On the thought of beginning a new article for The Pessimist Chronicles, I have recently discovered why the idea for a new article hasn't really grabbed me for such a long time. Our fan base continues to grow, out hit counter still climes, but we haven't published anything new for over one year. Yes, dear readers, you read that correctly: our last article was a special seasonal offering by the unique wordsmith that is Shaun Beale, published, very aptly, on the morning of December 25th, 2012. After that, we ran into difficulties. We had dissertations to write, and a very short time left to do it in. After that came the celebrations - we had finally completed the biggest single piece of work any of us had ever done, after all, and the last thing any of us wanted to do was continue sitting at the computer writing up new material for publication. Then came the exams. So, as time wore on, The Pessimist Chronicles, that new, vibrant, side-splitting enterprise we had begun together so long ago, lay dormant. Like an old friend, the longer we left it, the harder it became to pick up the phone.
I had several ideas for a new article over the past year, but none of them came to fruition. Why, I eventually began to wonder, couldn't I write something meaningful? The jokes were there (dare I say, I often had down on paper some of the greatest jokes I had ever come up with); the time was at hand; I had managed to replace my busted laptop battery (Shaun and I have a very fond memory of my laptop's emergency warning siren blaring out in the quiet yet widely populated surroundings of the University of Winchester's multimedia centre). I had no excuse for not getting down to it. Soon, it struck me. The reason I couldn't write anything for The Pessimist Chronicles, that online magazine I begun with some of the best friends I had ever had, was very simple: it was because it belonged to a bygone age. I don't have those immediate connections anymore. Discussions late into the night with the gang can't just occur spontaneously. I can't sit up demolishing a pizza with them at three in the morning anymore. Essentially, if I were to write for the magazine again, would it be the same? Would I feel more remote this time around, without the knowledge that within half an hour of posting this I could be face to face with the one of the guys laughing about the horrendous war between nations my comments may have sparked off. In other words, would it not just make me realise how far apart we really are now?
Today, however, I felt the overwhelming need to break my silence. Ellen Page, star of X-Men: The Last Stand (2006), Juno (2007), Inception (2010) and others including the upcoming X-Men: Days of Future Past, and the top candidate on that shortlist of remarkably attractive young celebrities whom I was set to propose to should all realistic romantic ambitions finally become totally and irretrievably unrealisable, was suddenly off the list, allowing Sarah Bolger, Jenna Coleman, Pixie Lott and Count von Count to each rise up a rank in my affections, and also allowing the now-vacant fifth space to be occupied by a new candidate (I am currently undecided whether to allocate it to Tamla Kari or Angela Merkel). Why was she suddenly out of the running. Because, as all my readers will no doubt by now be aware, on Friday 14th February 2014, Ellen Page outed herself as gay.
Why, therefore, have I felt obliged to write this article? Why does an actress announcing that she is a lesbian even matter? Countless reports have surfaced over the past 24 hours, each simply repeating the same quotes and comments as the last. Surely, then, The Pessimist Chronicles getting involved in the discussion won't add anything new. I would like to take the opportunity to say that, if you thought that, or if you think it now that I have suggested it, you are very, very wrong.
Because Ellen Page being gay is not news. Someone's sexuality, in this enlightened age, should not be particularly noteworthy. What makes her coming out so significant, however, is the manner in which she did it, publicly, suddenly, and in a way which didn't successfully hide the nervous tremor in her voice as she did it. Coming just weeks after David Silvester's absurd comments upon gay marriage and God's ensuing wrath, the move was filled with courage, especially coming in the context of a world where there are still extreme conservative puritans all-too prepared to shoot her down.
The following comments have shown widespread support for Page's act. Shannon Woodward tweeted her to say 'I have never been more proud of a human than I am of @EllenPage right now'; Kristen Bell followed a similar track saying 'Rivited [sic] by @EllenPage's fabulous speech [...] She shines. Happy Valentines day to ALL.' Even our old enemies the Daily Mail managed to hold back their right wing credentials, making not a single disparaging remark in their coverage of the story.
Yet what brings me tonight to write this article is not the positive feedback Page has received. It is not inspired by the inspirational nature of her revelation. It is, in fact, quite the opposite which brings me here tonight. It is those who now see this as an opportunity to come up with disparaging remarks.
Facebook today, I have seen, is littered with the standard comments regarding picturing Ellen in various exclusively lesbian sex practices and those mourning the shattering of their hopes of marrying her in the future. These posts are fine - I have used the latter approach near the start of this article - and they are, for the most part, results of genuine humour, not malicious finger pointing and name calling. Yet it shocked me to see that in 2014 there are still those who would see her as anything other than an ordinary human being.
Be they internet trolls or genuinely opinionated people, it was frankly very disturbing to witness hordes of commenters arguing that Ellen was 'abnormal', 'mentally ill', a social outcast, suffering from some sort of disease, lying to make herself seem 'cooler', and, in one particularly disturbing comment I pray she never reads, that 'if there was ever a baby that should have been aborted, forget hitla [yes, he said "hitla"], its elen [yes, he said "elen"] page'.
