Negotiating homosexual identities: the experiences of men who have sex with men in Guangzhou

Abstract

This paper reports on an ethnographic study of male homosexuality in contemporary Chinese society. The study focused on how men negotiated with the mainstream Chinese heterosexual society and in so doing constructed their sexual identities. The factors found to inform sexual identity were: the cultural imperative of heterosexual marriage, normative family obligations, desired gender roles, emotional experiences and a need for social belonging. The four types of sexual identities constructed included: establishing a deliberate non-homosexual identity, accumulating an individual homosexual identity, forming a collective homosexual identity and adopting a flexible sexual identity. For the men interviewed, sexual identity was both fluid and fragmented, derived from highly personalised negotiations between individualised needs and social and cultural constructs. The analysis is set against the background of China's rapid and recent economic development, shifting national and international social environments and improved access to the Internet.

Cet article rend compte d'une étude ethnographique sur l'homosexualité dans la société chinoise contemporaine. L'étude s'est concentrée sur la manière avec laquelle certains hommes homosexuels négocient avec la société hétérosexuelle dominante, construisant par-là même leurs identités sexuelles. Elle révèle que les facteurs influençant l'identité sexuelle sont: l'obligation culturelle de se marier, les obligations familiales normatives, les rôles de genre désirés, les expériences émotionnelles et un besoin d'appartenance sociale. Les quatre types d'identités sexuelles construites incluent: l'établissement d'une identité délibérément non homosexuelle; l'accumulation d'une identité homosexuelle individuelle; la formation d'une identité homosexuelle collective et l'adoption d'une identité sexuelle flexible. Pour les hommes qui ont été interrogés, l'identité sexuelle était à la fois fluide et fragmentée, suite aux négociations fortement personnalisées entre les besoins individualisés et les constructions sociales et culturelles. L'analyse a été effectuée avec pour arrière plan le développement économique rapide et récent de la Chine, les changements des environnements sociaux nationaux et internationaux, et les progrès dans l'accès à Internet.

En este artículo mostramos un estudio etnográfico sobre la homosexualidad en la sociedad china contemporánea. En el estudio prestamos atención en cómo los hombres negociaban con la sociedad heterosexual china en general y construían sus identidades sexuales. Los factores que, según nuestras observaciones, informan la identidad sexual fueron: el imperativo cultural del matrimonio heterosexual, las obligaciones normativas de la familia, los roles deseados de los diferentes sexos, las experiencias emocionales y la necesidad de una pertenencia social. Los cuatro tipos de identidades sexuales construidas incluían: establecer una identidad no homosexual deliberada, acumular una identidad homosexual individual, formar una identidad homosexual colectiva y adoptar una identidad sexual flexible. Para los hombres entrevistados, la identidad sexual fue fluida y fragmentada, definida a partir de negociaciones altamente personalizadas entre las necesidades individualizadas y las construcciones sociales y culturales. El análisis se ha elaborado en el contexto del rápido desarrollo económico reciente de China, el cambio de entornos sociales nacionales e internacionales y la mejora del acceso a Internet.

Keywords:

• homosexuality
• gay men
• sexual identity
• China

Acknowledgements

This study was made possible with funding from Ford Foundation. We are grateful to respondents for sharing their life histories, Chi Heng Foundation and aibai.cn for helping the study fieldwork and express gratitude to Pimpawun Boonmongkon, Arayan Trangarn and Philip Guest at Mahidol University. We would also like to thank the referees for comments and Christa Craven for proofreading.

Notes

^1. The term of Tongzhi () is borrowed from the Chinese term tongzhi, meaning comrades. It was promoted by Hong Kong sociologist Chou Wah Shan (1995) to target gay rights in China. Tongzhi usually means homosexuals, but also refers to those who pursue social acceptance, tolerance and equality of all sexual minorities, including bisexuals and transsexuals.

^2. The term for ‘that kind of person’ (, Cantonese) refers to homosexual men themselves. Sometimes, they also call each other ‘sisters’. It indicates that people who are using this term do not want other people pass-by or around to understand the contents of their talk.

^3. The term of Yu Chang () means ‘fishing pool’ and refers to traditional homosexual venues, such as parks and public toilets, where homosexual men cruise for sexual partners. ‘Fishing’ in Yu Chang means looking for sexual partners in the homosexual venues, and the word fish here refers to sexual partners.