Temelyan !

Temelyan, Edgar
Jennifer Rodrick
English 115
October 13, 2016
Project Space 1st Draft
How would you like it if your child was teased and taunted for the sexuality of their
parents? Homosexuality has been a common conflict in our society for centuries, and it continues
to be a significant source for our modern day societys ignorance. From a central Board of
Education to your weekly Sunday church, our youth are pressured to hide their true identities, for
the satisfaction of the ignorant people who surround them. The sexual identity for the present day
youth is heavily influenced, in a performative aspect, by homosexual households, Catholic
extremist churches, and committee schools.
The characteristics of a household significantly impact the decisions of todays youth, in
terms of openly expressing ones sexuality. When considering, a child who lives in a household
associated with same sex parents, their identity and views on homosexuality crucially differs
from a child raised in a heterosexual household. From being teased at school to encouraging
separation from others, homosexuality influences one to be performative. For example, Kelsey
White, from Tipp City, Ohio, experienced a similar situation as a 13-year-old girl. In the article
Gay Life in the 21st Century Kelsey shares her encounter with sexual discrimination:
As a 13-year-old girl with a lesbian mother, I find life is
pretty hard. We don't tell anybody, but people know. And
people tease, and people taunt. No other teen I know has

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gay parents, and it causes a lot of hurt not being able to share
some of my feelingsMaybe you should have covered
the childrens opinions as well, (White, Paragraph 6).
Whites experience as an adolescent consisted of a great deal of hatred from the people that she
associated with, and possessed a negative impact of her personal life, to the point she wanted to
keep her opinions bottled up. When considering how an adolescents identity is formed, the first
thing that comes to mind is their friends and family. For example, the fifth stage of Eriksons,
Eight Stages of Physiological Development, Erikson states:
During adolescence (age 12 to 18 yrs), the transition from
childhood to adulthood is most important This is a
major stage in development where the child has to learn
the roles he will occupy as an adult, (McLeod, Paragraph 36)

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Erikson describes the impact that peer pressure has on the development of an adolescents
identity. When comparing Eriksons theory to Whites experience, performativity comes to mind.
In Whites case, the result of being taunted at a young age, resulted in her to establish and
perform an identity that was against her true individuality.
Do to the existence of Catholic extremists, families who follow such beliefs, are
completely against the presence of homosexuality among their children. Homosexuality is taken
to the uppermost extent of non-acceptance within the Catholic religion, that if one were to be
homosexual they would be an utter disgrace. In the article Homosexuality, by J. Keefe, Keefe
quotes the scripture, associated with homosexuality, within the New Catholic Encyclopedia
that:
"You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; such a
thing is an abomination" (18.2023), a condemnation
repeated in Lv 20.13. In the New Testament, St. Paul's

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Letter to the Romans cites indulgence in same-sex lust

and the perverse actions of men with men, women with
women, as deserving penalty, (Keefe, Paragraph 2)
In this verse from the scripture, we can see how condemned the existence of homosexuality is in
the eyes of Catholic extremists. In addition, we can see how severe the views are towards same
sex relationship, just by analyzing the vocabulary used in the verse. For example one who
follows such sexuality is considered an Abomination (Keefe, Paragraph 2), and results to
Condemnation (Keefe, Paragraph 2). These beliefs strike fear in the minds of the homosexual
individuals, encouraging one to hide their true identity for the sake of their social image and, for
the well being of their personal interactions. Therefore, the presence such fear results in one to
bare a performative mind state.
In order to fulfill the requirements of school District 24, in Queens, New York, teachers
are urged to follow a specific guide discouraging homosexuality among the classroom. A school
is where a child spends most of their time developing most of their characteristics, beliefs, and
identity. A pupil relies on their teachers to direct them towards the correct path, in terms of, being
ethical and viewing others equally. By urging the teachers of school District 24 to follow a
guideline that is against homosexuality, the District is manipulating the teachers understanding
towards homosexual identity. Midge Decter quotes in his article, Homosexuality and the
Schools, that:
The guide then goes on to point out that, "according to
statistics," at least 10 percent of each class will grow up
to be homosexual. Further, because of pervasive homophobia

