Abstract
The purpose of this study is to investigate how seven homosexual men in the age between 18 and 26 years experience openness with their sexuality in Stockholm. We wish to investigate how these men experience and handle their everyday life in a community characterized by a heteronormative foundation. We will focus on how they handle their openness in an urban environment and if they experience any limitations dependent on the situation or surroundings they live in, and also how they handle these situations. The study is hermeneutically inspired where seven life story interviews are analyzed within the theoretical frameworks provided by Connell, Goffman, Foucault and Queer theory.
The results show that the respondents’ openness varies depending on a variety of factors where surroundings, situations and previous experiences are influential. In those cases where the openness was limited there appeared to be several different strategies to use. Furthermore feelings of many times being excluded and belonging to a different part of society were clear. These feelings have proven to be constantly present in the minds of the respondents. It is also clear that there is strength and solidarity to be found within their own group.