#maybe ppl just don't talk about it where I can see it. meaning publicly 🤷🏻

[bookshelfdreams]

sexually assaulted by his peers? did i miss that? 😵‍💫

(content warning: discussions of csa, but nothing explicit)

Nigel. After he recounts the rowboat thing he says "And the horse. When we made you french kiss the horse".

Which - well, assault might not be the entirely correct word. But it's definitely an act of sexualized violence/humiliation.

This is, to my understanding, a well-documented pattern of behavior in environments like this. When people are locked somewhere together where they can't escape each other, have communal bathrooms and bedrooms, and are encouraged to enforce a strict pecking order, the resulting peer-to-peer violence often includes a sexualized element. Especially when said people are children who haven't fully developed social skills and empathy yet, especially once puberty hits (which, since Stede left/finished at 15, happened during his boarding school days). And just like with "regular" bullying, children who are perceived as weak, socially inept, or gender non-conforming (or all 3 in Stede's case) are most vulnerable to fall victim to that.

It's not a huge stretch of the imagination to believe other things in that direction were done to him as well, though that's obviously veering off into headcanon territory. I personally think it's implied as strongly as it can be in a fun little romcom; there's no reason to disbelieve Nigel, and there's no reason to believe the horse or the rowboat were singular incidents. Of course Nigel isn't gonna bring up things that can't be laughed away as "hilarious pranks" between boys, even by an a-grade assface like him.

And it fits in with the general impression a lot of people (including me) have of Stede and his problems - his hangups about his own body, the likeliness that he never had a positive sexual experience. It's an interpretation that's heavily text-based, in my opinion, though again, a lot of it is never actually said. So. Think of that what you will.

But anyway, yes, Stede textually suffered at least some degree of sexualized violence in his childhood, which is sadly not uncommon.

[endlich-allein]

Has till ever talked about his sexuality? Not that labels matter, and he very much came from a time and a subculture where putting labels to sexual activity wasn't needed, but it would be interesting if he's ever talked about it.

It's obvious he has interests in most genitalia but perhaps not all genders. Then again, many ppl still identify as straight even if they like more than one gender.

Perhaps him talking about his sexuality would encourage talk about his private sex life, and maybe that's too personal for him?

Either way as a gay man I'd be very interested to know!

Hello 🙌🏼

Alas no, he never clearly spoke about his sexuality. Strangely Till talks a lot about love but little about sexuality 🤷🏻

However, it is not a taboo for him because, for example, when Rammstein hoisted the rainbow flag during his 2019 tour, he told the Tagesspiegel : "It simply boggles my mind that you can still be so backwards and have something against homosexuality even today. I'm not usually one to get involved in these discussions, but sometimes you just have to speak up." ✊🏼

If we often see him dating women, it seems quite clear that Till is not heterosexual, something he himself has implicitly confirmed on several occasions. For example, he said that he sometimes goes to gay clubs with friends and was flirting there and enjoys it 🥰

Let's not forget that he wrote the song Mann Gegen Mann in which he talks about repressed homosexuality and for which Schneider was asked if he saw Till as a gay icon, to which he replied : "Why not ? I mean, I think in each of us, in every man there is a little percentage of... Could be !" Shortly before this question during this interview Schneider said that Till was interested in all forms of love 💘

Or, when he put in his place a journalist who was a little too reactionary about the song Ladyboy which talks about transsexuality. Till said : "There I continued with a group of beauties. Then invited one of them in my room in hotel. And we were already in bed when I suddenly discovered the physical features of my partner. As a result, I came to the conclusion that transsexuals are wonderful. Two in one." (If you want to read the whole thing it's here). He also said that he would like one of his songs to play in a gay pride 🏳️‍🌈

These are the only things that Till said in relation to sexuality in addition to the many, more or less explicit, mentions of heterosexuality. You will notice that he only publicly addresses this subject when it has to do with his art, with his songs. Till is a very private person, even if we have the impression that we know a lot of things about him. He rarely speaks publicly. And don't confide in his privacy ⛔️