QUEEN
In my Hebrew religion classes, one could also find a different discourse. The story of Joseph, my teacher did not tell it as that of a gay character. However, I couldn’t ignore a series of subtle messages that hinted that Joseph was gay.
The first thing we read is that Joseph has a coat of many colors. But it’s not just any garment. It has long sleeves and reaches down to his feet. This is repeated to make us understand that it is a woman’s garment.
It is feminine attire worn by virgins. And the stran-gest thing is that the coat is given to him by his father, who favors Joseph for being the most beautiful of his sons. This is what causes his brothers, who resent the favoritism and the gift, to come to hate him (Genesis 37:3-4).
Although it was forbidden to dress in the opposite gender, there was a long tradition in antiquity of turning a teenager into an object of attraction for an older man, whether his father or not. The coat turns Joseph into a source of paternal attraction, and because of this, his tasks will be feminine.
Taking refuge in Egypt, Joseph meets Potiphar, the captain of the guard. He favors Joseph, and it is reminded to us that the Israelite is “very handsome.”
Potiphar’s wife is not blind and wants to take him to 59
bed. Despite the pressures from Potiphar’s wife, Joseph flees like any gay man in the face of female harassment.
(I don’t know why I didn’t listen to him and ran away from the rendezvous with the prostitute.) The woman accuses him of rape and sends him to jail. Here again, another man, the jailer, is attracted to Joseph. This smitten man will be the one to bring him to the royal chamber to interpret Pharaoh’s dreams. Pharaoh gives him his ring, a necklace for his neck, and fine clothing.
He also makes him his advisor.
What makes Joseph so desirable? Well, being handsome and an object of pleasure for men. If he had been ugly, would he have reached the highest position under Pharaoh. Would I have ended up with a Senator later in life if I was ugly? The reality is that no, and that’s why being gay and attractive is essential to lessen the blows of homophobia.
My teacher, obviously, skipped all the homoerotic implications of the story, but I couldn’t help but identify with Joseph who because of his looks he was able to get away with murder.