And these weren't the only disgusting messages I found. There were a huge number citing the Bible, informing everyone that 'God hates fags', one man who wrote 'good job Ellen, now you're going to hell' and one woman who declared 'The Bible is not open to interpretation, and anyone who argues it is is trying to hide their own depravity. God tells us that homosexuals will be excluded from Heaven, that they are the most unnatural people on earth, and that they will burn for eternity for their sins, that isn't homophobia, that is clearly documented FACT.'
I could argue about the fallacy which surrounds religion. I could take the so often travelled path which mocks theists and treats them as members of some kind of mentally subnormal cult. Or I could even highlight the very well-known facts that the Bible is not a reliable source - that its messages on homosexuality are ambiguous and utterly unclear; that it has changed greatly over time, with added, altered and obfuscated passages which mean it now bears almost no resemblance to what it did a millennia ago; and that, even if we acknowledge the possible existence of an all-powerful deity, the Bible was written not by God or Jesus but by human men, who would likely have stamped their own personal and societal prejudices upon the text.
But I will not be taking that approach.
Why?
Because blaming these idiots' prejudices upon their religion is just as bad as their using religion to excuse their views. We cannot ever hope for an all-loving, all-accepting world while excluding those who follow religion from it. I am currently conducting research into religion for my current research project, and doing so has firmly made me believe that religion can be a positive thing. Religion cannot be blamed for the perpetuation of these views, but in the wrong circumstances it can certainly be an influence.
I do not write this from an anti-religion viewpoint. I do not write it from a self-righteous viewpoint. I do not even write this from the viewpoint of someone who is completely free of prejudice. Whether we like to admit it or not, we all have our little prejudices. But this matter is more significant than those prejudices. What Ellen Page did yesterday was brave, and it was noble. I asked at the start of this article why her coming out made such big news, and I think the reason is clear. It was because it was so brave - the girl was so obviously nervous during the duration of her speech, and there are still so many judgmental people in the world, that she would be perfectly forgiven for thinking that the move could have completely backfired on her. Yet I firmly believe that her actions will benefit many likeminded young people, struggling to come to terms with their own sexual identity. Why? Ellen's revelation was so different from those of other gay celebrities. She does not conform to the stereotypes associated with alternative sexualities. She isn't a 'butch' lesbian, a 'man hating' lesbian, an 'attention seeking' homosexual. Her speech shows these labels are non-uniform and largely false. There was no display of exhibitionism here, and she came across as a completely ordinary young woman. Hopefully this will show other young people that they do not have to fit into certain moulds in society and can be who they really are. If you aren't harming anyone, who can judge you for being yourself?
Other ignorant comments abound on Facebook, Twitter, new pages and other forums. Some view Ellen Page as simply trying to draw attention to herself, while others view homosexuality as a modern 'fad', completely ignoring the well-known homosexuality of Christopher Marlowe and the oft-conjectured bisexuality of William Shakespeare, both born 450 years ago in 1564, and you just have to examine the art and literature of the classical world to see homosexuality is certainly anything but 'modern' or a 'fad'. At the same time, we see those who think what she did was not brave. I am telling everyone now that it was. In front of so many people, knowing the world would see it, understanding that there was no going back once the confession was on camera, and in a world where such ignorant people could make such ignorant comments as have already been showcased here, there was nothing simple about her act. She showed true courage, and that is more important than any objections a few judgmental conservatives ad selective Bible interpreters can pose.
I am an atheist. I suppose that is me 'coming out' in a way. Religion is one personal discussion I attempt to avoid. Publicly, I often announce myself as an agnostic. My objection to the idea of an omnipotent, omniscient deity is not so much an unwillingness to believe, but an inability to believe. I cannot comprehend such a thing. I cannot see such a being existing in a world with so much pain and heartbreak. The plight of the homosexual community is one of the things I find most distasteful about the idea. I could not follow a God who would supposedly condemn anyone for loving someone. But I do not have anything against those who do believe in God, Jehovah, or whoever. The fact is, faith is a personal thing. But those who use their religion as an excuse to promote malicious abuse to others is frankly sickening. They don't just present themselves as ignorant, but give the wider religious community a bad name. The same goes for those who don't hide behind the concept of religion, and who simply promote their views as a fact all should understand. The world is not made up of right and wrong, natural and unnatural, real and fake. The world is made up primarily of love and understanding, and intolerance and hatred. People are scared to be themselves because of the latter, and I find it incomprehensible how the latter can have such a lasting impact upon the pursuit of the former.
Don't use the Bible to justify your prejudices. Don't pretend your prejudices are sensible or just. Don't act as though your prejudices are society's prejudices. They are not. They are your prejudices, perpetuated by you and others like you.
Don't use the Bible to justify your prejudices. Don't pretend your prejudices are sensible or just. Don't act as though your prejudices are society's prejudices. They are not. They are your prejudices, perpetuated by you and others like you.
I asked why Ellen Page's coming out matters. I hope I have made my case. It could be argued that Ellen Page's coming out is a significant moment for so many areas of society. I see no reason to disagree.
Ellen: we salute you.
William Green.
Those who wish to relive the moment discussed in this article may do so below.
