How Men Became Comfortable with Anal Sex

The cultural acceptance of anal penetration for men, known as 'pegging', represents a significant shift in modern sexuality. The concept first entered public consciousness in 1998 when José María Cano wrote a controversial Mecano song about a man fearing he had turned gay due to alcohol, referencing anal sex.

The specific term 'pegging' was coined in 2001 by sex columnist Dan Savage, who organized a contest to find a colloquial term for the act of a woman penetrating a man with a strap-on dildo. By 2020, the term was officially recognized in the Urban Dictionary.

The practice reached mainstream pop culture visibility through Disney and Ryan Reynolds in the Deadpool franchise, where Reynolds broke the fourth wall to acknowledge the practice. This timeline illustrates a journey from underground taboo to open cultural reference.

The first major cultural reference to male anal penetration in popular media appeared in 1998. José María Cano, a member of the Spanish synth-pop trio Mecano, wrote a song featuring a male character convinced that alcohol had turned him gay.

The lyrics were considered shocking at the time. The character sings: "Por otro lao/Por el lao de atrás/No debe estar tan mal/Pruébalo y verás" (translated as: "By the other side/By the back side/It can't be that bad/Try it and you'll see").

These lyrics are historically remembered as some of the most embarrassing or controversial in the history of Spanish pop music, marking an early instance of the topic entering mainstream discourse.

While the act existed previously, it lacked a widely recognized colloquial name until 2001. Popular sex columnist Dan Savage organized a contest to coin a term describing the specific act of a woman using a harness with a dildo to penetrate a man from behind.

The result was the neologism "pegging." This term bridged the gap between the 1998 musical reference and modern cultural acceptance. By 2020, the term had become established enough to be collected and defined in the Urban Dictionary.

The practice eventually broke into the highest levels of mainstream entertainment via the Deadpool franchise. In the films, actor Ryan Reynolds portrays the titular character, known for breaking the fourth wall to address the audience directly.

Reynolds is quoted saying: "The pegging no es nuevo para mí, pero sí para Disney" (translated as: "The pegging is not new to me, but it is to Disney").

This reference indicates that while the act was known in certain circles, its appearance in a Disney-associated production signaled a new level of mainstream visibility and acceptance.