Hess Queer Aging in North American Fiction

1. Auflage 2019
ISBN: 978-3-030-03466-5
Verlag: Springer International Publishing
Format: PDF
Kopierschutz: 1 - PDF Watermark

E-Book, Englisch, 240 Seiten

Reihe: Progress in Mathematics

Exploring representations of queer aging in North American fiction, this book illuminates a rich yet previously unheeded intersection within American culture. At a time when older LGBTQ persons gradually gain visibility in gerontological studies and in the media, this work provides a critical perspective concerned with the ways in which the narratives and images we have at our disposal shape our realities. Each chapter shines a spotlight on a significant work of queer fiction, beginning with post-WWII novels and ending with filmic representations of the 2010s, exploring narratives as both reflections and agents of broader cultural negotiations concerning queer sexuality and aging. As a result, the book not only redresses queer aging's history of invisibility, but also reveals narratives of queer aging to be particularly apt in casting new light on the ways in which growing older is perceived and conceptualized in North American culture.


Linda M. Hess is Assistant Professor of American Studies (wissenschaftl. Mitarbeiterin) at the Goethe University Frankfurt, Germany. She has published articles on the intersection of aging studies and queer studies, and she is co-editor of Exploring the Fantastic: Genre, Ideology, and Popular Culture (2018).

Autoren/Hrsg.

Hess, Linda M.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

1;Dedication;5
2;Acknowledgments;6
3;Contents;8
4;Chapter 1: Introduction: Queer Aging and the Significance of Representation;11
4.1;A Conspicuous Absence;11
4.2;Locating Queer Aging;17
4.3;Core Themes;22
4.4;Overview of Chapters;31
4.5;References;35
5;Part I: The Confines of Straight Time;40
5.1;Chapter 2: The Older Lesbian as Predator: Dorothy Baker’s Trio: A Novel (1943);41
5.1.1;Lesbian Visibility in the First Half of the Twentieth Century;41
5.1.2;Age Relations: The Older Predator Versus the Younger Victim;46
5.1.3;The Power of the Heteronormative Timeline;50
5.1.4;Chrononormativity’s Violence;52
5.1.5;References;56
5.2;Chapter 3: The Menace of Gay Aging: James Baldwin’s Giovanni’s Room (1956);58
5.2.1;The Cultural Climate of the Cold War Era;58
5.2.2;American Nationality and/as Compulsory Heterosexual Masculinity;64
5.2.3;The Stereotypical Figure of the Aging Gay Man;69
5.2.4;The Reader’s Critical Perspective;74
5.2.5;References;78
6;Part II: In an Era of Liberations;81
6.1;Chapter 4: Lesbian-Feminist Aging: June Arnold’s Sister Gin (1975);82
6.1.1;The Influence of (Lesbian) Feminism;82
6.1.2;Menopause as a New Beginning;87
6.1.3;Defying Stereotypes of Asexuality;89
6.1.4;Anger as Politics;93
6.1.5;References;100
6.2;Chapter 5: Gay Times in NYC: Andrew Holleran’s Dancer from the Dance (1978);104
6.2.1;In the Wake of the Stonewall Riots;104
6.2.2;The Economy of the Body;108
6.2.3;Failing the Heteronormative Future;111
6.2.4;The Margins of the Cultural Screen;118
6.2.5;References;123
7;Part III: Transitions of the 1990s;126
7.1;Chapter 6: Gay Aging After AIDS: Andrew Holleran’s The Beauty of Men (1996);127
7.1.1;The Impact of the AIDS Crisis;127
7.1.2;Age Anxiety in the Age of AIDS;132
7.1.3;Trajectories and Spaces of Decline;137
7.1.4;Living in Limbo: Lark’s Queer Temporality;141
7.1.5;References;148
7.2;Chapter 7: Visible Old Lesbians: Suzette Mayr’s The Widows (1998);150
7.2.1;Lesbian Hypervisibility and Postmodern Canadian Literature;150
7.2.2;Bearing a New Self;155
7.2.3;Desire and the Failures of the Aging Body;160
7.2.4;The Widow as (Ghosted) Lesbian;165
7.2.5;References;172
8;Part IV: Queer Aging in the Young Twenty-First Century;175
8.1;Chapter 8: New Stories About Gay Aging: Mike Mills’s Beginners (2010);176
8.1.1;Into the Twenty-First Century1;176
8.1.2;Constructing Identity Through Narrative;182
8.1.3;The Framework of History;186
8.1.4;Becoming Real;191
8.1.5;References;197
8.2;Chapter 9: Lesbian Aging Hits the Road: Thom Fitzgerald’s Cloudburst (2011);200
8.2.1;Twenty-First-Century Lesbian Road Movie;200
8.2.2;A Salty Old Woman;205
8.2.3;Physical Decline, Ageism, and Caregiving;207
8.2.4;Marriage Equality and Kinship Systems;212
8.2.5;References;221
9;Part V: Queer Aging Now;224
9.1;Chapter 10: Conclusion: Ask What Queer Aging Can Do for You;225
9.1.1;Tracing a History;225
9.1.2;The Current Moment of Queer Aging in North American Fiction;227
9.1.3;The Future (of Queer Aging) Is Now;229
9.1.4;References;231
10;Index;233