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{{Sexual orientation}}
'''Bisexuality''' is a [[sexual orientation]] which refers to the [[romantic love|romantic]] and/or [[sexual]] attraction of individuals to others of both [[gender]]s (socially) or [[sex]]es (biologically). Most bisexuals are not equally attracted to men and women and may even shift between states of finding either gender or sex exclusively attractive over the course of time.<ref name="religioustolerance">{{cite web |url=http://www.religioustolerance.org/bisexuality.htm |title=Bisexuality: Neither Homosexuality Nor Hetrosexuality |accessdate=2007-02-17 |author=Robinson, B.A. |date=2006-03-27 |publisher=Ontario Consultants on Religious Tolerance}}</ref> However, some bisexuals are and remain fairly static in their level of attraction throughout their adult life.

In the mid-1940s, [[Alfred Kinsey]] devised the [[Kinsey scale]] in an attempt to measure sexual orientation and activity. The 6-point scale has a rating of 0 ("exclusively [[heterosexual]]") to 6 ("exclusively [[Homosexuality|homosexual]]"). Bisexuals cover most of the scale's values (1–5), which range between "predominantly heterosexual, only incidentally homosexual" (1) to "predominantly homosexual, only incidentally heterosexual" (5). In the middle of the scale (3) is "equally heterosexual and homosexual".<ref name="religioustolerance" /> Although Kinsey's methodology has come under criticism, the scale is still widely used in describing the phenomenon of bisexuality.

Although observed in a variety of forms in human societies<ref name="Homosexuality and Civilization">{{cite book |last=Crompton |first=Louis |authorlink=Louis Crompton |title=Homosexuality and Civilization |publisher=[[Belknap Press]] |date=2003 |location=Cambridge, Massachusetts |isbn=067401197X }}</ref> and in the animal kingdom<ref name="Biological Exuberance">{{cite book |last=Bagemihl |first=Bruce |authorlink=Bruce Bagemihl |title=Biological Exuberance: Animal Homosexuality and Natural Diversity |publisher=Profile Books, Ltd. |date=1999 |location=London |isbn=1861971826 }}</ref><ref name=Evolution's Rainbow">{{cite book |last=Roughgarden |first=Joan |authorlink=Joan Roughgarden |title=Evolution's Rainbow: Diversity, Gender, and Sexuality in Nature and People |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |date=May 2004 |location=Berkeley, CA |isbn=0520240731 }}</ref> throughout recorded history, the term ''bisexuality'' (like the terms ''hetero-'' and ''homosexuality'') was only coined in the 19th century.<ref name="Bisexuality etymonline.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=bisexuality |title=Bisexuality |accessdate=2007-02-16 |author=Harper, Douglas |year=2001 |month=11 |work=Online Etymology Dictionary}}</ref>

==Description==
Bisexual people are not necessarily attracted equally to both sexes.<ref name="religioustolerance" /> Because bisexuality is often an ambiguous position between homosexuality and heterosexuality, those who identify, or are identified, as bisexuals form a [[heterogeneous]] group.

Others view bisexuality as more ambiguous. Some people who might be classified by others as bisexual on the basis of their sexual behavior self-identify primarily as [[homosexual]]. Equally, otherwise heterosexual people who engage in occasional homosexual behavior could be considered bisexual, but may not identify as such. For some who believe that sexuality is a distinctly defined aspect of the character, this ambiguity is problematic. On the other hand, some believe that the majority of people contain aspects of homosexuality and heterosexuality, but that the intensities of these can vary from person to person.{{Fact|date=March 2007}} Some people who engage in bisexual behavior may be supportive of homosexual people, but still self-identify as heterosexual; others may consider any labels irrelevant to their positions and situations. In 1995, Harvard Shakespeare professor [[Marjorie Garber]] made the academic case for bisexuality with her 600-page ''Vice Versa: Bisexuality and the Eroticism of Everyday Life'' in which she argued that most people would be bisexual if not for "repression, religion, repugnance, denial...premature specialization."<ref>{{cite book |author=Garber, Marjorie B. |title=Vice versa: bisexuality and the eroticism of everyday life |publisher=Simon & Schuster |location=New York |year=1995 |isbn=0-684-80308-9}}</ref>

Some bisexuals make a distinction between [[gender]] and [[sex]]. Gender is defined in these situations as a [[social]] or [[psychological]] category, characterized by the common practices of men and women. For example, the fact that women wear [[skirt]]s and [[dress (garment)|dress]]es in Western society while men traditionally do not is a gender issue. Sex in this case is defined as the [[biological]] difference between males and females, prior to any social conditioning. Bisexuals in this sense may be attracted to more than one gender but only to one sex. For example, a male bisexual may be attracted to aspects of men and masculinity, but not to the male body.

Bisexuality is often misunderstood as a form of [[adultery]] or [[polyamory]], and a popular misconception is that bisexuals must always be in relationships with men and women simultaneously. Rather, individuals attracted to both males and females, like people of any other orientation, may live a variety of sexual lifestyles. These include lifelong [[monogamy]], [[serial monogamy]], [[polyamory]], [[polyfidelity]], [[promiscuity|casual sexual activity]] with individual partners, casual [[group sex]], and [[celibacy]]. For those with more than one sexual partner, these may or may not all be of the same gender.

==Terminology==
The term ''bisexual'' was first used in the 19th century to refer to [[intersex]]ed people. By 1914 it had begun to be used in the context of sexual orientation.<ref name="Bisexuality etymonline.com" /> Some bisexuals and sex researchers are dissatisfied with the term and have developed a variety of alternative or supplementary terms to describe aspects and forms of bisexuality. Many are [[neologism]]s not widely recognized by the larger society.

