Homosexuality and "10th Anniversary of Ang Lee's Wedding Banquet"

[Anonymous]

this topic bears a broader audience. I am continually surprised by the lack of acknowledgement in the Asian communities of homosexuality, and transgenderality. Especially Japan, with such a long tradition of homosexuality, and China, with an equally strong tradition. One book that I have found addresses this cultural discontinuity with a clarity unmatched in American literature of this subject. Confessions of a Mask, by Yukio Mishima.

I disagree with the contemporary evaluations that the narrative involves the escape of the homesexual essence of the protagonist in search of more manly virtue. I see it as a man fighting against the inevitable, and when I place it in the context of the end of the Meiji era, I define a cultural connection that has been split in half because of the westernization of a very different culture.

Tahuro Inagaki, in The Aesthetics of Adolescent Love:

“Without our noticing it this cultural tradition has been lost to us… When we were schoolboys we often heard of an affair in which two students had quarreled on account of a beautiful young boy and had ended by drawing knives... But since the new era of Taisho (1912–1926) we no longer hear of this kind of thing. The shudo which had clung on to life has now reached its end.”

This is what resonates to me as I revisit the novel.

[Anonymous]

It was hard for Asian kids to let their parents know that they are homosexual, but usually the parents will find out, when their children are not interested in getting marry to the opposite sex. Parents who are open to their kids to discuss about their feelings toward the opposite sex will help improve their relationship with their kids.

I will have students draw their family members, and introduced what each family member does. If some of the students have the same sex parents, they can share with the class, and I make sure the other students will not laugh at those students. They can ask those students, what are the jobs each parent does at home. This way students will learn that there are different kinds of family.
edited by rliao on 6/22/2012

[Rob_Hugo@PortNW]

This article really stands out from the rest because I feel like I can relate to it. The article talks about “The Wedding Banquet”, a groundbreaking film produced by Ang Lee regarding the stigma of Asian homosexuality. As I do have friends who are homosexuals, I can only imagine how hard it is for them to be constantly looked down upon.

I remember how hard it was for them growing up because they always had a number of people coming up to them and labeling them as “queers” and making fun of them for being different from other boys. They tried to fit, and they themselves were living in denial for the longest time, but high school came around and they finally decided to “come out.” I REALLY admire these guys, if I were them I would probably be hiding and living in denial forever, but regardless of all the nasty remarks they got from people, they were still bold enough to come out and tell the world that they are gay.

I abhor those who disrespect people just because they are different. We have no control over our sexuality, and homosexuals are no exceptions either. I think it is hard enough for a person to accept the fact that he/she is gay without the rude remarks and nasty stereotypes. I also believe it is even harder for an Asian homosexual living in an Asian community to come out. Asians, especially those who are extremely traditional and cultured, are not as open when it comes to accepting what it different.

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