The article provides the analysis of three handbooks for homosexuals (two for gays and one for lesbians). Its first part summarizes their contents which demonstrate that homosexual relations do not belong into one class of phenomena. The problems of homosexual women and men are distinctive enough to preclude their treatment either as one group or in opposition to heterosexual relations. The factor which distinguishes them is not sexual orientation but gender — its social construct. The second part of the article concerns the interpretation of homosexual relations in accordance with Pierre Bourdieu’s theory of male domination. It is a principle which shapes social order. However, it is more than just a hegemony of men over women. It’s victims are representatives of both sexes. Social models of masculinity and femininity are translated through the process of socialization and impact on both homosexual and heterosexual people. These models are the most intricate problem in the sphere of intimate relationships among gays and lesbians.
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