* ''[[Pansexual]]'', ''[[omnisexual]]'', ''[[anthrosexuality|anthrosexual]]'', and ''[[pomosexual]]'' ([[postmodernism|postmodern]] sexuality) are substitute terms that, rather than referring to ''both'' or "bi" sex attraction, refer to ''all'' or "omni" sex attraction and are used mainly by those who wish to express acceptance of ''all'' sex possibilities, including [[transgender]] and [[intersex]] people, not just two. Pansexuality ''sometimes'' includes an attraction for less mainstream sexual activities, such as [[BDSM]]. Some people who might otherwise identify as pansexual or omnisexual choose to self-identify as bisexual because the term ''bisexual'' is more widely known, and because they see it as an important term in [[identity politics]].
* ''Bi-permissive'' describes someone who does not actively seek out sexual relations with a given sex, but is open to them. Such a person may self-identify as heterosexual or homosexual and engage predominantly in sexual acts with individuals of the corresponding sex, and might be rated ''1'' or ''5'' on [[Kinsey scale|Kinsey's scale]]. Near-synonyms include [[heteroflexible]] and [[homoflexible]].
* ''Ambisexual'' indicates a primarily indiscriminate attraction to either sex. A person who self-identifies as ambisexual might be attracted with equal intensity on physical, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual levels to partner(s) regardless of sex or gender presentation while upholding selectivity standards in other areas. Some might experience equally intense attractions that could be triggered by sex- or gender-specific traits in the given partner or partners. A person with this orientation might fall in the ''3'' category on Kinsey's scale, as would some who subscribe to the ''2'' or ''4'' rating (although some individuals in these latter categories consider themselves bi-permissive).
* ''[[Bi-curious]]'' has several distinct and sometimes contradictory meanings. It is commonly found in personal ads from those who identify as heterosexual, but are interested in homosexual "experimentation." Such people are commonly suspected—not necessarily correctly—of being homosexuals or bisexuals in [[denial]] of their homosexuality. It can also be used to describe someone as being passively bi, bi-permissive, or open to indirect bisexual contact.
* ''Trisexual'' (sometimes ''trysexual'') is either an extension of, or a pun on ''bisexual''. In its more serious usage, it indicates an interest in transgender persons in addition to [[cisgender|cissexual]] men and women. In its more humorous usage, it refers to someone who will ''try'' any ''sexual'' experience. It is used in the song "La Vie Boheme" in the Broadway musical [[Rent (musical)|''Rent'']]. The term was coined by porn actress [[Robin Byrd]].<ref>[http://www.nypress.com/16/26/news&columns/feature.cfm NY Press, Vol. 16, Iss. 26]</ref>
* ''[[Biphobia]]'' describes a fear or condemnation of bisexuality, usually based in a belief that only heterosexuality and homosexuality are genuine orientations and appropriate lifestyles. Bisexual persons may also be the target of [[homophobia]] from those who consider only heterosexuality appropriate. The reverse can also apply in that bisexual persons may be targets of [[heterophobia]] or discrimination by some homosexuals.
* ''Passively bi'', aka ''open-minded'' is a non-sex specific term that describes a heterosexual/bi-curious person who is ''open to'' incidental or direct contact (typically in a [[group sex]] scenario) from a [[MOTSS|member of the same sex]] or a homosexual/bi-curious person who is open to contact with [[MOTOS|members of the opposite sex]] under the same scenario, which usually doesn't involve reciprocation.
* ''Actively bi'' is a non-sex specific term that can describe a bi-curious person who ''initiates'' direct contact with the sex opposite his or her usual identity (either hetero- or homosexual); it can also refer to a bisexual person who engages in contact with members of both sexes on a fairly regular basis.

==Modern Western prevalence of bisexuality==
{{main|Demographics of sexual orientation|Kinsey Reports}}

A 2002 survey in the United States by [[National Center for Health Statistics]] found that 1.8 percent of men ages 18–44 considered themselves bisexual, 2.3 percent homosexual, and 3.9 percent as "something else". The same study found that 2.8 percent of women ages 18–44 considered themselves bisexual, 1.3 percent homosexual, and 3.8 percent as "something else".<ref name="Kinsley FAQ">{{cite web |url=http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/resources/FAQ.html |title=Frequently Asked Sexuality Questions to the Kinsley Institute |accessdate=2007-02-16 |publisher=The Kinsley Institude}}</ref> ''The Janus Report on Sexual Behavior'', published in 1993, showed that 5 percent of men and 3 percent of women consider themselves bisexual and 4 percent of men and 2 percent of women considered themselves homosexual.<ref name="Kinsley FAQ" /> The 'Health' section of ''[[The New York Times]]'' has stated that "1.5 percent of American women identify themselves [as] bisexual."<ref name="Carey"/>

[[Sigmund Freud]] theorized that every person has the ability to become bisexual at some time in his or her life.<ref>Freud, Sigmund (translated by A.A. Brill), ''Three Contributions to the Theory of Sex'', Dover Publications, 128 pages, ISBN 0486416038</ref><ref name="Carey"/> He based this on the idea that enjoyable experiences of sexuality with the same sex, whether sought or unsought, acting on it or being fantasized, become an attachment to his or her needs and desires in social upbringing. Prominent psychoanalyst Dr. [[Joseph Merlino (doctor)|Joseph Merlino]], Senior Editor of the book, ''Freud at 150: 21st Century Essays on a Man of Genius'' stated in an interview:

