This blog post contains some graphic medical language.
Het-ero-sex-u-al: a : of, relating to, or characterized by a tendency to direct sexual desire toward the opposite sex, b : of, relating to, or involving sexual intercourse between individuals of opposite sex (Merriam-Webster)
Bluntly, a heterosexual individual is a person who is sexually attracted to the opposite gender, ie a woman being attracted to a man, or a man attracted to a woman. Typically, a heterosexual individual is cisgendered or ‘gender-normative’ (more on that some other time).
Heterosexuality is socially considered as ‘the norm’. It’s the format for marriage, and the format for biological reproduction. Around the world now though, marriage is changing as a dynamic, and other types of couples can marry.
Physical heterosexual intercourse/etc is defined by as a male and female having penetrative sex. Medically, this is where the penis of the male is placed inside the vagina of the female, although forms of heterosexual penetration include anal sex, and introduction of digits to aforementioned genetalia. Most over-the-counter sexual products are aimed at heterosexual couples, like condoms and lubrication, and often in the past the packaging on these products, although clearly designed to be worn or used by men, were worded ‘for her pleasure’, implying that it is a heterosexual product. In recent times though, these packages have changed their wording to more gender-neutral terminology such as ‘for you and your partner’.
A lot of popular music about sex and love is specifically aimed at heterosexual individuals, with male artists singing about romance and sex with women and vice versa. For example:
”…And all the other boys try to chase me,
but here’s my number, so call me maybe.”
- Carly Rae Jepsen ‘Call Me Maybe’
”…If I was your boyfriend, never let you go,
keep you on my arm girl, you’d never be alone.
I can be a gentleman, anything you want.”
– Justin Bieber ‘Boyfriend’
To move away from pop music and in to something a little more alternative, Gotye’s ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’ (ft. Kimbra) doesn’t actually list any specific mention of gender in the lyrics, however in both the song and the video the two singers (of opposite gender) sing about love to each other.
(All music sourced from the Billboard.com charts)
So, to wrap it up, heterosexuality is seen as the ‘norm’ within society, although with new leaps in marriage opportunities and a more open approach to other sexualities, things are changing all the time.
Stay tuned for more!
