Doeslawdictatewhatisethicallyrightorwrong?
“By the social compact we have given the body politic existence and life; now it is up to legislation to give it movement and will ”1 Theextenttowhichlawaltersmoralperceptionsvariesacrossstates, continents,andevenhistoricalcontexts;buttodisregarditscausalityisinherentlyafallacy.Toputit moresimply,thequestiondiscussedcannotbeansweredwithoutinvestigatingthetwofactorswhich determinemodernlegislature:currentpoliticalideologies&historicalcontext.
Dissimilarpoliticalviewsintoday’sagetowardshomosexuality-subjectofmoderndaymoraldebates -visualizedthroughthecontrastingcolorsontheRainbowMap2,enforceethicallyapprovedor disapprovedspacesfortheLGBTQ+communitybasedonthelegislativebody,stronglyinfluencedby thepoliticalcontext.Ifweweretoconceiveadifferentmapaltogetherbyreferringtothestates’ historicalcorrelationwiththeSovietUnion3 andplaceitabovetheRainbowMap,wecouldeasily identifyatendencytowardspositivemoralsandatendencytowardsnegativemoralsinregardsto same-sexrelationshipsamongststatesthatwerenotpartoftheSovietUnionandstatesthatwerepart ofsaidUnion,respectively
RecentstudiespublishedbytheStatistaResearchDepartment4,investigatingworldwideacceptanceof homosexualitybasedonpoliticalviews,haveshownthattheLeftisoverwhelminglymoreaccepting in11outof12countriesanalyzed,whereastheRightislessacceptinginallcountries Similarly,Pew ResearchCenterhasconductedastudyontheglobaldivideofsame-sexrelationshipsacceptance, concludingthattheideologicalleftisgenerallytwiceaslikelytoaccepthomosexuality,comparedto thoseontheideologicalright5
Inaddition,paramounttomyreasoningregardstheeffectonlegislationofthehistoricalcontextin whichhomosexualitywassupportedbygoverningbodies,suchasthe Greek Pederasty6 whichisoften regardedas“theprincipalculturalmodelforfreerelationshipsbetweencitizens”7;asopposedtothe oneinwhichitwasnot.DuringAncientGreek,same-sexrelationshipswereviewedasaneverlasting
necessityofsociety8,thereforeprovidingbothmen&womenwithvariousinstancesofentertaining them OnesuchexamplecouldbetheGreekislandofLesbosfromwhichtheterm“Lesbian”derived, wherenotableworksoflyricalpoetSapphoportraylustfulrelationshipsbetweenwomen9
Conversely,otherstates’historiesdescribenotoriousbillshinderingLGBTQ+rights.Toexemplify, thefirstknownprohibitionsofsame-sexrelationshipswereenforcedinRussia,duringPeterthe Great’sreignin1716.Duetoasimilarpositiontowardsthesaidrelationshipsthroughouthistory, todayalmost40%ofRussians10 feeldisgustedorscaredbyhomosexualpeople.
Ultimately,whileitisevidentthatopinionsontheLGBTQI+communityaredifferentfromcountryto country,wecanconcludethatcitizens’politicalideologiesandhistoricalcontextcontribute significantlytothebodyoflawthattheyobeyto.Inotherwords,post-Sovietstates&stateswith historicalcontextofanti-LGBTQI+actions,suchasRussia,showdivergentmoralperceptionsto homosexualitycomparedtotheonesthatwerenotpartoftheSovietUnion&donothaveapastof punishmentstowardssexualrelationshipsbetweentwomenorwomen,suchasGreece Bibliography
1Rousseau,J,TheSocialContract
2About[WWWDocument],n.d..RainbowEurope.URLhttps://www.rainbow-europe.org/about (accessed8.15.23).
3Conquest,R.,McCauley,M.,Pipes,R.E.,1999.SovietUnion.EncyclopediaBritannica.
4Globalacceptanceofhomosexualitybypoliticalideology[WWWDocument],n.d..Statista.URL https://www.statista.com/statistics/1269445/global-acceptance-of-homosexuality-by-politicalideology/(accessed81223)
5Greenwood,S,2020 ViewsofHomosexualityAroundtheWorld[WWWDocument] Pew ResearchCenter’sGlobalAttitudesProject URL
https://wwwpewresearchorg/global/2020/06/25/global-divide-on-homosexuality-persists/ (accessed81523)
6Osborne,R,2018 ImaginaryIntercourse:AnIllustratedHistoryofGreekPederasty[WWW Document].OUPAcademic.URL
https://academic.oup.com/book/5867/chapter-abstract/149129135?redirectedFrom=fulltext (accessed8.17.23).
7Dawson,CitiesoftheGods
8JamesDavidson,TheGreekandGreekLove:ABoldNewExplorationoftheAncientWorld
9lesbian[WWWDocument],n.d..Etymology,originandmeaningoflesbianbyetymonline.URL
https://www.etymonline.com/word/lesbian(accessed8.15.23).
10Russia:attitudestowardLGBTpersons2021[WWWDocument],n.d..Statista.URL
https://www.statista.com/statistics/1030193/russia-attitudes-toward-lgbt-persons/(accessed 82823)