{{cquote|Freud maintained that bisexuality was a normal part of development. That all of us went through a period of bisexuality and that, in the end, most of us came out heterosexual but that the bisexual phase we traversed remained on some unconscious level, and was dealt with in other ways....He did not consider it something that should be criminalized, or penalized.... Freud felt there were a number of homosexuals he encountered who did not have a variety of complex problems that homosexuality was a part of. He found people who were totally normal in every other regard except in terms of their sexual preference. In fact, he saw many of them as having higher intellects, higher aesthetic sensibilities, higher morals; those kinds of things. He did not see it as something to criminalize or penalize, or to keep from psychoanalytic training. A lot of the psychoanalytic institutes felt if you were homosexual you should not be accepted; that was not Freud's position.|20px|20px|[[Joseph Merlino (doctor)|Joseph Merlino]]|<ref>[http://en.wikinews.org/wiki/Dr._Joseph_Merlino_on_sexuality%2C_insanity%2C_Freud%2C_fetishes_and_apathy#Gender_identity_and_Heteronormativity Interview with Dr. Joseph Merlino], David Shankbone, ''[[Wikinews]]'', October 5, 2007.</ref>}}

[[Alfred Kinsey|Dr. Alfred Kinsey's]] 1948 work ''[[Sexual Behavior in the Human Male]]'' found that "46% of the male population had engaged in both heterosexual and homosexual activities, or "reacted to" persons of both sexes, in the course of their adult lives".<ref name="institute">[http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/research/ak-data.html Research Summary] from the [http://www.kinseyinstitute.org Kinsey Institute].</ref> The [[Kinsey Institute]] has stated that "Kinsey said in both the [[Sexual Behavior in the Human Male|Male]] and [[Sexual Behavior in the Human Female|Female]] volumes that it was impossible to determine the number of persons who are "[[homosexual]]" or "[[heterosexual]]". It was only possible to determine behavior at any given time".<ref name="institute"/> Kinsey's book, and its companion ''[[Sexual Behavior in the Human Female]]'', have received [[Sexual Behavior in the Human Male#Criticism|vocal criticism]] for their findings and methodology.<ref>[http://www.leaderu.com/jhs/reisman.html "Kinsey and the Homosexual Revolution"] by [[Judith Reisman|Dr. Judith Reisman]]</ref><ref>[http://www.swlearning.com/quant/kohler/stat/biographical_sketches/bio15.1.html Biography of Statician] [[John W. Tukey]] by [http://www.swlearning.com/quant/kohler/stat/siteresources.html Cengage Learning].</ref><ref>[[American conservative]] [[magazine]] ''[[Human Events]]'' calls the Kinsey Report the fourth [http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=7591 Most Harmful Book of the 19th and 20th Centuries].</ref><ref>[[Roman Catholic Church|Roman Catholic]] [[Higher education in the United States|educational association]] '''[[Intercollegiate Studies Institute|The Intercollegiate Studies Institute]]''' called it "A pervert's attempt to demonstrate that perversion is "statistically"”normal" and the third [http://www.mmisi.org/ir/35_01/50worst.pdf "Worst Book of the Century"].</ref> ''[[The New York Times]]'' called his research "conscientious and comprehensive"<ref>Pomeroy, Wardell (1972). Dr. Kinsey and the Institute for Sex Research. New York: Harper & Row.</ref> and Professor [[Martin Duberman]] called it "skillful" and "a monumental endeavor".<ref>[http://www.kinseyinstitute.org/publications/duberman.html Book review of] '''[http://www.amazon.com/Alfred-C-Kinsey-Public-Private/dp/0393040860 Alfred C. Kinsey : A Public/Private Life]''' originally published in ''[[The Nation]]''.</ref>

Despite common misconceptions, bisexuality does ''not'' require that a person be attracted ''equally'' to both sexes. In fact, people who have a distinct but not exclusive preference for one sex over the other can and often do identify as bisexual.{{fact|date=January 2008}} A recent study by researchers Gerulf Rieger, Meredith L. Chivers, and [[J. Michael Bailey]],<ref>{{cite journal |author=Rieger G, Chivers ML, Bailey JM |title=Sexual arousal patterns of bisexual men |journal=Psychological science : a journal of the American Psychological Society / APS |volume=16 |issue=8 |pages=579-84 |year=2005 |pmid=16102058 |doi=10.1111/j.1467-9280.2005.01578.x}}</ref> which attracted media attention in 2005, purported to find that bisexuality is extremely rare, and perhaps nonexistent, in men. This was based on results of controversial [[penile plethysmograph]] testing when viewing pornographic material involving only men and pornography involving only women. Critics claim that this study works from the assumption that a person is only truly bisexual if he or she exhibits virtually equal arousal responses to both opposite-sex and same-sex stimuli, and have consequently dismissed the self-identification of people whose arousal patterns showed even a mild preference for one sex. Some researchers say that the technique used in the study to measure genital arousal is too crude to capture the richness (erotic sensations, affection, admiration) that constitutes sexual attraction.<ref name="Carey">{{cite news | last =Carey | first =Benedict | title =Straight, Gay or Lying? Bisexuality Revisited | publisher =The New York Times | date =[[July 5]], [[2005]] | url =http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=F20714FB3B550C768CDDAE0894DD404482 | accessdate = 2007-02-24 }}</ref> The study, and ''[[The New York Times]]'' article which reported it, were subsequently criticized as flawed and biphobic.<ref name="ngltf">[[National Gay and Lesbian Task Force]] (July 2005). [http://www.thetaskforce.org/files/NYTBisexualityFactSheet.pdf The Problems with "Gay, Straight, or Lying?"] ([[PDF]]) Retrieved July 24, 2006.</ref><ref>http://zzz.pridesource.com/article.shtml?article=15015</ref><ref>http://main.bisexual.com/forum/showthread.php?t=3799 "Gay Straight or Lying? Bisexuality Revisited," Revisited - Part 1 by [[William Burleson]] June 26 2007</ref> [[Lynn Conway]] criticized the author of the study, [[J. Michael Bailey]], citing his controversial history, and pointing out that the study has not been scientifically repeated and confirmed by any independent researchers.<ref>http://ai.eecs.umich.edu/people/conway/TS/Bailey/Bisexuality/Bisexuality-NYT%207-05-05.html</ref> [[Fairness and Accuracy in reporting|FAIR]] also criticised the study <ref name="FAIR">FAIR (July 8, 2005). [http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=2573 New York Times Suggests Bisexuals Are "Lying": Paper fails to disclose study author's controversial history.]</ref>.

