Guys will always be guys, gals will always be gals?

Question

I have been told "Guys will always be guys, gals will always be gals".

If we were to extrapolate this, will I be right if I were to say "gays will also always be gays, lesbions will also always be lesbions"?

Answer 1

Interesting.. You see this phrase strikes me as meaningless, on the basis that it's not true, gives no perspective or information on the subject (gender and the resilience of personality styles), and doesn't do a particularly good job of making any point about the 'gulf' between men and women.

But then it strikes me as interesting on two counts. Firstly you raise the question as to whether gays and lesbians can 'change their spots', which opens up the question of preference and inclination and 'essential nature' (just as much as being a 'gal' or a 'guy' is a 'fixed' thing). This question belongs in Relationships or Psychology though.. Best answer there (in psychological terms) is that 'nothing is fixed in stone', but also, 'past behaviour is the best indicator of future behaviour'.

Secondly it is interesting, and this is from the perspective of Words & Wordplay that there are two sorts of phrases - the usual phrases that 'stick around' usually include a 'grain of truth' or even considerably more. If they don't work for a lot of people for a long time they seem to die out. But then there are others which are 'empty' phrases, and it's an interesting line of thought to compare the two.

So the conclusion is that this phrase is interesting for how wrong it is. Because, you see, a 'wordy' person would recognize that 'always' is a loaded word. We won't always be anything, 'cept dust and ashes one day. Better to make better use of our time now than to subscribe to simple concepts of gender. Best to take people 'as they are'. Don't take anything here as insulting, its actually a good question. Thanks.

Answer 2

Yes, you'll be right.