Broke Back Mountain

Broke back Mountain is clearly written during a time when discrimination is an even bigger issue than it is now. The two men in this story meet each other as ranch hands, and fall in love with one another. They do not understand why or how; they just know they love each other. They do not consider themselves “gay,” because it is simply unacceptable during this time; they cannot fathom being gay men because of what society teaches them. Throughout the story the two men constantly struggle with the fact that they simply cannot be together. They talk about it and they desire to be together, but they know, in their society, it simply is not an option. They get married to women, they have sex with their wives, and they have babies, because it is all they know to do. They know there is no possible way they could ever be accepted as homosexuals, and again, they cannot even bring themselves to label themselves as being gay.

It is also made clear through the reaction of Ennis’s wife and the two men’s former employer that homosexuality is viewed as “repulsive” and