Fat Gay Men
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Fat Gay Men by Jason Whitesel
To be fat in a thin-obsessed gay culture can be difficult. Despite affectionate in-group monikers for big gay men–chubs, bears, cubs–the anti-fat stigma that persists in American culture at large still haunts these individuals who often exist at the margins of gay communities. In Fat Gay Men, Jason Whitesel delves into the world of Girth & Mirth, a nationally known social club dedicated to big gay men, illuminating the ways in which these men form identities and community in the face of adversity. In existence for over forty years, the club has long been a refuge and 'safe space' for such men. Both a partial insider as a gay man and an outsider to Girth & Mirth, Whitesel offers an insider's critique of the gay movement, questioning whether the social consequences of the failure to be height-weight proportionate should be so extreme in the gay community. This book documents performances at club events and examines how participants use allusion and campy-queer behavior to reconfigure and reclaim their sullied body images, focusing on the numerous tensions of marginalization and dignity that big gay men experience and how they negotiate these tensions via their membership to a size-positive group. Based on ethnographic interviews and in-depth field notes from more than 100 events at bar nights, café klatches, restaurants, potlucks, holiday bashes, pool parties, movie nights, and weekend retreats, the book explores the woundedness that comes from being relegated to an inferior position in gay hierarchies, and yet celebrates how some gay men can reposition the shame of fat stigma through carnival, camp, and play. A compelling and rich narrative, Fat Gay Men provides a rare glimpse into an unexplored dimension of weight and body image in American culture.
[A]n interesting look at how a doubly marginalized population negotiates and reconstructs stigma by coming together to perform ritualistic acts in order to regain a consciousness of normalcy in their livesIts an important source for understanding the subjective experience of being fat, suffering as an interactive experience, and the reactive comportment to size discrimination in gay society. * Communication Booknotes Quarterly *
This examination offatgaymen, a marginalized and stigmatized group within the already marginalized and stigmatized group of homosexualmenin general, is a critical missing piece in GLBTQ studies . . . [a] valuable contribution for those interested infatstudies as well asgaystudies. * Choice *
This examination offatgaymen, a marginalized and stigmatized group within the already marginalized and stigmatized group of homosexualmenin general, is a critical missing piece in GLBTQ studies . . . [a] valuable contribution for those interested infatstudies as well asgaystudies. * Choice *
Jason Whitesel is Associate Professor of Sociology and Women's Gender and Sexuality Studies at Illinois State University and the author Fat Gay Men: Girth, Mirth, and the Politics of Stigma.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780814724125 |
| ISBN 10 | 0814724124 |
| Title | Fat Gay Men |
| Author | Jason Whitesel |
| Series | Intersections |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | New York University Press |
| Year published | 2014-07-25 |
| Number of pages | 192 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |