as a fujoshi understander, as some of you may know, i have an answer for this. it’s because traditional yaoi isn’t about gay people or gay culture, really. i do not subscribe to the notion that they generally fetishize gay people. i believe this is a grave misunderstanding. traditional yaoi is an experiment involving the removal of the female victim from the sexual regime of heterosexuality, so that women feel more comfortable eroticizing said regime. they are negotiating their place in a patriarchal sexual culture. if they can be accused of “fetishizing” anything, it is heterosexuality. if you find heterosexual norms hot, then yes, homophobia is compatible with that desire. they’re putting two men in a heterosexual relationship. they’re creating a fantasy where men are sexually subordinate to the oppressors of women, and the limitations of said regime remain intact. it is both subversive and regressive.
