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Debate Essay Sexuality

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Submitted By xjaimes
Words 1106
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Xochitl Jaimes
Professor Aminda Smith
History 420
1/31/14
Debate Essay
Sexuality, has become an important aspect in our society in molding our identity as individuals. The word “gay” is now stemmed deeply into the American society that has been slowly becoming socially acceptable. There are those who debate you are born being a homosexual, those who assert society influences you to become a homosexual, and others who believe one chooses to become a homosexual.
In the article, “Revolutions, Universal, and Sexual Categories,” by John Boswell works tediously to answer the question in whether categories exist because we are able to recognize real distinctions or because we make categories to make things easier and agree upon it as society (2). The two sides that debate this argument with each other are realists who believe categories are the footprints of reality which is supposed to be known universally (2). The other side is described by Boswell as nominalists is the reality that people come to believe is by the creating of humans and their society (2). So, nominalist believe that if it were not for society and the socialization of individuals everyone would just be sexual and not conform to either being simply heterosexual or homosexual. Realist, also described by Boswell as “essentialists” disagree and believe that regardless of our perception of what is heterosexual/homosexual some people have certain characteristics of being one or the other or both (3).
Boswell, states that nominalists and realists would come to agree that neither of their explanation is hundred percent correct, but both have elements that are accurate (4). For simplicity, he has managed to come up with three types of sexual taxonomy. Type A, is all humans are capable of being sexually aroused by either female, males, or both caused by external factors. Type B, concludes “human are

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