Dr. Fritz Klein claimed social and emotional attraction are very important elements in bisexual attraction. For example, a bisexual might be attracted to both feminine women and feminine men, but have little interest in masculine individuals.{{fact|date=January 2008}} This individual, while they might be highly attracted to certain members of both sexes, would be unlikely to be attracted to most males in modern western society (who tend to be masculine).{{fact|date=January 2008}} As this study employed 2-minute clips of standard heterosexual and homosexual pornography, the study would be blind to the this type of bisexual.{{fact|date=January 2008}} One third of the men in each group showed no significant arousal. The study did not claim them to be asexual, and Rieger claimed their lack of response did not change the overall findings.

==Bisexuality in history==
[[Image:Japanesepederasty18thcentury.jpg|left|thumb|250px|<!--PLEASE SEE TALK PAGE SECTION "Wrong caption for the Japanese illo" BEFORE CHANGING THIS CAPTION, THANKS.-->''[[Shudo]]'' (Japanese pederasty): a young male entertains an older male lover, covering his eyes while surreptitiously kissing a female [[servant]].]]

In some cultures, historical and literary records from most literate societies indicate that male bisexuality was common and indeed expected.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} These relationships were generally age-structured (as in the practice of [[pederasty]] in the [[Mediterranean Basin]] of [[Classical antiquity|antiquity]],<ref>Peter James, Nick Thorpe. ''Ancient Inventions''. Ballantine Books; New edition, 1995, p. 164 ISBN 0345401026</ref> or the practice of ''[[shudo]]'' in pre-modern Japan){{Fact|date=February 2007}} or gender-structured (as in the [[Two-Spirit]] North American tradition or the [[Central Asia]]n [[bacchá]] practices).{{Fact|date=February 2007}} Male heterosexuality and homosexuality, while also documented, appear mostly as exceptions, unless we are examining cultures influenced by the [[Abrahamic religion]]s, where heterosexuality was privileged, and bisexuality and homosexuality forcefully suppressed.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} In fact, most of the commonly cited examples of male "homosexuality" in previous cultures would more properly be categorized as bisexuality.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} Determining the history of female bisexuality is more problematic, in that women in most of the studied societies were under the domination of the males, and on one hand had less self-determination and freedom of movement and expression, and on the other were not the ones writing or keeping the literary record.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} [[Sappho]], however, is a notable exception.

In 124 CE the bisexual Roman emperor Hadrian met Antinous, a 13- or 14-year-old boy from Bithynia, and they began their pederastic relationship. Antinous was deified by Hadrian when he died six years later. Many statues, busts, coins and reliefs display Hadrian's deep affections for him. Ancient [[Rome]], Arab countries up to and including the present, [[China]], and [[Japan]], all exhibit patterns of analogous bisexual behavior.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} In Japan in particular, due to its practice of ''[[shudo]]'' and the extensive art and literature associated with it, the record of a primarily bisexual lifestyle is both detailed and quite recent, dating back as recently as the 19th century.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} Bisexual behavior was also common among Roman and Chinese emperors, the [[shoguns]] of Japan, and others.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}

Nevertheless, it should be noted that the terms ''[[heterosexual]]'', ''bisexual'', ''[[homosexual]]'', and the concept of "[[sexual orientation]]" itself are all modern sociological constructs and may not be appropriate in historical contexts in which ''behavior'' might be considered homosexual but ''people'' were not labeled using such terms.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}

===Ancient Greece===
{{main|Homosexuality in ancient Greece}}
[[Image:Homosexual scene - 420 BCE, Dinos painter - Capua - GR 1772.3-20.154 F65 - British Museum.jpg|thumb|right|Two athletes about to have [[sexual intercourse]], while a man watches; Apulian [[Red-figure pottery|red-figure vase]] by the Dinos painter, 420BCE]]

[[Ancient Greek]] religious texts, reflecting cultural practices, incorporated bisexual themes. The subtexts varied, from the mystical to the didactic.<ref name="Greek homosexuality - livius.org" />

Ancestral law in ancient [[Sparta]] mandated [[same-sex relationships]] with youths who were coming of age for all adult men, so long as the men eventually took wives and produced children.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} The Spartans thought that love and erotic relationships between experienced and novice soldiers would solidify combat loyalty and encourage heroic tactics as men vied to impress their lovers. Once the younger soldiers reached maturity, the relationship was supposed to become non-sexual, but it is not clear how strictly this was followed. There was some stigma attached to young men who continued their relationships with their mentors into adulthood.<ref name="Greek homosexuality - livius.org">{{cite web |url=http://www.livius.org/ho-hz/homosexuality/homosexuality.html |title=Greek Homosexuality |accessdate=2007-02-17 |last=van Dolen |first=Hein}}</ref> For example, [[Aristophanes]] calls them ''euryprôktoi'', meaning "wide arses", and depicts them like women.<ref name="Greek homosexuality - livius.org" />

In [[Ancient Greece]] it is believed that males generally went through a homosexual stage in adolescence, followed by a bisexual stage characterized by [[pederasty|pederastic relationships]] in young adulthood, followed by a (mostly) heterosexual stage later in life, when they married and had children.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} [[Alexander the Great]], the [[Ancient Macedonians|Macedonian]] king, is thought to have been bisexual, and to have had a male lover named [[Hephaestion]].<ref name="Alexander the Great - androphile.org">{{cite web |url=http://www.androphile.org/preview/Library/Biographies/Alexander/Alexander.htm |title=The Love of Alexander III of Macedon, Known as "The Great" |accessdate=2007-02-18}}</ref>

==Social status of bisexuality==
Historically, bisexuality has largely been free of the social stigma associated with homosexuality, prevalent even where bisexuality was the norm.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} In Ancient Greece [[pederasty]] was not problematic as long as the men involved eventually married and had children. In many world cultures, homosexual affairs have been quietly accepted among upper-class men of good social standing (particularly if married),{{Fact|date=February 2007}} and heterosexual marriage has often been used successfully as a defense against accusations of homosexuality.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} On the other hand, there are bisexuals who marry or live with a heterosexual partner because they prefer the complementarity of different sexes in cohabiting and co-parenting but have felt greatly enriched by homosexual relationships alongside the marriage in both monogamous and "[[polyamourous|open]]" relationships.

