Homosexual History.

                            

One thing that I found helpful when developing a positive attitude to my homosexuality was to look at history.

There have been many homosexuals who have achieved great things throughout history.

King David, the celebrated hero of the ancient Hebrews, was bisexual.
His love affair with Jonathan is documented in the Bible.

Ancient Greece was known for its enlightenment and culture.
Homosexuality was not only accepted in ancient Greece it was celebrated.

Many Greek heroes had same-sex lovers: Hercules and Iolas, Achilles and Patroclus, Theseus and Peirithous, Orestes and Pylades.....

Even the Greek gods had same-sex lovers: Zeus and Ganymede, Apollo and Hyacinthus etc.....

Perhaps the ancient world's greatest philosopher Socrates was homosexual.

And the great poetess of Lesbos, Sappho, for whom lesbianism is named, had female lovers.

Richard the Lionheart, the much loved King of England, was said to be gay.

Both Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci were gay.
Shakespeare was suspected of bisexual love.
Their works during the Renaissance are legendary.

More recently Oscar Wilde, E.M. Forster, Andre Gide, T. E. Lawrence (of Arabia), Virginia Wolfe, Quentin Crisp, and Christopher Isherwood were among those who defied society's disdain.

D. H. Lawrence wrote beautifully about same-sex love.

Artists Jean Cocteau and Jean Genet were openly homosexual.

Japan's writer Yukio Mishima was fascinated by homosexual desire.

Actors: Rock Hudson, Cary Grant, and Montgomery Clift hid their homosexual orientation.  And playwright Tenessee Williams wrote about same-sex passions.

The great actor Sir John Gielgud was secretly gay.

Contemporaries: David Bowie, Marc Bolan, Elton John, Boy George, George Michael and others are more open about their homosexuality.

The great contemporary actor Sir Ian McKellen is also openly gay.

Many of these great people struggled with their homosexual feelings and still achieved great things.

So homosexuality is no bar to achievement in our world.

You can be homosexual and still achieve greatness. 


Photo Credit: Irina Zavyalova via Compfight cc