Western Theories on Same-Sex Intimacies

Abstract

Studies of non-heterosexual relationships emerged from the late 1970s and have recently expanded to look at those unexplored experiences that might have been unthinkable to older generations. The fact that contemporary heterosexual and same-sex relationships are now equal in the eyes of the law in some Western countries has attracted research into the changes in formalised relationships provided by legislative changes. These new narratives are emerging, for example, around experiences of lesbian parenthood, reproductive technologies and same-sex marriage for younger couples. These issues, however, are less relevant to Taiwanese lesbians’ current situation, given that this book focuses on Taiwanese lesbians’ perceptions of ‘families’, experiences of making their own ones and the way they make sense of their unconventional lives without legal recognition. By focusing primarily on 1990s Western literature, however, I review research in the field of same-sex intimacies and debates on egalitarian lesbian relationships where they are relevant to the social circumstances of my research field. This review begins with Weston’s (1997) pioneering study of ‘families we choose’ in the Bay area of the United States, and goes on to explore how the notion of ‘the family’ has been reshaped. I then examine the debates on the egalitarian ideal and the dominant conception of ‘no preordained script’ in lesbian couples.