Since the 1970s, there have been waves of [[bisexual chic]], in which celebrities and other persons of some notoriety have embraced and advocated bisexuality. This has led to more acceptance of bisexuals in some regards; however, some have latched onto bisexual chic for publicity's sake, with varying degrees of sincerity and permanency. Such celebrities as [[David Bowie]], [[Dave Navarro]], [[Anne Heche]] and others have claimed bisexuality only to later renounce the idea.

Some in the homosexual community accuse those who self-identify as bisexual of duplicity, believing they are really homosexuals who engage in heterosexual activity merely to remain socially acceptable. They may be accused of "not doing their part" in gaining acceptance of "true" homosexuality. Some homosexual people may also suspect that a self-described bisexual is merely a homosexual in the initial stage of [[Questioning (sexuality & gender)|questioning]] their presumed heterosexuality, and will eventually accept that they are homosexual; this is expressed by a glib saying in gay culture: "Bi now, gay later." These situations can and do take place, but do not appear to be true of the majority of self-described bisexuals. Nonetheless, bisexuals do sometimes experience lesser acceptance from homosexual people, because of their declared orientation. Bisexual experimentation is also common in adolescents of every sexual orientation.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}

Bisexuals are often associated with men who engage in [[men who have sex with men|same-sex activity]] while [[the closet|closeted]] or heterosexually married. The majority of such men—said to be ''living on the [[down-low]]''—do not self-identify as bisexual.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.keithboykin.com/arch/001311.html |title=10 Things You Should Know About the DL |accessdate=2007-02-23 |author=Boykin, Keith |date=2005-02-03 }}</ref>

Because some bisexual people do not feel that they fit into either the [[gay community|homosexual]] or the heterosexual world, and because they have a tendency to be "invisible" in public, some bisexual persons are committed to forming their own [[Bisexual community|communities]], culture, and political movements. However, since "Bisexual orientation can fall anywhere between the two extremes of [[homosexuality]] and [[heterosexuality]]",{{Fact|date=June 2007}} some who identify as bisexual may merge themselves into either homosexual or heterosexual society. Still other bisexual people see this merging as [[Bisexual erasure|enforced]] rather than voluntary; bisexual people can [[Biphobia|face exclusion]] from both homosexual and heterosexual society on coming out. Psychologist Beth Firestein states that bisexuals also tend to internalize social tensions related to their choice of partners.<ref name="A new generation of issues for LGBT clients">{{cite web |url=http://www.apa.org/monitor/feb02/generation.html |title=A new generation of issues for LGBT clients |accessdate=2007-02-16 |author=DeAngelis, Tori |year=2002 |month=02 |work=Monitor on Psychology |publisher=American Psychological Association}}</ref> Firestein suggests bisexuals may feel pressured to label themselves as homosexuals instead of occupying a difficult middle ground in a culture that has it that if bisexuals are attracted to people of both sexes, they must have more than one partner, thus defying society's value on monogamy.<ref name="A new generation of issues for LGBT clients" /> These social tensions and pressure may and do affect bisexuals' mental health.<ref name="A new generation of issues for LGBT clients" /><ref>{{cite web |url=http://aolhometown.planetout.com/news/article.html?2002/05/01/1 |title=Study: Bisexuals face mental health risks |accessdate=2007-02-17 |date=2002-05-01}}</ref> Specific therapy methods have been developed for bisexuals to address this concern.<ref name="A new generation of issues for LGBT clients" />

Relatively few supportive bisexual communities exist, therefore there is not as much support from people who have gone through similar experiences. This effectively can make it more difficult for bisexuals to "come out" as such.{{Fact|date=February 2007}}

==Bisexual symbols==
{{main|LGBT symbols}}
[[Image:Bi flag.svg|thumb|right|The bisexual pride flag|120px]]
A common symbol of bisexual identity is the [[bisexual pride flag]], which has a deep pink stripe at the top for homosexuality, a blue one on the bottom for heterosexuality, and a purple one, blended from the pink and blue, in the middle to represent bisexuality.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.biflag.com/Activism.asp |title=Bi Pride Flag |accessdate=2007-02-16 |author=Page, Michael |quote=The pink color represents sexual attraction to the same sex only, homosexuality, the blue represents sexual attraction to the opposite sex only, heterosexuality, and the resultant overlap color purple represents sexual attraction to both sexes (bi).}}</ref>

[[Image:bi triangles.svg|thumb|left|The overlapping triangles|120px]]

Another symbol of bisexual identity that uses the color scheme of the bisexual pride flag is a pair of overlapping pink and blue triangles, the pink triangle being a well-known symbol for the homosexual community, forming purple where they intersect.<ref name="lambda symbols">{{cite web |url=http://www.lambda.org/symbols.htm |title=Symbols of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Movements |accessdate=2007-02-27 |date=2004-12-26}}</ref>

[[Image:Bisexual-moon-symbol.svg|thumb|right|Bisexual moon symbol|120px]]

