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"Having sex with women is gay." - Plato, probably

Drapetomania was the "medical" "illness" wherein a slave would want to run away from their master.

"Sexuality is complicated" Haha...yeah! *worringly looking at the hentai folder*

The amount of people misunderstanding the title or being triggered that lgbt people have always existed is unsurprising but hilarious.

Angry frogs: “Keep politics out of my history” Historians: “History = politics (of the past)” Angry frogs: * visibly angry and confused noises*

I think it's important to keep in mind that eg in ancient Greece acceptable sexual behavior wasn't so much determined by the "sexes" of the partners, but by their role: Being "active", the one who penetrates, or "passive",the one who is penetrated. Adult men were not supposed to be the passive partner, younger men and boys were still "allowed" to take on the part "of the woman". This also informs how same-sex ... sex was seen between men of the same age: For adult men being the passive part was ostracized, being the active one wasn't. Slaves and metics were generally able to prostitute themselves as bottoms without much social repercussions (though they obviously didn't have a high social standing anyway). Same-sex relations between young men or teenagers, though by no means as encouraged as pederasty, seem to have mostly been tolerated independent on who was "the bottom" and who was "the top".

fyi our kingdom is Animalia, Mammalia is the class ;)

WHAT? I'LL HAVE YOU KNOW *ANGRY MOTH NOISES*

if the internet has taught me anything about sex, it's just never stops being weird

i love it when historians say something that people dont like because you see the true colors of those people fast

I've met people at parties who've unironically argued that homosexuality isn't "natural", while wearing synthetic garments and drinking beer out of an aluminum can.

I always say that looking at other cultures in different time periods is the best way to get an understanding of the true variety of human behaviour. Thanks for taking on a task I’m not sure I’ll ever be brave enough to do though.

Cypher: "I'm sure this is going to get demonitiz..." Ad: INTRUPT!

So Plato composed What is love?

Bro... I'm literally procrastinating a school assignment about the symposium by watching this video and it's the first thing he mentions

The take of ancient Rome on homosexuality was completely different from the Greek one: To Roman society sex was less about gender and more about dominance and submission. For a Roman male it was considered unmanly to be in a relationship that put him in a position of being submissive, e.g. getting penetrated. So it was socially acceptable to have sexual relationships with any group of people considered submissive/powerless - women, slaves or infames, that is, people who had been stripped of their legal standing - but not acceptable to have one with another free Roman male. Homosexuality for females was generally frowned upon because to the Romans' understanding it would necessarily mean that one of them would have to take the active/dominant part, which was considered indecent.

Fun fact, the class mammalia in German is called "Säugetier," which literally translates to "sucking animal," also referring to breast feeding. The video is awesome by the way. I definitely learned a lot and will probably refer to it a few times as I forget details.

Great video. Damn, should have included a boom cover trade joke in my recent video about Yankee sailors... oh well

Way to tackle this subject!

I am... skeptical of your claim that the category Mammalia was named as a means of pushing for breast feeding rather than a reference to one of it's defining physical traits.

Now Hamlet's "Get thee to a nunnery" comment makes sense. I always thought it was strange way of saying brothel, as all my teachers said.

I think we just don't have enough conclusive research yet to say for certain what the "Cause" of sexuality is. I'm willing to bet that it's influenced by all 3 big factors: Biological, Social, and Environmental. And the balance of those is probably different in different cases. I think you're right that sexuality is probably more fluid than many modern-day activists (On both the Right and the Left) would like to believe it to be. But I would hesitate to discard biological factors, or even just random chance/personality, as causes of legitimate sexual preference differences. Personally, I grew up with zero access to any "gay culture." There were no "gay role models" in my life, and nobody I knew was gay. There were no options for sex with my friends who were boys. Everybody just assumed I was straight because that's what everyone else was. And I assumed that, too, because "straight" sexuality was pushed on me from every angle in society. I even had "girlfriends" in middle school and even high school, because I didn't even entertain the possibility that I was gay. But now, looking back, I realize that I never once really wanted to have sex with a woman. I've always, subconsciously, found men more attractive. I had just chalked these feelings up to "Confusion" or "Coincidence," when they happened, rather than treating them for what they were: A hint at my innate sexual preference. If sexuality were "Merely" a social construct, I would have turned out to be a straight man. I was raised in every capacity to be a straight man. The society around me was purely heterosexual, and opportunities for straight sex were abundant, while opportunities for gay sex were ENTIRELY non-existent. But, still, I don't like women that much. I never really have. I like men, a lot more, and I have since I was fairly young. So... yeah, I don't buy your thesis that sexuality is entirely a "Social construct," if that is what you're trying to say. I think for some, maybe many people it may be, but for some people it is a truly innate part of their personality, rather than a response to social pressures or sexual opportunities.

Broke: Only heterosexuality is normal and natural. Woke: All sexualities are normal and found in nature. Bespoke: SEXUALITY IS A SOCIAL CONSTRUCT AND YOU'RE A FREAK. Jokes aside, loved the video.

