Information AboutHomoeroticism |
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The term homoerotic (and its companion term lesboerotic) carries with it the weight of modern classifications of love and desire that did not necessarily exist in previous eras. Homosexuality as we know it today was not codified and pathologized until the mid-20th century. Prior to that time, it was common for men and women to spend a great deal of time in the company of their own sex. As a result, close associations between members of the same sex formed, most notably in the "romantic friendships" documented in the letters and papers of 18th- and 19th- century men and women. These romantic friendships, which may or may not have included genital sex, were characterized by passionate emotional attachments and what modern thinkers would consider homoerotic overtones. DIFFERENCE FROM PORNOGRAPHY Such Eroticism In Art is usually subtle and contains some 'emotional charge'; which, in the arts, is the main factor that distinguishes it from explicit Pornography featuring genitals & sex acts. Thus, it can often evade Censorship by the state. Yet homoerotic material can ultimately be more potent than pornography, since some further act of imagination is often required in order to make it explicitly arousing. ATTRIBUTION OF 'HOMOEROTICISM' BY CRITICS Post- Stonewall critics sometimes detect homoeroticism in artworks, even when the original artist would probably have denied the presence of such a theme. It may, however, still be valid to label the work as part of the tradition of homoeroticism; since the work may have been arousing for the Homosexual portion of its audience, and an influence on future artistic production. NOTABLE EXAMPLES: MALE-MALE Male-male examples, in the visual fine arts, range through history: Ancient Greek vase art; Roman wine goblets (''The Warren Cup ''); the Italian Renaissance (such as Agnolo Bronzino , Caravaggio ), through to the many 19th Century History Painting s of classical characters such as Hyacinth , Ganymede and Narcissus ; the work of late 19th century artists (such as Thomas Eakins , Eugene Jansson , Henry Scott Tuke and Magnus Enckell ); through to the modern work of fine artists such as Paul Cadmus and Gilbert & George . Fine Art Photographers such as David Hockney , Will McBride , Robert Mapplethorpe , Pierre Et Gilles , Bernard Faucon , Anthony Goicolea have also made a strong contribution, Mapplethorpe and McBride being notably in breaking down barriers of gallery censorship and braving legal challenges. Such fine art is, necessarily, Figurative . NOTABLE EXAMPLES: FEMALE-FEMALE Female-female examples are most historically noticeable in the narrative arts: the archaic lyrics of Sappho ; '' The Songs Of Bilitis ''; novels such as those of Christa Winsloe , Colette , Radclyffe Hall , and Jane Rule , and films such as '' Madchen In Uniform ''. More recently, lesbian homoeroticism has flowered in photography and the writing of authors such as Pat Califia and Jeanette Winterson . IN POETRY There is also a strong tradition of homoeroticism in Poetry . In the male-male tradition, one might cite erotic poems by major poets such as Abu Nuwas , Hafez , Walt Whitman , Federico Garcia Lorca , Fernando Pessoa and Allen Ginsberg . Lord Alfred Tennyson wrote a book-length poem titled In Memoriam dedicated to the memory of his male friend, A.H. Hallam. ) were the first known notable attempts at homoerotic anthologies since '' The Greek Anthology ''. Since then, many anthologies have been published. In the female-female tradition, one might cite erotic poems by major poets such as Sappho , " Michael Field ", and Maureen Duffy . Emily Dickinson addressed a number of poems and letters with homoerotic overtones to her sister-in-law Susan Huntington Gilbert. The letters between Virginia Woolf and Vita Sackville-West , two well-known members of the Bloomsbury Group , are full of homoerotic overtones characterized by this excerpt from Vita's letter to Virginia: "I am reduced to a thing that wants Virginia It is incredible to me how essential you have become [... I shan't make you love me anymore by I shan't make you love me any the more by giving myself away like this --But oh my dear, I can't be clever and stand-offish with you: I love you too much for that." (January 21, 1926) IN CINEMA Most notable are positive portrayals of homoerotic feelings in relationships, made at feature length and for theatrical exhibition, and made by those who are same-sex oriented. Successful examples would be: '''', US, New Zealand and Germany, (2003); and most recently '' Brokeback Mountain '', US (2005). Also of note is the feature-length BBC adaptation of '' Oranges Are Not The Only Fruit '', UK (1989). See: List Of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual Or Transgender-related Films . IN ROMANTICISM Homoeroticism has been a strong undercurrent in much Romantic and Neo-Romantic visual art. The Romantic emphasis on beauty, perfect love and friendship, pastoral idylls, other-worldy transcendence, the truth & validity of one's inner life, the dynamic outsider hero, and romantic death, all made the Romantic mode especially attractive. There was the added attraction of being able to use a coded Symbolism to reveal a work as homoerotic only to those "in the know" about the sort of codes being used. Some historians have suggested that the suppression of Romanticism in the art world, after about 1920 (in favour of Modernist , Socialist Realist art and Abstract Expressionism ), was partly a Homophobic act. KEY INTRODUCTORY BOOKS Classical & Medieval literature:
Literature after 1850:
Visual Arts:
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