Michael Cunningham, in his recent essay on Annie Proulx’s “Brokeback Mountain,” published in The New Yorker in 1997, refers to the main characters as gay (Takes, March 3rd). As a bisexual man, I find this description troubling, and emblematic of a broader issue: the constant erasure of bisexuality, even in stories where it is evident. The two cowboys, Ennis Del Mar and Jack Twist, do not fit neatly into the category of “gay” or “straight.” Though their love affair clearly exists outside traditional heteronormative boundaries, the narrative leaves open the possibility that one or both of the men could be bisexual. This ambiguity is important—it reflects the complexity of human desire, the fluidity of sexuality, and the reality that bisexuality is not always visible or acknowledged.

Patrick McGrath

New York City

https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2025/04/14/letters-from-the-april-14-2025-issue

(http://www.autoadmit.com/thread.php?thread_id=5729441&forum_id=2:#48957815)