The Velvet Rage
Overcoming the Pain of Growing Up Gay in a Straight Man's World
Alan Downs(Author)
Da Capo Press Inc
Published on 1. June 2005
Book
Hardback
224 pages
978-0-7382-1011-7 (ISBN)
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Description
A gay psychologist demonstrates how to heal the trauma of being a gay man in an uncompromisingly straight world Whether he is flamboyantly fashionable with a body chiselled to perfection or chronically dissatisfied and without lasting relationships, the stereotypical extremes of male gay behaviour are fuelled by the same dark force: shame. The inevitable by-product of growing up gay in a straight man's world, the experience of shame in childhood and adolescence sends a boy the message that he is other and that he is worthless. To avoid feeling shameful later in life - and even after he is no longer explicitly shamed by his sexuality - a gay man will quietly rage against the memory of this message and strive to excel dramatically to prove it wrong. The stereotypical manifestation of this inner battle is a gay man's success in the arts, fashion and in his body image; as with all the other forms of beauty, creativity and success, he is hiding behind the facades he creates. Building on the collected psychological research and the author's own experience of the past twenty years, The Velvet Rage will help gay men profoundly understand their dichotomous extremes.
Explaining the psychological underpinnings of the forces at play in their lives, it also offers helpful strategies to stop the insidious cycle of avoidance and rage. Empowering and validating. The Velvet Rage will influence the public discourse on gay culture and positively change the lives of gay men who read it.
Explaining the psychological underpinnings of the forces at play in their lives, it also offers helpful strategies to stop the insidious cycle of avoidance and rage. Empowering and validating. The Velvet Rage will influence the public discourse on gay culture and positively change the lives of gay men who read it.
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United States
Publishing group
Hachette Books
Target group
College/higher education
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 153 mm
ISBN-13
978-0-7382-1011-7 (9780738210117)
Copyright in bibliographic data is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or its licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
New editions
Book
04/2006
Da Capo Press Inc
€33.61
Article is exhausted; no reprint
Person
Alan Downs, PhD is a gay man and clinical psychologist practicing in Santa Fe, New Mexico. His fifteen years of treating clients have already been reflected in his numerous books in both leadership and self-help. Downs is an accomplished speaker and has appeared on TV in America many times.