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Sociology / Unit 7   Soc 1087 short lesson, about 20 seconds

Heteronormativity

Captions available

The idea

Heteronormativity is the assumption, built into a society's institutions, that heterosexual attraction is the default and every other orientation departs from it.

In practice

A form that provides only "husband" and "wife" fields encodes the assumption before anyone fills it in.

Where people slip

The assumption can operate without hostile intent, through defaults nobody examined rather than through decisions anyone made.

Your place on the trail

Every lesson rests on earlier ones and opens later ones. Tap any to jump.

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