Jennifer Sebik EC2-1PM "Virtually Normal"-CSA March 23rd, 2004 "Virtually Normal" is an argument about Homosexuality. What would life be like if homosexuals were not allowed to marry? That is the question at the heart of Andrew Sullivan's article. Andrew Sullivan argues that gay marriage should be a human right. Sullivan here takes a sober look at the public debate over homosexuality and offers a moving, often lyrical, plea for the legalization of same-sex marriage.
"Virtually Normal" should be of special interest to conservatives. For one thing, Sullivan has occasionally described himself as such. Second, he is a Roman Catholic who has always taken matters of faith and the teachings of his Church seriously. Sullivan's thesis hinges on the claim that legalizing homosexual marriage would have a conservatizing influence on society as a whole. Andrew Sullivan states in his article that the public attitudes towards homosexuality is ineffective in developing a workable public position on homosexuality. Instead, Sullivan offers a political remedy that he claims will transcend the divisiveness. Sullivan's solution is unique, in which he explains on focusing exclusively on the actions of the "public neutral state." The state-but only the state-would have to treat homosexuals and heterosexuals with perfect equality.
Sullivan's entire argument is in favor of legalizing homosexual marriages which hinges on the recognition that the public law is the most powerful tool for shaping individual attitudes. The core assumption of "Virtually Normal" which happens to be compelling also, is that the absence of public laws granting homosexuals full equality has helped create a culture in which homosexuality is considered dirty or sinful, and in which homosexuals are deemed incapable of loving each other with dignity and commitment. As Sullivan rightly observes, "The surest way to reverse the trickle-down effect of...