Homosexuality and Evolution

Philosophy Forums Society, Government, and Economics
21

Smoothinator, I wanted to ask you about your reasoning here.

First, granted that a homosexual attraction is indeed “natural,” if we mean by that, “no human act could possibly be unnatural in nature,” do you think that such a thing would be intended and regulated by nature itself? That it was necessary?

What I mean is, wouldn’t homosexuality be contradictive to evolution? Yet you seem to suggest that not only was the practice intended, the universe also had a plan to use it as a way to balance out another of its follies: over-population.

You must also consider the ambiguities that might manifest the homosexual attractions, and how they seem to play minor roles in the event:

Little John was ugly and didn’t get much play with the ladies. He was also very young, and while he lacked any female intimacy, he was very close to his other male friends, so his most intimate experiences are with other boys. This eventually became a grey area, and little John never made the distinction between the two. For him, experimenting sexually with his friends was okay, acceptable, and desired.

Did evolution intend to have little John become gay this way? Are all the arbitrary things, like the Izod shirt that he never owned, which would have impressed Mary enough to go sleep with him, despite the wart on his nose, set in advance to be used to control the population of the human species?

Perhaps.

But that is saying alot.

22

i am not sure how to explain homosexuality in individuals. what i think would be an interesting study on lab animals, and maybe humans one day, is to see if there is an extractable gene that we can remove or radiate into oblivion, to cure sexuality in individuals. then again it could just be pure upbrining. comments?

23

Natural selection works by a bit of trial and error. Unsuccessful units do not pass their genes on, but there is so much variation that there are always differences. Some people want to breed with goats. Their genes won’t pass on, if they only do that. Some people only want to breed with the same gender. Their genes won’t pass on, if they only do that.

So, the simple explanataion is: Evolution creates variants. Some do not successfully pass on their genes. Today’s social standards and scientific abilities allow even those who would not normally pass on their genes to in fact do so.

24

I heard you Nanook :smiley:

One thing I like about your view of the self (which resonates) (the whole ‘self is consciousness’ thang that means we choose our behavior) is that we can not blame our sexual behavior… or our gendered behavior… on nature… on our biological sex…

P.S. for Smooth, who sees no difference between sex and gender:

 The term 'sex' is used to mean "Maleness or femaleness as determined by genetic factors present at conception that result in anatomical and physiological differences," (Baron & Byrne, 2002, p. 184) regardless of our self-concept. The term 'gender' refers to "The attributes, behaviors, personality characteristics, and expectancies associated with a person's biological sex in a given culture," (Baron & Byrne, 2002, p. 184) again regardless of our self-concept. Gender norms in our culture, although changing, currently define femininity for those who are biologically female, and masculinity for those who are biologically male. 
 We are born into our biological sex, and we are born into a culture and family which has ready-made gender norms all set up for us, but only with time and experience will we develop our gender identity, sexual identity, and sexual orientation. 
 When we use the term 'gender identity', we mean, "The part of the self-concept involving a person's identification as a male or female," (Baron & Byrne, 2002, p. 185), which may or may not reflect their biological sex or sexual identity. The term 'sexual identity' reflects a person's identification as physically male or physically female, which may or may not reflect their biological sex or gender identity. While the differences between men as a sex, and women as a sex are biologically and physiologically obvious (until considering intersex), 'gender divergence' refers to the differences in gender norms between men and women.
 When we refer to a person's sexual orientation, we, in this culture, are generally referring to which biological sex an individual sexually prefers the most. A heterosexual orientation, the least societally resisted orientation and the most commonly manifested sexual behavior, reflects a person's sexual preference towards their opposite biological sex, a homosexual towards their same biological sex, and a bisexual towards either biological sex. 
 Although it is common for a person to identify as their biological sex, conform to the cultural gender norms of their biological sex, and develop a heterosexual orientation, this does not necessarily mean that sexual identity, gender identity, and sexual orientation cause eachother. For example, those who are transgendered are considered to have rejected the gender norms of their biological sex, instead preferring to conform to the gender norms of their opposite biological sex, but they still refer to themselves as a man if they were born a man, or as a woman if they were born a woman, and they can develop either a heterosexual, bisexual, or homosexual orientation. A transsexual is a person who identifies as being their opposite biological sex, often adopting the gender norms of their opposite sex, feeling as though they were born the wrong biological sex, to the extent that they will sometimes undergo sex-change surgery, but even without surgery will refer to themselves as a woman if they were born a man, or as a man if they were born a woman, and may either be heterosexual, bisexual, or homosexual. 
 Sexual orientation simply refers to a person’s predominant sexual preference, not to their gender identity or sexual identity--granted it is defined relative to their biological sex, or sexual/gender identity they grew up in, if born intersex. For example, if you prefer men, your orientation is considered homosexual if you are a man, or heterosexual if you are a woman. Possibly in the distant future sexual orientation will be defined as "male-oriented" or "female-oriented"? Or, if gender divergence continues to weaken, maybe sexual orientation eventually will not strictly refer to biological-sexual preference. As quoted by one bisexual, "My sexual orientation is toward creative people of color who can cook," (DeAngelis, 2001)