Mammals wasn't political, It was descriptive. Giver of milk is the distinctive facet of the three types of mammals that exist

Doesn't that mean that every sexual orientation is "normal". It all depends on what your definition of normal is. Purely going off the numbers, heterosexuality blows everything else out of the water, but that doesn't mean the other orientations are unnatural.

"Talking about sexuality, there's a LOT of things to imagine!" S-stop looking at me like that, Cypher. 😳

Complicated issue. For instance, various European cultures would have Pederasty not due to legitimate sexual attraction but more due to power dynamics and establishing authority, which I wouldn’t want to lump together with homosexuality as there’s a difference between the two. (Ie genuine attraction vs establishing dominance) There is some evidence to suggest most humans are bisexual to varying degrees, especially women, but most will primarily be attracted to the opposite sex in order to reproduce and spread their genes, as an evolutionary mechanism. Exceptions exist, like asexuality and homosexuality, but romantic and sexual relationships between those of opposite sexes would be the primary of those relationships through most of human history just because people need to have children to continue the species.

A HUGE part of the problem of the "normalization" of social categorization - or anything in general - is that nothing is really "normal" to begin with. The word "normal" is like everything else, subjective. When the vast majority of people talk about doing things that are "normal" or adhering to the "normal" way of life or thinking, they are imposing a fixed ideal that has been for far too long become commonly accepted, which in turn represses the need for more evolved thinking and progressive action. They tend to think of "abnormal" as anything that contradicts a way of life or thinking to which they have been too long accustomed and/or conformed to, and therefore many things that challenge what is often referred to as the "status quo" are viewed as an aberration and/or a threat to that fixed pattern. The real aberration/threat is the fixed state of "normality" to which the vast majority is expected to follow/obey at the expense of a far more evolved state of thinking and living.

Very brave introductory analysis. I would add that societal laws on sexuality are just part of the control system exercised over the masses. Or a way for one invading culture to present the invaded as degenerate or less moral. For instance during the theft and invasion of Africa - African societies were looked on, as degenerate; Because there was free and open sexuality. Now after a couple of hundred years of puritan programming Africa now frowns on anything, that isn’t heterosexual, so the West can now say Africa is less liberal and therefore inferior in that way. The same for the middle east.

Hey, a cooperation with Step Back. I really liked that you gave him the space in your channel which is considerably bigger. As a fan of both i was really excited with these videos. And it's a very contentious topic, which i think is very brave of both of you. Awesome video, seriously.

Wow, so much butthurt in this comment section. Like I’m straight, but I’m secure enough in my sexuality to not feel attacked by historical facts

In Polish mamals are called "saki" (which means "suckers") because they suck milk.

Awesome video man, I really love your content. Well thought out, well researched, and well reasoned arguments.

Did Plato at the beginning just give the "It's actually LESS gay if it's a Femboy!" argument?? Good video. I hate topics like this, but it's good to learn your history and facts. This video was digestible and understandable for a guy like me who just wants to grill.

Man the walls, The Orcs are coming!

There is a big difference between normal and natural. Normal is a statistical term. Natural is not statistical.

Cypher, I really respect you making quality content knowing it will be demonetized.

There's a quote I like to use every now and then, "Heterosexuality and homosexuality are modern day inventions."

Thanks for covering that topic. Very insightful.

This is why Jojo's Bizzare Adventure is such a revelation for so many young men.

Just coming to see the like to dislike ratio lol.

Don't tell Ben Shapiro this. He might call you anti-Semitic

Sexual orientation is like food, they are certain foods that we like and they are certain foods that we don't like for example they are people who don't like tomatoes.

Very interesting video! I've always wondered why it isn't covered that much in school because it's a really interesting subject.

6:53 Brothers in arms in each other arms

You miss one point about anal sex. For centuries it was used in hetero sex as a form of contraception. That was why anal sex was not associated with gay men. For decades after contraception became easily available, there was a sharp decline in the number of hetero couples in the Western world having anal sex. It was not until the internet and the ready availability of porn that the number started to rise again. There is also the broader question that could be asked of many civilisations: was homosexuality tolerated because it was the means of avoiding hetero sex outside of marriage and procreation.

6:38 Gore Vidal was a really interesting example of this fairly recently. Dude refused to call himself gay even though he was pretty well known to be.

I dont get why mammal is wrong to use about our class within the animal kingdom. I cant think of a single mammal that doesnt produce milk for their young.

how do you do your hair curl also your content is p dang sweet thank you for uploading it but legit i have never seen hair do that before what are you doing what are your secrets

Can you please provide the links on to were you found this information

Great video 👍. Very interesting and informative.

Dont mind me. Just here before the storm comes. Good luck my friend. Nice vid tho.

This video is amazing! Thank you so much for making this!

I was wrong. THIS is your best episode.

It's like Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy says don't Panic, bring a Towel, and holding your Thumb out long Enough will eventually bring about a Sweet Reward

Thank you!!!! But a lot of people are SO not ready to have this convo!!! Keep it up 🖤🖤

Great video, keep it up!

The title is perfect because it probably gets the people who need it the most to watch it, yet it isn't a lie at all

Seeing this video made me happy. Seeing this comment section took that away from me.

Thank you for making this

Another great video man!

