Bisexual men - Are they for real?

ARE BISEXUAL MEN FOR REAL

At the dawn of the last century, the father of psychoanalysis Sigmund Freud was the first to make the claim that bisexuality is a common inclination. According to him, homo- and heterosexuality develop from this original disposition. Although his daring theory has challenged conventional thinking, many people even today refuse to recognise the existence of bisexuality. To them, bisexuality is just a funny phase some bored people are going through. As for those men, who have sex with men all the time, but still insist they are bi… well does anyone really believe them. Straight women are don’t get it. Straight men have a grudge with them, too, well I guess because they are strong competition, after all they fish in both ponds. Even homosexuals throw them under the bus because, in their eyes, bi-men are just full-blown gays who use their bisexuality as an excuse for not coming out of the closet.

But let’s not jump to conclusions just yet. The enigma still stays unsolved: Are bisexual men frauds, or are they for real?

MYTHS VS. REALITY

One of the most widespread myths is that bi-men are traitors to the gay rights movement, and do their best to pass as straight to avoid trouble and take advantage of heterosexual privileges. Yes, there certainly are Judas’s among them, and this is not OK. But politicising sexuality is also wrong. As a matter of fact, bisexuals, both male and female are equally committed to various gay/ lesbian/bi causes. Otherwise, why would they care to put a B in the LGBTQI+?

Article written by Maya Vukovska for Andrew Christian

perceived as concurrent lovers by both sexes. However, the truth is that bisexuals may have indeed lovers from both sexes, but it does not mean that they need to be with them all the time to feel sexually fulfilled. In fact, some bi men are monogamous and ONLY dream of making love to someone of the opposite sex than the one of their current partner.

My personal favourite myth about bisexuals is that they are promiscuous swingers who are attracted to every human being they lay eyes on. What, really!? Promiscuity is no more frequent in the bisexual population than it is in other groups of people.

THE KINSEY THEORY

Between 2000 and 2019, eight studies on male bisexuality were carried out. The most recent study conducted at the Northwestern University of Evanston came to the conclusion that sexuality exists on a continuum. The participants in the Northwestern University study were arranged in four categories depending on how they described themselves: as “exclusively heterosexual,” “mostly straight,” “mostly gay,” and “bisexual.” Researchers measured the extent of their sexual arousal in response to male and female erotic stimuli. Porn, in other words. The research team’s findings supported Alfred Kinsey’s theory of 1948 according to which sexual orientation is distributed on a 7-point scale, where 0 is being 100% straight and 6 - as gay as a pink tent. They found out that guys who rated themselves as Kinsey 2’s, i.e. very much straight, had a celebratory response to gay porn. This, of course, doesn’t make them gay, but more like socially hesitant to publicly announce their bisexual disposition.

THE B-WORD IN TV AND CINEMA

You may have never had a bisexual male friend, but of course, you’ve watched a bunch of movies where mainstream monosexuality has been questioned. And here are just a few examples.

Remember Alfred Kinsey, the American sexologist who, in 1947, founded the Institute for Sex Research at Indiana University? So famous for his sexual expression scale, that in 2004, they made a movie about him with Liam Neeson starring as the adult Kinsey.

In 1972 Bob Fosse’s musical Cabaret, Michael York plays a bisexual teacher and writer who’s trying to navigate two complicated relationships. But I‘m lnot sure if he succeeded, or not.

In the French musical Love Songs (2007), basically, everyone is bisexual. The focus is on three young people, Ismael, Julie, and Alice, who are in a polyamorous relationship. But what can you say - it’s the French way…

In Crazy Ex-Girlfriend (2015-2019), Pete Gardner’s character, Darryl, is an openly bi-sexual lawyer. One of his notable quotes is: “I’m going for drinks with this gay man, whom I have a crush on.”

The list goes on, and on.

And just remember: “bisexual,” “gay,” “lesbian,” etc. are just labels. Our sexuality, however, is not a number we get from the ticket dispenser at the bank. It’s a fluidity thing on a large spectrum