Asylum

[scribblinlenore]

So last night chatting with pun and rhiannonhero, we were discussing how this episode really screams "gay!" And how both Ma and Pa Kent seemed terrified that they're going to end up with a gay alien son and are willing to compromise almost any value to see that he doesn't.

And then all these parallels started coming to mind, and I started thinking: This could totally be a story about homosexuality in our society.

Lex and Clark are both different from other people, not normal, "freaks" as Lex puts it in "Extinction." (Read, gay)

Lex carries his difference openly. Clark hides his, out of fear. He can blend in, seem normal, even if that's a lie that ties him in knots. (In the closet)

Lex and Clark instinctively recognize themselves in each other. They have a bond, a "destiny." (They're in love!) Yet, Clark can't bring himself to admit his difference to Lex, even though Lex already knows, even though Clark knows he knows. Clark wants the relationship, but the fact that he can't own up to who he really is gets in the way.

Lex gets sent to Belle Reeve for insisting on the truth, for trying to bring family skeletons out into the plain light of day, for not being the same kind of man his father is (heterosexual). He, in effect, gets forced back into the closet.

Belle Reeve is a state institution, a metaphor for society's rules and what happens to people who openly violate them. The inmates, other freaks, are "treated" until they learn to conform.

Clark's dilemma about whether to go to Lex's rescue is a conflict about whether to expose his true identity. Is it more important to keep his secret and be safe? Or to be authentic?

Everyone in Clark's life, except Lex, pressures him to keep his secret.

His father: Lex is different. (Because he's gay!)

His mother: You have another friend in the hospital. (And she's a girl!)

Pete: Lex can't be trusted. (Because he's gay!)

Chloe too, although I can't remember exactly what she said.

They all see Lex as a threat because he wants Clark to be honest about who he really is. Because he just wants Clark, period.

When the drug therapy fails to "cure" Lex, his father (patriarchy) insists on more cruel, more violating "treatment." Because no matter what the psychic or physical costs, Lex must be brought under control. (Turned straight)

Eventually, Clark just can't pretend anymore. The pressure is too much. He has to be true to his nature. He goes to Belle Reeve to liberate Lex from the closet and finally, openly shows Lex who he is. Lex is touched, awed, approving, and Clark experiences profound joy (the expression on his face when he's using his powers in front of Lex!) that he can finally show this person who is so important to him his truth. In this one moment, they are both free and united. (And so in love!)

After the rescue fails, Lex is sacrificed by his father, who tells him all the while that it's for his own good. (Like therapists who think they can turn gay men straight) Lex's dangerous honesty, his spark of individuality is erased along with his memory (at least seemingly), and in the end, he's parroting the party line. "My father just wants what's best for me." (To be like him, to be straight, no matter what the cost.)

Clark's parents refuse to acknowledge the horror of what's happened. They're just relieved that Clark's secret is safe. He's back to lying about who he is, and they can finally be comfortable again. The fact that a young man was tortured by his own father to achieve this state of affairs is less appalling than it might be in other circumstances. (Because Lex is gay and in danger of "turning" their son gay, and that somehow makes it a lesser crime.)

Clark is left with overwhelming guilt, not just because he failed, but because he feels both relief and disappointment that he can hide once more.

Comments

[ahab99.livejournal.com]

Ooo, very true. There's a lot of meaty stuff in that episode. But then again, this show has always had a little trouble staying away from the gay metaphors. I mean, they opened with Clark being tied up naked like a scarecrow.

[scribblinlenore.livejournal.com]

Yes! It's so true. Our dear SV does love to flirt with the gay side. I rather doubt there's ever been anything gayer on TV than Lex finding Clark on that cross. In fact, it was reading Thamiris' story "Boxed" that flows out of that scene that turned me on to Smallville in the first place.

Half-naked farmboys tied up? I'm there!