The Sexual Outlaw

by John Rechy

Paperback, 1978

Status

Available

Call number

155

Publication

Dell Pub Co (1978), Edition: First Paperback Printing, 307 pages

Description

From the award-winning writer, "a passionate manifesto for gay rights by an author who openly and unapologetically identifies himself as a participant" (People).   In this angry, eloquent outcry against the oppression of homosexuals, the author of the classic City of Night gives "an explosive non-fiction account, with commentaries, of three days and nights in the sexual underground" of Los Angeles in the 1970s--the "battlefield" of the sexual outlaw. Using the language and techniques of film, Rechy deftly intercuts the despairing, joyful, and defiant confessions of a male hustler with the "chorus" of his own subversive reflections on sexual identity and sexual politics, and with stark documentary, reports of the violence our society directs against homosexuals--"the only minority against whose existence there are laws."   "An intelligent, persuasive and, in its way, heartbreaking manifesto." --The New York Times   "A jolting book . . . An intense, personal, and courageous document. A book written out of rage, unnerving, thought provoking." --Los Angeles Times   Praise for John Rechy   "Rechy shows great comic and tragic talent. He is truly a gifted novelist." --Christopher Isherwood, author and playwright   "His tone rings absolutely true, is absolutely his own, and he has the kind of discipline which allows him a rare and beautiful recklessness. He tells the truth, and tells it with such passion that we are forced to share in the life he conveys. This is a most humbling and liberating achievement." --James Baldwin, novelist, playwright, and activist   "His uncompromising honesty as a gay writer has provoked as much fear as admiration . . . John Rechy doesn't fit into categories. He transcends them. His individual vision is unique, perfect, loving and strong." --Carolyn See, author of Dreaming: Hard Luck and Good Times in America… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member Libncourt
Like many of Rechy's books, THE SEXUAL OUTLAW is powerful, fascinating, and very depressing. The themes present in his novels are here in this non-fiction work - the power of physical beauty, narcissm, sex as liberation, unfulfilled desire, etc. Along with a narrative of one hustler's quest for
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validation through his sexual encounters, Rechy threads in a treatise on what it means to be homosexual in twentieth century America. Much of what he says is relevant to the twenty-first century as well, as the current battle over same-sex marriage attests.
Those looking for explicit sex will find it in abundance here. Rechy pulls no punches in his depiction of homoerotic love. Yet he is wise enough to see the sadness in the "sexhunt," and his "character" Jim, we know, will never find that elusive thing for which he searches, the combination of sexual gratification and personal intimacy. None of us will find it. We hate Jim for his narcissm and his superficiality but admire his rebel stance. He is a man-loving man not ashamed of the fact.

Rechy's accounts of police corruption concerning gay men and the hours spent nabbing "sexhunters" that could otherwise be spent apprehending murderers, rapists, and thieves are enough to make one's blood boil. And I love his comments on gay sensibility. But I find his whole stance on S&M somewhat puzzling and hypocritical. While no advocate of or participant in that particular sexual lifestyle, I fail to see the difference between the physical pain inflicted by "masters" upon "slaves" and the psychological pain engendered in the course of the sexhunt. Indeed it would seem the latter pain would be the more enduring and damaging.

This is an important book, more than twenty-five years old, but still relevant.

Reviewer: Randall Ivey "Randall" on Amazon.com
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Language

Original language

English

Original publication date

1977

Physical description

307 p.; 6.9 inches

ISBN

0440176670 / 9780440176671

Barcode

11970

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