That quote in the intro makes me think of how as children, boys almost exclusively hang around with other boys (and vice versa). While we don't think much of it (and even discourage it ), perhaps the ancient Greeks considered it a virtue.

finally someone gives a good take on this subject. 10/10

I think you are all misunderstanding what the title of the video means

Normal and natural aren't the same thing. When most people think 'normal', they think 'what is most common'. And in that sense, heterosexuality is the most common. Because that's how babies are made. The issue is when someone tries to condemn other sexualities for this, which is wrong.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. The human brain is the most complex thing in existence and it was built from scratch by trial and error by an idiot, the best thing you can say about it is that most of the time it works fine. Nothing with neurological and psychological aspects to it will ever be neat, easy or accurately describable in less than a thousand words. Biology is complicated, people are complicated, societies are complicated, life is complicated.

You should do a video on the history of re-enactments. I heard that civil war re-enactments started before the actual conflict was over. Soldiers would stage Re creations of different battles with snowballs or so I’ve heard. Another video topic that I think would be interesting would be on Holocuast denial (or genocide denial in general) yes, such a topic would cause a shit show of a comment section but I’m curious as to how this “trend” first started. Please don’t take this as a “you must do these videos because one fan on a comment section said so” but rather just potential ideas. Keep up the great work

It doesnt have to be normal 🤦‍♂️ you can be accepted and not be normal. We should strive for that mindset. Quite frankly, it's not normal. It's a statistical minority. That's ok. We should be able to say "that's ok". Why cant we? Why is "not normal" treated as synonymous with "not good"? I'm not normal. That doesnt mean I'm not good. That's ok.

Don’t tell Ben Shapiro about this...

Very good video! Bravo

Out of interest, how do we know that Linnaeus was trying to push breastfeeding, rather than observing that mammals have mammary glands in contrast to other organisms?

8:06 lesbian nuns were a thing ? I guessing now there is a porn of that

Great video!

Thanks for doing this and trying your best to explain it. I and many others in the world are grateful for you bringing up/explaining this concept

Talking about the emergence of homosexual identity and not even mentioning my boy Karl Heinrich Ulrichs or how his approach to sexuality often included aspects of gender fluidity.

If not mammary glands, what would you distinguish our class by?

Someone is hiding in a closet and his names rhymes with clinical Nestorian.

Based on what was said, I believe a quick summary of sexuality would be, "It's complicated" because most topics with a history this rich are always complicated (history of lawmaking, warfare, rights and freedom, religion, etc.). Simplifying them isn't easy, and how they're simplified depends on the person. Have you done your research? It may be easier to condense it in a way anyone could understand. Haven't done the research? Well, the facts will have to be checked because some things were omitted or glossed over. Also, based on this video, the word "normal" suggests that it's somewhat symptomatic of social constructs. Not only has it been applied to what is considered common for a specific culture, the history of cultures clashing the world over suggest that the term doesn't really mean much. What a culture considers normal is likely to be unnatural or foreign to another and vice versa, especially if those outside said culture lack the desire to learn the customs.

Here we go

Well, I like that you use Bodoni.

Tristan sent me here. Good video! ⭐️

Cool video man

For people saying you only have sex to reproduce, do you not have sex for fun? Cause I'm not trying to have a kid, I'm trying to have fun.

I'm not against having politics in history--that's where it should be explained in vivid context--but I prefer to learn about it as it occured in that timeframe and not how barbaric it is compared to now. Politics and history can be a entertaining combo.

*Oh boy, here comes the Kenny Logins Soundtrack....* 🤣😹

This video is much appreciated 👍

Not a topic I would have expected but I enjoyed it nonetheless, thank you.

Alas, 3 years later and white America is under mass hysteria about sexuality

sexuality is very odd, biology a fact, however people will always confuse to two to suit their own narrative. Just be who you are, attraction is as bizarre as sexuality.

So was Plato a bottom or a top?

People did things they weren't biologically designed to do? Who would've thought. [Asmodeus is pleased]

All those dislikes... Yeah, it's not natural, but he ain't saying that it's bad.

What does the numbers mean under Maria Elena Martinez mean becuase as far as I can tell she’s alive and didn’t die in 2014

I thought mammals were called mammals because the young were breastfed by their mothers.

11:06 “childs” lol

Although I agree with most everything in video, I still have issue with the term “socially constructed”. While it is true that how we view things changes cross culturally and throughout history, it suggests there is nothing that led us to make that distinction in the first place. For example, the majority of human cultures tend to associate females with the “care taker”. What most likely influenced the viewpoints of these cultures was the action of birth, and the period of time of she needs to breast feed. This is a case of our biology(which is real and objective) influencing our viewpoint of what is and isn’t. By saying “everything is socially constructed” you are discounting the very real elements that led to the categorization. Many refuse to acknowledge these things because they believe it will lead to sexism. But I think it is still important to say these are true, while acknowledging the fact the it doesn’t mean we should return to the cult of domesticity.

[Insert coincidental meme here. Can't freaking resist.]

I'm sorry, but hasn't mothers breastfeeding their own children been pretty normal outside of the rich elite and maybe *very* close knit communities?