend my appreciation to the members of my graduate committee: Dr. Marion Vanfossen, chairman, who spoke of subtle politics; Dr. Jon Kerner, who shared with me subtle humor; and Dr. Lawrence Backhouse, who was pleasingly subtle. The lessons of each can never be minimized. Par from being forgotten are the helpful hands and encouraging words shared with me by Drs. Satoshi Ito and Tom Christ. The socio-emotional energies extended to me (in absentia) by Richard Brautigan, Richard Farinia, Ken Kesey, and Tom Wolfe are recognized as having been foundational to my sociological perspective and to my life. They are the true sociologists of the world today. They have taught me to laugh and cry in the face of absurdity. To my family, Anne, Ami, and Toadman, all of whom exhibited tremendous reservoirs of patience and understand­ ing, my most endearing love. LIST OP TABLES TABLE PAGE 1. Published Reactions to the Kinsey Report • ♦ • * • 26 2. List of Introductory Sociology Texts Consulted • . 38 3# "What Is Deviant?” • ij.0 ij.* Descriptive Traits of Homosexuals •••••*•• I4.I LIST OP FIGURES FIGURE PAGE 1. Homosexual Outlets: Single Males ..•••••• 22 2. Homosexual Outlets: All Males •••#••••••23 3* Homosexual Outlets: Educational Level and Occupational Class ••••••••••*•• ^k- Homosexual/Heterosexual 0 to 6 Scale •••••• 3i*. ABSTRACT Exploring the relationship of homosexuals to their social environment, this thesis presents the hypothesis that homosexual "dis-ease” is a function of this relation­ ship, A survey of the literature pertinent to the issue of homosexuality shows the basis of traditionally accepted views of the homosexual individual and catalogs the major influences on these views from the Bible to the popular publications of the 19?0!s* The homosexual community of Southampton, Long Island, New York, serves as the locus for direct observation of a current, specific manifestation of the homosexual phenome­ non. These observations point to the inadequacies of tra­ ditional conceptualizations of homosexuality in light of the data produced, and demonstrate that-, given a situation which eliminates the necessity for continual defensive pos­ turing, the homosexual adopts a full potential perspective toward self ahd community and can become free from “dis-ease” HOMOSEXUAL "DIS-EASE": A PRODUCT OF THE SOCIAL ENVIRONMENT CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION Since the desire for sexual experience is one of the most compelling of man’s drives and occupies much of his conscious or unconscious time, deviations from what is defined as normal sexual behavior are not surprising. One such variant form of expression is that of homosexuality; human behavior which emphasizes either overt or psychic sexual and socio-emotional relations between members of the - same sex. Homosexuality has long been regarded as deviant be­ havior. A survey of literature dealing directly or indirect­ ly with the homosexual phehomenon reveals a variety of ways that societal views of homosexuality have been formed, and reviews the attempts of professionals to deal with the is­ sue. Existing literature shows that homosexuality has been, and is, generally regarded as a disease to be cured rather than a phenomenon to be understood. Most of history and nearly all of literature, both classic and contemporary, completely neglects the possibility that a socio-emotional and sexual relationship between members of the same sex may be as functional in the stabilization of personality and max- imazation of human potential as heterosexual activity# This view of homosexuality has resulted in the !Tdis- '2 3 eased11 homo sexual; an individual who cannot function with comfort or ease in society because he is regarded by the main­ stream of society, as well as by professionals, as sick, un­ clean, and existing in a pathological environment# This re­ gard by society as a whole evokes a defensive posture on the part of homosexuals which disallows effective participation in community and totally undermines any process of self-ac­ tualization# Thus, a "dis-eased" homosexual may easily grow to be a truly diseased, neurotic individual (in the sense that he may exhibit behavior destructive to himself or others)* It is the proposition of this thesis that given a supp- ortive environment, homosexuals can become well adjusted, fully functional components of a total community# Observa­ tion of the homosexual community of Southampton, Long Is­ land, New York, supports this proposition. Once a homosex­ ual is removed from an all-encompassing defensive posture, there Is evidence which suggests that he can not only assume functional roles as a homosexual dealing with himself, but as a homosexual operating within the context of a hetero­ sexual environment* In examining the various behavioral components which comprise the life styles of the individuals observed for the purposes of this thesis, it becomes evident that traditional conceptualizations of the 'homosexual phenomenon are inade­ quate* The individuals observed came to be regarded by the writer of this thesis as "enlightened11 homosexuals* The "enlightened” homosexual is an individual who, in the con­ text of a non-hostile environment, transcends the forces 1}. (biological, psychological, social) working on him and begins to operate in an existentially honest way, postulating real freedom of choice# With this postulation comes a resultant objectively observable personality structure which definitely removes the individual from the ranks of diseased persons. Homosexuality as deviant behavior, as a disease, is then by contrast seen as a function of a social definition which becomes internalized as a self definition# It is the contention of this writer that while the ability of the homo­ sexual to escape "dis-ease" is due in large part to a sup­ portive social structure, the final factor in the escape from disease, from perversion, is made within the individual as a "leap of faith" which manifests itself in a. need to discover essence through existence, rather than accepting self defi­ nitions from a generally hostile environment# With this con­ tention in mind, the observation and documentation of what these "enlightened” homosexuals are doing and being provides the only key for understanding the phenomenon# CHAPTER II SURVEY OP THE LITERATURE Section A Classical Foundations Three contradistinct sources have served to form the basis of the