Nature and Sexuality in ‘De Planctu Naturae’

Abstract

The aim of this article is to examine the conceptualization of Nature in Alain of Lille’s De Planctu Naturae, determining how the author construes the justification of the thesis that homosexual desire is contrary to nature and the implications that can be drawn from it concerning gender and sexuality in general. Given that Alain of Lille utilizes (at least) three metaphors to account for copulation, in order to represent it as paradigmatically heterosexual, this paper studies them in three respective sections (3-5). Furthermore, this research integrates an anonymous and contemporary text that addresses the aforementioned topics: Altercatio Ganimedis et Helene.