Choosing to Stay “in the Closet”

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The Essentials of Same-Sex Relationships

If someone stays “in the closet,” that means the person doesn't fully reveal his or her sexual identity as a homosexual. Closeted homosexuals hide their sexual identity and behave in particular ways so they can blend in with their chosen community. Choosing to be closeted depends on the person involved. After all, sexual orientation goes beyond just engaging in sexual acts, and people attach a certain weight to the concept of “gay.”

Saying that someone is in the closet has a range of meanings. Some people who get married, have children, and spend an entire lifetime living with and regularly having sex with a member of the opposite sex are really not heterosexual at all. To get sexually aroused, these people have to fantasize about having sex with a member of their own sex.

People who appear to be openly heterosexual may actually lead clandestine gay sex lives in several different ways:

• Some people visit gay bars when the opportunity presents itself, go to areas where gay prostitutes are known to hang out, or merely masturbate while looking at gay magazines.

  
  



• Some people lead a gay lifestyle only when in the presence of other gays, but put on a front of being heterosexual in other settings, such as at work or school.

  
  



• Some people may never actually engage in any form of gay sex, but, nevertheless, deep down inside, are gay.

  
  

Many of these people, especially in today’s more open culture, do end up “coming out of the closet” at some point in their lives. Others box themselves in so tightly that they just don’t feel that they can survive the revelation, and so they hide their homosexuality for their entire lives.

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Source:http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/choosing-to-stay-147in-the-closet148.html