Many homosexual and bisexual individuals have a problem with the use of the [[pink triangle]] symbol as it was the symbol that Hitler's regime used to tag homosexuals (similar to the yellow [[Star of David]] that is constituted of two opposed, overlapping triangles). Because pink triangles were used in the persecution of homosexuals in the Nazi regime, a double moon symbol was devised specifically to avoid the use of triangles.<ref name="gay symbols 5">{{cite web |url=http://andrejkoymasky.com/lou/sym/sym05.html |title=Gay Symbols: Other Miscellaneous Symbols |accessdate=2007-02-18 |author=Koymasky, Matt |coauthors=Koymasky Andrej |date=06-08-14}}</ref> This bisexual symbol is a double moon that is formed when the sex-specific attributes of the astrological symbol of Mars & Venus (representing heterosexual union) are reduced to the two circles open on both ends, thus symbolizing that bisexuals are open to either-sex unions.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} The color of the bisexual double moon symbol varies. The symbol is most often displayed with rainbow colors,{{Fact|date=February 2007}} signifying that bisexuals belong to the gay community.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} It also may appear with the pink-purple-blue colors of the bisexual pride flag.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} The double moon symbol is common in Germany and surrounding countries.<ref name="gay symbols 5" />

==Bisexuality in non-human animals==
{{Expand-section|date=February 2007}}
{{main|Animal sexuality}}
Many non-human animal species also exhibit bisexual behavior. This is, of course, common in [[hermaphroditic]] animals, but is also known in many other species. Examples of mammals include the [[bonobo]] (formerly known as the pygmy chimpanzee), [[orca]], and [[bottlenose dolphin]]. Examples of avians include some species of gulls and [[Humboldt Penguin]]s. Other examples occur among fish, flatworms, and crustaceans.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www2.hu-berlin.de/sexology/GESUND/ARCHIV/bisdia.htm |title=Bisexuality: A Biological Perspective |accessdate=2007-02-17 |author=Diamond, Milton |year=1998 |work=Bisexualities - The Ideology and Practice of Sexual Contact with both Men and Women}}</ref>

Many species of animals are involved in the act of forming sexual and relationship bonds between the same sex; even when offered the opportunity to breed with members of the opposite sex, they picked the same sex. Some of these species are gazelles, antelope, bison, and sage grouse.<ref name=Bidstrup>{{cite web |url=http://www.bidstrup.com/sodomy.htm |title=The Natural Crime Against Nature |accessdate=2007-06-26 |author=Scott Bidstrup |year=2000}}</ref>

In some cases animals will choose intercourse with different sexes at different times in their life, and sometimes will perform intercourse with different sexes at random. Homosexual intercourse can also be seasonal in some animals like male walruses, who often engage in homosexual intercourse with each other outside of the breeding season and will revert to heterosexual intercourse during breeding season.<ref name=Bidstrup/>

In some cases bisexuality is actually a form of fitness favored by evolution. For example, in the absence of male whiptail lizards (Cnemidophorus), females reproduce by pairing up with each other. During the breeding season females will take turns switching between "male" and "female" roles as their hormones fluctuate. Estrogen levels are high during ovulation ("female" role) and much lower after laying eggs ("male" role). While in the "male" role, a female lizard will mount another in the "female" role and go through the motions of sex to stimulate egg-laying. The hatchlings produced are all female. This all-female species has evolved from lizards with two sexes, but their eggs develop without fertilization (parthenogenesis). Female whiptail lizards can lay eggs without sex, but they lay far fewer eggs than if they engage in sexual stimulation by another female.<ref>{{cite book | title=Biology | author=Neil A. Campbell, Jane B. Reece | year=2002}}</ref>

==Bisexuality in culture==
{{main|List of media portrayals of bisexuality}}
Comparatively positive and notable portrayals of bisexuality can be found throughout mainstream media.

In movies such as: ''[[The Pillow Book (film)]]''; ''[[Alexander (film)]]''; ''[[The Rocky Horror Picture Show]]''; ''[[Henry and June]]''; ''[[Chasing Amy]]''; ''[[Kissing Jessica Stein]]'', ''[[The Fourth Man]]'', ''[[Basic Instinct]]'' and ''[[Brokeback Mountain]]''.

In [[popular music]], many of the songs of [[The Smiths]] are commonly cited as classic examples. In the songs and stage presentation of [[Suzie Quatro]] and [[Joan Jett]], there have been additional examples.

In notable [[graphic novel]]s, ''[[Love and Rockets (comics)|Love and Rockets]]'' (1981 to 1996) subtly portrays bisexuality; ''[[Krazy Kat]]'' (1913 to 1944) is a comic-strip character whose love is not limited by sex; [[Alan Moore]]'s ''[[Lost Girls]]'' (1991 to 2006) portrays bisexual versions of three famous literary characters.

Notable novels containing significant bisexual characters are:

* [[Lisa Alther]]'s ''Five Minutes in Heaven''
* [[Sean David Wright]]'s ''Two for One--a novel about having choices''
* [[Anne Rice]]'s ''Cry to Heaven''
* [[Rosamond Lehmann]]'s ''Dusty Answer''
* [[Mary Renault]]'s ''The Last of the Wine'' and ''The Persian Boy''
* [[Colette]]'s ''Claudine'' novels
* [[Jonathan Franzen]]'s ''The Corrections''
* [[David Leavitt]]'s ''The Lost Language of Cranes'' and ''While England Sleeps''
* [[Jeanette Winterson]]'s ''The Passion''
* [[Calum Brodie]]'s ''Milk and Cookies''
* [[Marge Piercy]]'s ''Woman on the Edge of Time''
* [[Thomas Pynchon]]'s ''[[Against the Day]]''
* [[Alice Walker]]'s ''[[The Color Purple]]''
* [[Jane Rule]]'s ''Young in One Another's Arms''
* [[Gregory Maguire]]'s ''[[Wicked (novel)|Wicked]]'' and its sequel, ''[[Son of a Witch]]''{{Fact|date=January 2008}}
* [[Sylvia Brownrigg]]'s ''The Metaphysical Touch''
* [[Robert J. Sawyer|Robert Sawyer]]'s ''[[The Neanderthal Parallax|Neanderthal Parallax]]''
* [[Michael Chabon]]'s ''[[The Mysteries of Pittsburgh]]''
* [[Ursula K. Le Guin]]'s ''[[The Dispossessed]]''
*[[Marc Acito]]'s ''[[How I Paid For College: A Novel of Sex, Theft, Friendship, and Musical Theatre]]''

Non-fiction scholarship, such as [[Marjorie Garber]]'s ''Vice Versa: Bisexuality and the Eroticism of Everyday Life'' (1995), [[Camille Paglia]]'s ''Sexual Personae'' (1990) and Louis Crompton's ''Byron and Greek Love'' (1985), has uncovered previously hidden histories of bisexuality.

