Coming out
Etymology

An article on coming out in the online encyclopedia glbtq.com states that sexologist Evelyn Hooker 's observations introduced the use of "coming out" to the academic community in the 1950s. The article continues by echoing Chauncey's observation that a subsequent shift in connotation occurred later on. The pre-1950s focus was on entrance into "a new world of hope and communal solidarity", whereas the post- Stonewall Riots overtone was an exit from the oppression of the closet. This change in focus suggests that "coming out of the closet " is a mixed metaphor that joins "coming out" with the closet metaphor: an evolution of " skeleton in the closet " specifically referring to living a life of denial and secrecy by concealing one's sexual orientation. The closet metaphor, in turn, is extended to the forces and pressures of heterosexist society and its institutions.
startend:end_checker, change_case:capital_word_frequency[5]