Today’s topic comes from QSFer Michael Barnette:
In my fantasy setting – Pearls Like Rain over with Torquere is the only one out right now in this world – it’s considered abnormal to be totally gay or straight. Almost everyone in the setting, excepting in two of the more isolated cultures, is bisexual. So this would make for a great topic. Alternate sexual norms.
I like this one – it’s not just “what if everyone were gay”. How would a society function if the man-woman thing weren’t the norm? Maybe it’s normal for people to wait until 30 to have sex. Or for parents to dissolve their unions after the childbearing years to be sexually active with others. Maybe young men and women go through a period of same sex attraction to learn how their bodies respond before having sex woth the opposite sex?
What are some of the other possibilities? What implications would they have for the make-up and structure of a society? And how can we use these stories to shine a light on our own cultures?