Right-wing nationalist as well as gay（Homosexuality part 1）

*Japanese ver

"Mishima was a right-wing nationalist. But also he was gay. I found it interesting"

Some European guy said to me in some western European city a few years ago

I couldn't really understand what he'd found interesting

In fact, took me several years to understand what he meant

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In Europe, "right-wing" or "nationalist" or "traditionalist" all put a significant importance on heterosexual relationship, and in this context all other types of sexuality, particularly male homosexuality, are excluded, often harshly disregarded

In Japan a different attitude exists

For example, a lot of Samurai had male partners very openly

Or, in the traditional Japanese theatre, Kabuki, a male actor uses cosmetics in order to play a female role & often Kabuki actors had (still have now) male partners

Historically & culturally, male homosexuality was not labeled so negatively here, at least not as harshly excluded from the mainstream as in Europe

So that if a conservative right-wing Japanese man is gay, this isn't really against country's "tradition" or "traditional values"

Rather, being gay could even emphasise he is more loyal to tradition

As a result, even if Mishima was a nationalist as well as gay, Japanese folks don't find any contradictions here

much less "find it interesting"

But took me several years to understand what some European person had found interesting, this fact is exactly a sign that there are quite significant & very subconscious differences in this matter between in Japan & Europe