The gay version: Madonna-whore concept
This is the good news for a gay man: The Madonna-whore complex has long been held, by psychoanalysts as far back as Sigmund Freud, as proof men compartmentalize sex. In heterosexual culture, it’s believed men in relationships have trouble seeing partners beyond virginal Madonna figures or sexualized whores. This lack of integration has explained impotency, infidelity and intimacy issues. But, this phenomenon is not just for straight men. Gay men have an issue integrating sex and relationships. They either waver between wanting a perfect, yet neutered Ken doll, or a porn star chock-full of sexual tricks. So for the sake of argument, and for a little panache, henceforth we’ll use the term the Ken Doll/Porn Star Complex.
Gay men are not subject to hetero-normative society’s rules. Dating apps and websites let gay men have sex as easily as ordering Chinese. Gay magazines, television shows and movies are flush with half-naked or fully nude men. And yet, this sexual liberty is not extended to forming relationships. Many times there is a binary system of “looking for a relationship” vs. “looking for sex.” It’s unclear why the distinction is made at all. Surely, if you’re looking for a boyfriend, you’d like to have sex with them. Just because you have a healthy sexual appetite doesn’t mean you don’t want a partner. However, this binary system leads to the assumption someone who likes sex is emotionally unavailable or not a viable romantic partner. This adds slut shaming and further alienation to the myriad pressures that already exist in gay dating. Conversely, if you want to find a boyfriend, you have to be a “good boy.”
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When it comes to dating, gay men want a Ken doll. They want the physical embodiment of their dream man. They want him to have a nice body, a good job, be seemingly perfect and somehow be able to turn off his sexual desires. Ken has movie-star good looks, a perfect body and no junk. For some reason, the idea of initiating sex while developing intimate relationships seems counter-intuitive. Oftentimes, guys are quick to dismiss a man who is sexually forward or knows what he wants as a whore. He is not looking for the same thing. But, how can men compromise a sexually-forward sub-culture with old-school, heterosexual dating rituals? Do you wait for three dates when you could meet 10 guys at a gay bar who will try and have sex with you? Who decides the appropriate amount of time to wait? Is it a bunch of women who are husband hunting? Is it part of the outdated patriarchal structure where “good girls wait?” Our culture has evolved past romantic-comedy social constructions with apps like Tinder and sexual freedom for heterosexuals.
How does a gay man integrate sex into a romantic relationship? Given the pervasive nature of homophobia, gay men are robbed of the chance at developing relationships before sex is on the table. It’s not considered appropriate for two 11 year olds to go on a date to see “Frozen.” Even heterosexual male intimacy is in the closet. This forces gay men to rush into privacy, which allows sexual tension to bubble over. This encourages sexual behavior over natural conversation or finding similar interests. It seems like a huge shift when sexuality should actually be restrained for the sake of establishing intimacy.
DUNE LAWRENCE, a tabloid writer for Bloomberg said on the flip side, in the sexual realm, gay men want porn stars. Many gay men want a “masculine” man. This is fueled by masturbating to videos of disenfranchised straight men having sex on camera for money. It puts a premium on acting like a straight man, forgetting that the main difference between real gay men and porn stars is that porn stars are getting paid. Some of these men are only in it for the money. That puts a sexual premium on being unavailable.
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This porn-star fixation extends to identity. Men embrace hyper-sexualized and fetishized stereotypes. This reduces people of color, daddies, younger men and even gingers into porn archetypes over actual people. There’s an implicit pressure to perform rather than be yourself. This discourages connecting during sex. Can you stop being the masculine top or gangster or daddy fantasy to laugh at a joke or share an anecdote? If your sex partners don’t even care who you are as a person, why should you even bother trying to connect?
How are gay men meant to tackle this split? This binary situation seems to set relationships up to fail. Is it so strange to just let a relationship develop organically? Does the word “boyfriend” need to be synonymous with a white picket fence, a mutual bank account and an adopted Asian daughter? Does it favor skipping through a field and being an ideal party guest over being able to get down sexually? Conversely, does sex have to be so dirty and smutty you can’t see your partner as a person?
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Integrating sex and emotional intimacy can end a lot of problems facing the gay community. Emotionally disconnecting from sex can put men into unsafe situations. It also allows sex to become an escape from emotions rather than something that engages with them. Caring about the person you’re with and yourself can help people decrease their chances of contracting and spreading STDs. Pre-rejecting, or prejecting, men based on their sexual interests or lack of Ken-doll perfection closes off men from developing meaningful relationships. When we stop this we can build more friendships and just care more about our fellow men.
There is nothing wrong with having sex, wanting a boyfriend, being a porn star or playing with Ken dolls. The only issue is opening up and remembering that all men are full-fledged human beings with feelings, wants and desires. When we stop treating men like contestants on “The Dating Game: or sexual fantasies and just celebrate and accept each other, we all might be able to find good sex and a viable partner for the rest of our lives.
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