Wikipedia defines
sexual orientation as "an enduring pattern of romantic or sexual
attraction (or a combination of these)
to persons of the opposite sex or gender, the same sex or gender, or to
both sexes or more than one gender". There are many different sexual
orientations. The most commonly known sexualities are heterosexuality,
homosexuality, and bisexuality. Sexualities like heterosexual and homosexual
mean that a person is attracted to only one gender. This is also known as being
monosexual. Being attracted to multiple genders can be referred to as being
polysexual. Some examples of polysexuality are pansexuality and bisexuality.
Pansexuality is described by the website Oxford Dictionaries as "not
limited in sexual choice with regard to biological sex, gender, or gender
identity". While the word 'choice' isn't exactly accurate, the point is
communicated well.
Many people consider
there to be four 'categories' of sexualities - heterosexual, homosexual,
bisexual, and asexual. Asexuality is defined by The American HeritageDictionary as "relating to or being a person who does not experience
sexual attraction". There are also offshoots of asexuality, such as
gray-asexuality (often abbreviated to gray-ace; meaning that sexual attraction
is a rare occurrence, but does happen occasionally). Another offshoot of
asexuality is demisexuality, in which sexual attraction is not felt until a
close bond has already formed between partners.
Though some may
consider all of these different sexualities tiring and meaningless, sexual
orientation can play a major role in an individual's identity. The LGBT+
community is considered a safe haven for many marginalized sexualities and
genders. However, some orientations, such as asexuals and pansexuals, still
face discrimination and stigma within LGBT+ safe spaces. All sexual
orientations are normal and natural. Knowledge of sexual orientations is
necessary for self identifying - the nuances of someone's attractions are
unknown to everyone but the person experiencing them. Figuring out one's own
sexual orientation is a joyful and freeing experience for many.
good job annie, very precise and informing
ReplyDeleteDo you believe that there is expansion that must be done of the LGBT community that can allow groups such as asexuals and pansexuals to be more accepted? How would you go about doing this?
ReplyDeleteI found it interesting that the term sexual orientation covered such a broad range of terms. It was very eye opening to learn about all the way people are sexually attracted.
ReplyDeleteI learned a lot from your post, Annie! I was very unfamiliar with all this terminology beforehand, and your post really cleared things up! Things really work on a continuous gradient, not categories and boxes.
ReplyDelete