Closeted
Closeted and in the closet are metaphors for LGBT people who have not disclosed their sexual orientation or gender identity and aspects thereof, including sexual identity and sexual behavior. This metaphor is associated and sometimes combined with coming out, the act of revealing one's sexuality or gender to others, to create the phrase "coming out of the closet".
This article is about the term describing nondisclosure of sexual behavior, sexual orientation or gender identity. For other uses, see Closet (disambiguation) and In the closet (disambiguation).Etymology[edit]
Nondisclosure of one's sexual orientation or gender identity preceded the use of 'closet' as a term for the act. For example, the writer Thomas Mann entered a heterosexual marriage with a woman in 1905, but discussed his attraction to men in his private diary, which by contemporary terms would have designated him a closeted homosexual man.
D. Travers Scott claims that the phrase 'coming out of the closet', along with its derivative meanings of 'coming out' and 'closeted', has its origins in two different metaphors. 'Coming out' was first a phrase used in the early 20th century in reference to a young woman attending a debutante ball, such that she was 'coming out' into society. In past times, the word 'closet' meant 'bedroom,' so one's sexuality was not shown beyond there. Later in the 1960s, the metaphor of a 'skeleton in the closet', which meant to hide a secret due to taboos or social stigmas, was also used in reference to a gender identity or sexuality that one may not wish to disclose. As such, to reveal one's LGBTQ+ identity that was previously hidden or kept secret was to allow a skeleton to come out of the closet.[1]
One linguistic study suggests that the transgender community may use different vocabulary to refer to the disclosure status of one's gender identity, such as "stealth" in place of "closeted".[2]
Asia[edit]
China[edit]
A 2016 survey found that 85% of LGBT people have not told anyone about their sexual orientation and 95% have not revealed it outside their family.[9] A study in 2015 described homosexuality as "not socially accepted in China", noting that gay Chinese men may participate in lavender marriages with heterosexual or lesbian women, and that nondisclosure of sexuality may stem from opposition from a heterosexual spouse in addition to societal stigmas against homosexuality.[10]
Japan[edit]
Some scholars and activists consider the process of coming out in Japan to be extremely difficult, claiming that due to the cultural and emotional importance of the home, the emotional honesty expressed within a household may create a "locus of homophobia" that would reinforce one's desire to remain closeted.[11] Overall, a study in 2017 found that among members of the Japanese LGBTQ+ community, coming out of the closet was generally considered desirable, but the process may be complicated by patriarchal or heteronormative ideals held by society.[11]
Taiwan[edit]
Frank T. Y. Wang argues that among gay or bisexual Taiwanese men, the societal importance of a family or household unit is the primary reason why one may choose to remain closeted. Participants of the study often cited their family's conservatism, fear of disappointment or emotional distress, or a desire to keep their parents from the stigma of having an LGBTQ+ family member as reasons for staying closeted. Wang also notes that unmarried men in Taiwan tended to live with their parents, such that older closeted men may arouse suspicion for not having married, causing them to compensate by emotionally or spatially distancing themselves from the household, or otherwise act in certain ways to raise or lower the expectations one's family may have for them.[12]
Europe[edit]
According to a 2020 survey by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 30% of LGBT people in the EU are very rarely or almost never open; the highest percentages are Lithuania (60%), Bulgaria (54%) and Romania and Serbia (both 53%).[13]