Really interesting to read the thinking behind that piece...
I guess I've been really lucky, because I've been openly bisexual since the early/mid-'80s and very rarely faced any aggression (some name-calling, but really that's about it). Everywhere I've worked has been accepting (one boyfriend was very concerned about attending a work event because he thought I might kiss him, in front of my colleagues -- and, of course, I did). And being bisexual means coming out over and over and over and over... regardless of who you're with as a partner!
But I really like that you deliberately start from an ambiguous, non-default assumption of characters. That really struck me because I hadn't thought about how I perceive first-person narratives, and what assumptions I might make about them.
I like what you said about having to keep on coming out - that's very much been my experience too. Bisexuality is often invisible in LGBTQIA+ groups and society, so it takes effort to be seen.
This invisibility can also be a privilege, for example in regimes where homosexuality is criminalised there can be a safer dating option, but in more open societies it often means we're forgotten.
I hadn't really thought about this in the context of coming out over and over, but it is like that.
And yes, I enjoy the ambiguity of first person perspectives! This discussion reminded me of the video for The Prodigy's song Smack My Bitch Up, where the video's twist was the gender reveal of the point of view character. It's also a great example of queer representation that isn't afraid to be messy and unlikeable.
Really interesting to read the thinking behind that piece...
I guess I've been really lucky, because I've been openly bisexual since the early/mid-'80s and very rarely faced any aggression (some name-calling, but really that's about it). Everywhere I've worked has been accepting (one boyfriend was very concerned about attending a work event because he thought I might kiss him, in front of my colleagues -- and, of course, I did). And being bisexual means coming out over and over and over and over... regardless of who you're with as a partner!
But I really like that you deliberately start from an ambiguous, non-default assumption of characters. That really struck me because I hadn't thought about how I perceive first-person narratives, and what assumptions I might make about them.
Thanks Sean 🙂
I like what you said about having to keep on coming out - that's very much been my experience too. Bisexuality is often invisible in LGBTQIA+ groups and society, so it takes effort to be seen.
This invisibility can also be a privilege, for example in regimes where homosexuality is criminalised there can be a safer dating option, but in more open societies it often means we're forgotten.
I hadn't really thought about this in the context of coming out over and over, but it is like that.
And yes, I enjoy the ambiguity of first person perspectives! This discussion reminded me of the video for The Prodigy's song Smack My Bitch Up, where the video's twist was the gender reveal of the point of view character. It's also a great example of queer representation that isn't afraid to be messy and unlikeable.