On the TV [[sitcom]] ''[[Will & Grace]]'', the character of [[Karen Walker (character)|Karen Walker]] appears to be [[bisexual]] and—although married to a man—often kisses Grace and seems to have had many female lovers throughout her life. The character [[Jack Harkness]] of ''[[Doctor Who]]'' and ''[[Torchwood]]'' is often described as "omnisexual" by his fans. ''Torchwood'' also features bisexual characters [[Toshiko Sato]], and [[Ianto Jones]]. [[Rebecca Romijn]] portrayed a bisexual con artist in the film ''[[Femme Fatale (2002 film)|Femme Fatale]]''.

In the [[sci-fi]] television series ''[[Babylon 5]]'', characters including [[Susan Ivanova]] and [[Talia Winters]] are portrayed as bisexual, or omnisexual. There seems to be a general feeling in the show that it is accepted and common for people to follow their hearts wherever they may take them, ignoring sex. Other examples include the characters [[Marcus Cole]] and [[Stephen Franklin]] posing as a married couple, and series creator [[J. Michael Straczynski]] indicating that the station commander [[John Sheridan (Babylon 5)|John Sheridan]] would have been propositioned by the male [[Lumati]] ambassador if Susan Ivanova had not been handling those negotiations.

In the 1996 Broadway musical turned movie ''[[Rent (musical)|Rent]]'', [[Idina Menzel]] plays Maureen Johnson, a character who has a relationship with both Mark Cohen ([[Anthony Rapp]] [who is openly bisexual in real life]), and Joanne Jefferson ([[Tracie Thoms]]/[[Freddie Walker]]). In the musical, Menzel's character sings the following lines in the song "Take Me or Leave Me":

: ''Ever since puberty, everybody stares at me,''
: ''Boys, girls—I can't help it, baby''

There are also negative media portrayals—references sometimes made to stereotypes or mental disorders.
The television show ''[[Friends (TV series)|Friends]]'' sported a short song about the topic that expresses a common prejudice on the subject:

: ''Sometimes men love women,''
: ''Sometimes men love men,''
: ''Then there are bisexuals''
: ''Though some just say they're kidding themselves''

On the HBO drama ''[[Oz (TV series)|Oz]]'', [[Christopher Meloni]] played [[Chris Keller]], a bisexual sociopath who tortured, raped, and had numerous sexual encounters with various men and women whom he met. ''[[Desperate Housewives]]'' features [[Andrew Van De Kamp]], ''[[Skins (TV series)|Skins]]'' features [[Tony Stonem]], both similarly bisexual sociopaths.

A ''[[Saturday Night Live]]'' joke ran thus:

: ''"A bisexual is a person who reaches down the front of somebody's pants and is satisfied with whatever they find."'' -- [[Dana Carvey]] as [[The Church Lady]], ''Saturday Night Live''.

Movies in which the bisexual characters conceal murderous neuroses include ''[[Basic Instinct]]'', ''Black Widow'', ''[[Blue Velvet]]'', ''[[Cruising]]'', and ''[[Girl, Interrupted (film)|Girl, Interrupted]]''.

In one of his comedy routines, [[George Carlin]] admits to thinking about what a curse bisexuality must be: "Could you imagine wanting to fuck everybody you meet? Think of all the phone numbers you'd accumulate! You might as well just walk around with the [[White Pages]] under your arms."

In the television program "[[Bottom (TV series)|Bottom]]", Richie is shown consistently throughout the series to be trying to get a girlfriend but to be either secretly attracted to men or accidentally finding more luck with men. He maintains a facade of heterosexuality throughout this, although in the stage adaptations he is shown to be far more attracted to men but still also to women.

==See also==
{{Portal|LGBT|Portal LGBT.svg}}
* [[Biphobia]]
* [[Bisexual chic]]
* [[Bisexual community]]
* [[Bisexual erasure]]
* [[Heterosexism]]
* [[Homophobia]]
* [[Journal of Bisexuality]]
* [[List of bisexual people]]
* [[List of gay, lesbian or bisexual people]]
* [[List of LGBT-related organizations]]
* [[Media portrayal of bisexuality]]
* [[Societal attitudes towards homosexuality]]
* [[Pansexuality]]

==Further reading==
===General===
* [[Garrett Jones]]. ''Coming Clean about Bisexuality'', 2000. [http://web.onetel.com/~jnjones/bisexEDIT.html Free download]
* Louis Crompton. ''Homosexuality and Civilization'', Cambridge, Mass. and London, 2003. ISBN 0-674-01197-X
* Michel Larivière. ''Homosexuels et bisexuels célèbres'', Delétraz Editions, 1997. ISBN 2-911110-19-6
* [[Sigmund Freud]]. ''Three Contributions to the Theory of Sex''. ISBN 0486416038

