In this seminar, we will analyze queer life-writing and its positionality within LGBTIQ- identity discourses and activism. By looking at the genre of coming out narratives we will specifically focus on the cultural significance of the term ‘coming out’ and the politics of visibility inherent to it. Additionally, we will address the relevance of the coming out discourse for identity discourses beyond the context of sexual identity.
The following primary texts are to be purchased by seminar participants. Secondary texts will be provided as a reader at the beginning of the seminar.
Audre Lorde. Zami. A New Spelling of My Name. Berkeley: Crossing Press, 1982.
Kenny Fries. Body, Remember. A Memoir. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, [1997] 2003.
Samuel R. Delany. The Motion of Light in Water. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press,
[1989] 2004.
Julia Serano. Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity. Berkeley: Seal Press, 2007.
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