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(the irrational fear of homosexuals) in society, lesbian/gay

teens are more likely to drop out of school, commit suicide,
abuse drugs/alcohol, or get pregnant [sic] than the rest of
their peers. Lesbian/gay students (or even those just perceived
as gay) are frequently assaulted, verbally and physically, by other
students and parents. It is also common for them to be thrown
out of their homes once their parents find out the child is gay,
(Decter, Paragraph 7).
This guide encourages the teachers at District 24 to direct their curriculum toward avoiding the a
homosexual identity. The contents of this guide consist of stating the negative aspect of being
homosexual. From stating homosexuals as people who drop out of school, to users of drugs/
alcohol, such sexuality is frowned upon. The teachers depend on this guide to classify what is
right and wrong in terms of directing their students to form their own ideal persona. On the other
hand the students, with possible homosexual feelings, will be pressured to display a false identity
that will depicted a perfomative mindset.
Many might say that sexual identity for our modern day youth cannot be influenced by
the space around them. Others believe that space cannot influence any judgment in a
performative aspect because of the belief that an identity is not based on experience, instead is
formed by personal motives and opinions. To contrast, I believe that identity is formed by the
experiences and encounters a person has witnessed. I also believe that if a child is pressured they
will form an identity that is based off the motives of the individuals pressuring them. In my

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opinion, the only way that a child can freely create their own identity is by not being judged for
who they are.
In conclusion, space has influenced sexual identity for young individuals in a
performative aspect, which causes them to portray an identity that is accepted by society. In
many cases, such as, a child born into a catholic extremist family, or a child living in a
homosexual household, in order for that child to not feel judged, they attempt to hide and
perform an identity that does not reflect their true character. In the past, acceptance of identity
wasnt an option, but now, slowly but surely, we are evolving into an open-minded society. From
the past to our present day, society plays an influential role in the process of manipulating the
attributes that make up ones character, and determining the relationships between different
identities.

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Works Cited

Decter, Midge. "Homosexuality and the schools." Commentary Mar. 1993: 19+. General
OneFile. Web. 17 Oct. 2016.
URL
http://libproxy.csun.edu/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com.libproxy.csun.edu/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=csunorthridge&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE
%7CA13531651&asid=6e10be179687819339ac7d8e5b5ea3e7

"Gay Life in the 21st Century." Newsweek 10 Apr. 2000: 18. General OneFile. Web. 17 Oct.
2016.
URL
http://libproxy.csun.edu/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com.libproxy.csun.edu/ps/i.do?
p=ITOF&sw=w&u=csunorthridge&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE
%7CA61243889&asid=c33dfb7667a9945405e0b10db2227852

KEEFE, J. "Homosexuality." New Catholic Encyclopedia. 2nd ed. Vol. 7. Detroit: Gale, 2003.
66-71. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 17 Oct. 2016.
URL
http://libproxy.csun.edu/login?url=http://go.galegroup.com.libproxy.csun.edu/ps/i.do?
p=GVRL&sw=w&u=csunorthridge&v=2.1&it=r&id=GALE
%7CCX3407705373&asid=ce83d6b5b0e0260a4b267da8a5e996f6
McLeod Published 2008, Updated 2013, Saul. "Erik Erikson." Simply Psychology. Creative
Commons Attribution, 23 Sept. 2008. Web. 14 Oct. 2013.
URL
http://www.simplypsychology.org/Erik-Erikson.html

Maggiegyb. Adolescence: Identity vs. Role Confusion. Online Video Clip. YouTube. 24
March 2009. Web. 13 October 2016.
URL
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJMXk5ibkQk
Nicholson, Melissa K. Erik Erikson's Eight Stages of Psychosocial Development. Digital
image. Erikson's Psychosocial Stages. Russ, Dewey, 2007. Web. 13 Oct. 2016.
URL
http://www.psywww.com/intropsych/ch11_personality/eriksons_psychosocial_stages.html.