Citation

Detloff M. J. Lesbian Stud. 2006; 10(1-2): 87-105.

Affiliation

Department of English, Miami University of Ohio, Oxford, OH 45056, USA. detlofmm@muohio.edu

Copyright

(Copyright © 2006, Informa - Taylor and Francis Group)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

16873216

Abstract

Why is it that many of the often-cited narratives about butch, FTM, and/or transgender masculinity happen to be fictions that highlight suffering as a de facto rite of passage for the butch, FTM, or transgendered protagonist? This essay attempts to answer that question, first by outlining the "coherentist assumptions" of lesbian feminism and the forms of gender-policing that cast butch, FTM, and transgendered subjectivities as "false consciousness." It then analyzes the practice of anchoring butch, FTM, and/or transgender identity claims in pain-filled narratives such as "The Well of Loneliness," "Stone Butch Blues," and "Boys Don't Cry." While these narratives do important cultural work-exposing the violence heaped upon butches, FTMs, and transgendered guys-it may be time to imagine alternative narratives that are less invested in suffering as a barometer of masculine authenticity.

Language: en