Accusations of hidden homosexuality can be interpreted as projections of the accusers’ own desires.

Evidence

In light of his “unguarded fantasy” De Haan’s thoughts are purported to be more representational than realistic. Marmorstein insinuates that De Haan “may perhaps be haunting the inward points of his enemies’ souls and demanding to be exorcised by their acknowledgment of the Truth.” In other words, those who call De Haan a homosexual are themselves guilty of such thoughts. Marmorstein raises the possibility that the poetically expressed homosexual urges, and De Haan’s life of ultra-Orthodox practice and spirited defense of the community were not irreconcilable. — Ivan Davidson Kalmar, Derek Penslar, Orientalism and the Jews, 521

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the broader theme of projecting forbidden desires onto an out-group, similar to how orientalist discourse assigned the Orient eroticism the West disowned.