Two different coming out process in “Glee”

The study of Bond et al shows that instead of face-to-face interpersonal relationships, more people prefer to use media to gather information during the coming-out process (40). However, they also suggest that media may stress extreme stereotypes of LGBT people, and as a result, warp other’s opinion towards them (41). The following clips excerpted from Glee represent both of these two points.

            In this episode of Glee, Kurt refuses to admit his gayness. After being caught dancing “Single Ladies” by his dad, to prove that he is not gay, he joins the football team and helps save the team by, ironically, dancing. After the game he finally decides to face who he truly is and comes out to his dad. Surprisingly his dad accepts it pretty well. It turns out Kurt’s dad has always known that his son is gay. Although he does not really like his son being that way, he still respects Kurt’s decision and loves him anyway.

            First of all, by observing Kurt’s come out, many teenagers who are struggling with their sexual identities may be inspired and may receive the message that coming out might not harm them much or make others love them less. Yes, it takes courage. But admitting who they are will make them feel more relieved. It will also stop the people around them from guessing and make them feel relaxed as well. When looking at this episode I thought of some teenage films where gay teenagers kill themselves because they cannot stand the judgment and pressure after coming out. Well this is not the case for Kurt in Glee (but is the case for someone else, which will be stated in the following paragraph), as well as in many famous shows. Going along with Bond et al’s theory, the more shows depicting smooth coming out experience, the more at ease teenagers would feel about coming out in real life.

            Meanwhile, these excerpts also stress the stereotype that gay people tend to be “artsy” or “theatre-y” or pay extra attention to things that are normally considered “girly” such as skin care. All these characteristics of Kurt potentially imply that certain types of gays are more acceptable and therefore easier to come out, while others, like the masculine football player, Karofsky, in Glee, are hard to admit their sexual orientation. It takes Karofsky way more mental struggle than Kurt to come out. Kurt, though has been bullied for who he is, just needs the courage to say it out load, but Karofsky struggles so much that he even tries to kill himself. It may be true that in real life, it is harder for non-stereotypical LGBT people to come out, but showing that struggle completely without any valid solution does not help either. In Glee, although Karofsky comes out eventually, this character may still stress the stereotypes and make certain LGBT people in real life hide their identities even deeper.

Reference

Bradley J. Bond, Veronica Hefner, Kristin L. Drogos (2008) Information-Seeking Practices during the Sexual Development of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Individuals: The Influence and Effects of Coming Out in a Mediated Environment, Sexuality & Culture (2009) 13:32-50, DOI 10.1007/s12119-008-9041-y