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Context is king
(lemmy.world)
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this post was submitted on 26 Nov 2025
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Learn a little history.
Vonnegut came out of a time when having a gay kid was one of the worst things a parent could imagine. "I'd rather have a daughter who was a whore than a son who was gay" was a common expression.
He could have just as easily wrote 'bank robber' but saying 'gay' made the line much edgier.
Go figure the context is important
¯\_(ツ)_/¯
It's really funny when you read books from back in the day when 'gay' meant 'rowdy.'
"The cowboys rode into town, got drunk and got gay with the citizens."
That line can have two wildly different meanings.
I always thought that Barney walked a little funny...
Brokeback Mountain was just about two rough and rowdy cowpokes. Nothing to see here
I am well aware of said history. That's why I wrote what I wrote
I think it's much, much more likely that a closeted gay man of the time would studiously avoid all mentions of homosexuality in any context.