In the sci fi/fantasy I read, I think more than half the sex scenes are lesbian; especially the detailed scenes. In the straight scenes, the female character is always the one most physically described. I don't recall ever reading a gay male sex scene.
Is TV the same way? I stopped watching a while ago. When I see/hear complaints about TV content from fundamentalist sources, they mention gay male sex scenes. Aren't there a lot more lesbian sex scenes on TV? Are fundamentalists reacting to male cooties more than homosexuality as a concept?
Yeah, they are. Lesbian invisibility rides again; female/female relationships and sex are implicitly seen as entertainment for heterosexual males, even by the fundies.
ReplyDeleteGay male relationships and sex scenes are solely the domain of late-night premium cable. Interestingly enough often in material that really is aimed and marketed at heterosexual women- see also True Blood. I think Spartacus: Blood and Sand is the only show I've seen where the sexual gratification factor was aimed at both genders- homosexual sex scenes included.
I guess that's not as bad as it might be, then. It sucks to have enemies, but if you're going to have enemies it's better to be invisible to them.
ReplyDeleteFemale/female sex as entertainment for heterosexual males is something I SEE all the time, but I think I'll never get.
The idea that women are enjoying male-male sex scenes is cheering.
You likely have NO idea. Fandom in general tends to be dominated by women, and fanfiction in particular; it's a weird mirror-world where what is written and consumed as erotica is defined almost completely around that- and if anything male/male scenes and pairings dominate. Male/female is a healthy minority (though it varies a ton by fandom), female/female rare and mostly written by men.
ReplyDeleteYou've mentioned fanfic before as good place to get an interesting if disturbing look at women's psyche. Would you mind providing a few links to examples? I'd be fascinated and I've got a lot of time on my hands.
ReplyDeleteHere's a place to start- bear in mind this is two women's ideas of a rough and ready best-of guide, minus the more disturbing genres ("mpreg" stands for male pregnancy, and yes that is a genre, as is "non-con", which is a cute way to say nonconsensual- whether "non-con" amounts to excuse for rape in fandom is a perennial flame war) and with writing quality overall generally high. I actually don't mean at all to condemn it, them, or fandom in general, by the by- and a lot of the stories linked ARE pretty good if that's your thing. It's just that the breakdown in the erotic categories is to me a pretty damn fascinating look at the erotic as mostly constructed for women's gratification.
ReplyDeleteI'm actually going to have to sit here and seriously think about where a good, easily accessible source of the more demented lives. I have a friend that normally chucks this stuff this way because she enjoys watching me squirm, but it tends not to be readily condensed.
I suppose there's always any search string that starts "Bandom fic"... Bandom is a scary place.
Thanks, LabRat!
ReplyDelete