Homophobia as Moral Geography

Authors

  • William L. Leap American University

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1558/genl.v4i2.187

Keywords:

homophobia, agency, geography, gay language

Abstract

Gay men’s stories about homophobic violence will, at times, disguise reference to the persons who initiate harassment and injury. Instead, these stories emphasize the details of location or allow the victim of narrated violence to confirm the status of narrative hero. Each approach to story-telling has noticeable effects on the connections between sexual sameness and violence as displayed within the narrative. This paper examines these approaches to story-telling and their effects on homophobic formation (Leap, introduction, this volume), and traces the broader implications of these narrative styles within contemporary politics of gay visibility, assimilation and whiteness.

Author Biography

  • William L. Leap, American University

    Professor and Chair, Department of Anthropology

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Published

2011-07-20

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Leap, W. L. (2011). Homophobia as Moral Geography. Gender and Language, 4(2), 187-220. https://doi.org/10.1558/genl.v4i2.187