The difference is in the detail: negotiating black gay male style in the twentieth-first century
The difference is in the detail: negotiating black gay male style in the twentieth-first century
Drawing upon interviews with British and American men who identify as gay and black, I consider how these individuals negotiate their self-identity as black gay men through their dressed appearance. While acknowledging notions of intersectionality, I explore the ways in which these particular men negotiated their identities within gay and black communities and broader cultures with particular stylistic expressions of fashion-style-dress. I look at these men’s experiences of coming out, discovering the gay scene, the influence of existing styles on gay dress, and appearances in work scenarios. Particularly relevant in the interviews were notions of and negotiations between concepts and manifestations of masculinity and macho, camp and effeminacy. Lastly, comparisons are drawn between black- and white-gay styles to explore the commonalities and differences in gay styles in Britain and America in the twenty-first century.
gay style, black, identities, negotiation, dress, body
39-54
Cole, Shaun
e74cdd05-e4da-46e9-9b25-e13ab0c21a79
29 March 2019
Cole, Shaun
e74cdd05-e4da-46e9-9b25-e13ab0c21a79
Cole, Shaun
(2019)
The difference is in the detail: negotiating black gay male style in the twentieth-first century.
Dress: The Journal of the Costume Society of America, 45 (1), .
(doi:10.1080/03612112.2019.1557833).
Abstract
Drawing upon interviews with British and American men who identify as gay and black, I consider how these individuals negotiate their self-identity as black gay men through their dressed appearance. While acknowledging notions of intersectionality, I explore the ways in which these particular men negotiated their identities within gay and black communities and broader cultures with particular stylistic expressions of fashion-style-dress. I look at these men’s experiences of coming out, discovering the gay scene, the influence of existing styles on gay dress, and appearances in work scenarios. Particularly relevant in the interviews were notions of and negotiations between concepts and manifestations of masculinity and macho, camp and effeminacy. Lastly, comparisons are drawn between black- and white-gay styles to explore the commonalities and differences in gay styles in Britain and America in the twenty-first century.
Text
The Difference is In the Detail
- Accepted Manuscript
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Accepted/In Press date: 7 December 2018
e-pub ahead of print date: 6 March 2019
Published date: 29 March 2019
Keywords:
gay style, black, identities, negotiation, dress, body
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 429029
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/429029
ISSN: 0361-2112
PURE UUID: d249fa20-86ea-40be-a01d-c964979e4ae6
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Date deposited: 19 Mar 2019 17:30
Last modified: 16 Mar 2024 07:40
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