===Ancient Greece===
* [[Kenneth J. Dover]]. ''Greek Homosexuality'', New York; Vintage Books, 1978. ISBN 0-394-74224-9
* Thomas K. Hubbard. ''Homosexuality in Greece and Rome'', U. of California Press, 2003. ISBN 0-520-23430-8
* Herald Patzer. ''Die Griechische Knabenliebe [Greek Pederasty],'' Wiesbaden: Franz Steiner Verlag, 1982. In: Sitzungsberichte der Wissenschaftlichen Gesellschaft an der Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universität Frankfurt am Main, Vol. 19 No. 1.
* [[William Armstrong Percy, III|W. A. Percy III]]. ''Pederasty and Pedagogy in Archaic Greece,'' University of Illinois Press, 1996. ISBN 0-252-02209-2

===By country===
* [[Stephen O. Murray]] and [[Will Roscoe]], et al. ''Islamic Homosexualities: Culture, History, and Literature,'' New York: New York University Press, 1997. ISBN 0-8147-7468-7
* J. Wright & Everett Rowson. ''Homoeroticism in Classical Arabic Literature''. 1998. ISBN 023110507X (pbbk)/ ISBN 0231105061 (hdbk)
* [[Gary Leupp]]. ''Male Colors: The Construction of Homosexuality in Tokugawa Japan,'' Berkeley, University of California Press, 1995. ISBN 0-520-20900-1
* [[Tsuneo Watanabe]] & [[Jun'ichi Iwata]]. ''The Love of the Samurai. A Thousand Years of Japanese Homosexuality,'' London: GMP Publishers, 1987. ISBN 0-85449-115-5

===Modern Western===
* ''Bi Any Other Name : Bisexual People Speak Out'' by [[Loraine Hutchins]], Editor & [[Lani Ka'ahumanu]], Editor ISBN 1-55583-174-5
* ''Getting Bi : Voices of Bisexuals Around the World'' by [[Robyn Ochs]], Editor & [[Sarah Rowley]], Editor ISBN 0-9653881-4-X
* ''The Bisexual Option'' by [[Fritz Klein|Fritz Klein, MD]] ISBN 1-56023-033-9
* ''Bi Men : Coming Out Every Which Way'' by [[Ron Suresha]] and Pete Chvany, Editors ISBN 978-1-56023-615-9
* ''Bi America : Myths, Truths, And Struggles Of An Invisible Community'' by [[William E. Burleson]] ISBN 978-1-56023-478-4
* ''Bisexuality in the United States : A Social Science Reader'' by [[Paula C. Rodriguez Rust]], Editor ISBN 0-231-10226-7
* ''Bisexuality : The Psychology and Politics of an Invisible Minority'' by [[Beth A. Firestein]], Editor ISBN 0-8039-7274-1
* ''Current Research on Bisexuality'' by [[Ronald C. Fox PhD]], Editor ISBN 978-1-56023-288-5
* [http://www.beyondbarriers.org.uk/docs/Bisexual_Participatory_Appraisal_Research.pdf Exploring Biphobia]. (144 KB [[PDF]]). Report on the problems caused by stereotyping of bisexuals.

===Film===
* Bryant, Wayne M.. ''Bisexual Characters in Film: From Anais to Zee''. Haworth Gay & Lesbian Studies, 1997. ISBN 1-56023-894-1

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
{{Wikiquote}}
{{wiktionarypar|bisexuality}}
* [http://www.bisexual.com/ Bisexual.com (Global)]
* [http://www.welikeitbothways.com/ Bisexual Contact Network (Global)] Global Contact Network (Adult Content)
* [http://binetbc.bi.org/ The British Columbia Bisexual Network] - Vancouver BC, Canada
* [http://www.biresource.org/ Bisexual Resource Center (USA)]
* [http://www.bitribune.com/ Bi Tribune Magazine (USA)]
* [http://www.shybi.com/ Bisexual Women's Forums and Resources (USA)]
* [http://www.opcionbi.com/ Opcion Bi Group (MEX)]

{{LGBT-footer|history=yes|culture=yes|rights=yes}}
{{Sexual Identities}}

[[Category:LGBT]]
[[Category:Sexual orientation]]
[[Category:Sexual orientation and identity]]
[[Category:bisexual community]]
[[Category:Gender]]
[[Category:Gender_studies]]

[[af:Biseksualiteit]]
[[bar:Bisexualität]]
[[br:Divrevelezh]]
[[bg:Бисексуалност]]
[[ca:Bisexualitat]]
[[cs:Bisexualita]]
[[cy:Deurywioldeb]]
[[da:Biseksualitet]]
[[de:Bisexualität]]
[[et:Biseksuaalsus]]
[[el:Αμφιφυλοφιλία]]
[[es:Bisexualidad]]
[[eo:Ambaŭseksamo]]
[[fa:دوجنس‌گرایی]]
[[fr:Bisexualité]]
[[gd:Dà-mhiannachd]]
[[gl:Bisexualidade]]
[[ko:양성애]]
[[hr:Biseksualnost]]
[[id:Biseksualitas]]
[[it:Bisessualità]]
[[he:ביסקסואליות]]
[[ka:ბისექსუალობა]]
[[ku:Bîseksûelî]]
[[lt:Biseksualumas]]
[[hu:Biszexualitás]]
[[mk:Бисексуалност]]
[[nl:Biseksualiteit]]
[[ja:両性愛]]
[[no:Bifili]]
[[pl:Biseksualizm]]
[[pt:Bissexualidade]]
[[ro:Bisexualitate]]
[[ru:Бисексуальность]]
[[simple:Bisexuality]]
[[sk:Bisexualita]]
[[sl:Biseksualnost]]
[[sr:Бисексуалност]]
[[fi:Biseksuaalisuus]]
[[sv:Bisexualitet]]
[[tr:Biseksüellik]]
[[yi:בייסעקסואלוטעט]]
[[zh-yue:雙性戀]]
[[zh:双性恋]]

Revision as of 21:40, 29 January 2008

Bisexuaity is when two people of the same gender have buttsecks.

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