Philosophy 320
Professor Galloway
11/30/2017
Homosexuality is Abnormal
Michael Levin discusses the biological nature of humans in his piece, Why
Homosexuality is Abnormal. He explains that it is humans underwent the process of natural
selection that brought them to a point where inserting a penis into a vagina became the normal
and most selected-for process in sex. The reason for this selection, he claims, is because it is the
only way to reproduce and further the human race. He then goes on to say to say that because
of this fact, any human that does not partake in heterosexual intercourse, is not only unnatural
and wrong but will be doomed to a life of unhappiness.
I wonder if he would make the same claim regarding monks, priests and nuns. Are they
unhappy and abnormal, simply because they’re choosing not to use their sexual organs for
heterosexual intercourse? Who’s to judge a person’s happiness? Happiness is not quantifiable
and there are many factors that play into it. Where did Michael Levin attain the power to zero
in on one factor and then compare this happiness to those of heterosexuals?
I think there’s something to say for the evidence that there seems to be a chemical
imbalance in the brains of homosexuals. Many studies suggest that homosexuality is not a
choice and that often homosexual people can’t imagine being heterosexual even if they wanted
to. Would Michael Levin use the same argument for other chemical imbalances people are born
with that cause them to live certain ways such as depression or ADHD? Levin’s argument seems
pretty flawed based on his conclusion that homosexual sex leads to a life of unhappiness.
Professor Galloway
11/30/2017
Homosexuality is Abnormal
Michael Levin discusses the biological nature of humans in his piece, Why
Homosexuality is Abnormal. He explains that it is humans underwent the process of natural
selection that brought them to a point where inserting a penis into a vagina became the normal
and most selected-for process in sex. The reason for this selection, he claims, is because it is the
only way to reproduce and further the human race. He then goes on to say to say that because
of this fact, any human that does not partake in heterosexual intercourse, is not only unnatural
and wrong but will be doomed to a life of unhappiness.
I wonder if he would make the same claim regarding monks, priests and nuns. Are they
unhappy and abnormal, simply because they’re choosing not to use their sexual organs for
heterosexual intercourse? Who’s to judge a person’s happiness? Happiness is not quantifiable
and there are many factors that play into it. Where did Michael Levin attain the power to zero
in on one factor and then compare this happiness to those of heterosexuals?
I think there’s something to say for the evidence that there seems to be a chemical
imbalance in the brains of homosexuals. Many studies suggest that homosexuality is not a
choice and that often homosexual people can’t imagine being heterosexual even if they wanted
to. Would Michael Levin use the same argument for other chemical imbalances people are born
with that cause them to live certain ways such as depression or ADHD? Levin’s argument seems
pretty flawed based on his conclusion that homosexual sex leads to a life of unhappiness.
