The role of the single sex boarding school and Oxbridge experience in UK LGBTQ+ attitudes?

[IvyTwines]

I was just thinking regarding Boris Johnson's words, and the historical difference between here and US culture in attitudes to LGBTQ issues. The USA hasn't had that sort of Brideshead, Maurice, Another Country experience of youthful homosexuality and sexual fluidity in what one could call their political and cultural 'ruling class', which for some boys and students was a phase, with same-sex crushes and sex, and for others their lifelong sexuality (girls too, obviously, but we haven't been the 'ruling class' historically). I'm not pretending these institutions were a gay utopia, but ex-boarding school boys I knew had had homosexual experiences and crushes at school and would talk about them in a way that most teenage boys from my social background had not.

I think there is actually quite a lot of homosexual activity in elite American private boarding education, but arguable not as many people are able to access that type of education. I'm not sure about the answer, it might be a factor.

I can only speak from experience, but the vast, vast majority of the public schoolboys I knew at Oxford ( I'm 7 years younger than Boris Johnson) were straight, extremely gender-conforming types. Whether they'd had gay experiences at school who knows, but certainly there was no obvious sign of sexual fluidity.

I think religion has a bigger part to play in the different attitudes seen in the US and the U.K. there's a lot more 'hell fire' involved over there.

@Fairislefandango

I can only speak from experience, but the vast, vast majority of the public schoolboys I knew at Oxford ( I'm 7 years younger than Boris Johnson) were straight, extremely gender-conforming types. Whether they'd had gay experiences at school who knows, but certainly there was no obvious sign of sexual fluidity.

The single-sex Oxbridge college culture changed in the 80s when they became coed, so that may also be a factor?

@bare

I think religion has a bigger part to play in the different attitudes seen in the US and the U.K. there's a lot more 'hell fire' involved over there.

And the binary of that. I watched the film version of Arthur Miller's The Crucible again recently and that aspect really stood out in the current climate.

There is definitely a much, much stronger evangelical gays-are-going-to-hell culture in the US. Who wouldn't change their gay boy into a straight girl under those circumstances?

@drspouse

There is definitely a much, much stronger evangelical gays-are-going-to-hell culture in the US. Who wouldn't change their gay boy into a straight girl under those circumstances?

Yes, there's an American celebrity trans child whose mother openly says she was appalled at the idea of the child being gay, prayed for and beat the little child to beat the effeminacy out and then found out about transitioning and did that instead. And this is held up as a wonderful example.

Honestly having extensive experience of both Brits and Americans (and myself being an immigrant to both) it comes down to the fact that Americans are on the whole stupider than Brits. They have almost no critical thinking skills, on the left or right. I don't know whether it's their educational system or it's cultural but that is partly why there is such a split in terms of the culture wars in the UK vs across the pond.