Psychology of sex - Total No. of Records in System :: 2032

HOMOSEXUALITYnot only sexual but composed of about 50 per cent of thedesire for complete mental harmony which accompaniessuch attraction. Fear of losing this has kept me from evermaking advances, and I imagine that with a male prostitutesuch harmony would be impossible. I have got overmy shame at being different from other men and lookupon my condition as natural for myself."For some, no doubt, this is scarcely possible,and formany it involves painful struggle and impaired vitalenergy for the tasks of life. But in a large proportion ofinverts the sexual impulse, althoughitsabnormality maycause it to be unduly present to consciousness and the prohibitionof gratification artificially emphasize the need forit, is not really strong. It may find a largemeasure ofsatisfaction in a Platonic friendship with a congenial personof the same sex. Such friendship may be fortified by astudyof the ideals thatare inculcated in the writings ofPlato himself and the Greek poets who were touched byhomosexual emotions; such modern writers as Walt Whitmanand Edward Carpenter and Andre Gide may also benamed.It must, further, be remembered that the invertedsexual impulse is peculiarly apt for the ends of sublimation.Freud considers that sublimation in the direction offriendship and comradeship and esprit de corps and thelove of mankind in general may be developed after heterosexualimpulses are established. But to wait for that mustusually be the postponement of sublimation until (accordingto the ancient phrase) the Greek Kalends. Fortunatelywe may often witness what may fairly be calledsublimation taking place at a much earlier stage and inpersons in whom the homosexual impulse can be consideredfixed. It has often happened that inverts have devotedthemselves with ardor to valuable social and philanthropic[253]