Holy Problematics Fabman
How Current Representations Create a Missed Opportunity for Superhero Comics to Aid in Gay Youth Identity Development
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 3653402 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Kyle Bikowski (0000-0003-3639-4438, Louisiana State University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2021 |
| Volume | 30 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 282-291 |
| Publication date | 2021-04-03 |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Gender Studies (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0958-9236 • E-ISSN: 1465-3869 |
| Publisher | Informa UK Limited (PUBLISHER • GB) |
| DOI | 10.1080/09589236.2020.1838889 |
| OpenAlex | W3093566852 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 14 |
Current representations of gay male superheroes miss an opportunity to adequately provide positive representation to gay youth by following a heteronormative framework that promotes further marginalization. One possible solution would be to have more gay individuals writing the gay character storylines. Studies show that graphic novels and comics are valuable resources in aiding gay youth in navigation of their identities in their formative years. A brief history of both gay superheroes and queerly read superheroes in the mainstream comic publishers (DC and Marvel) shows a current lack of positive representation. In this article, I analyse characters written by queer people to see if representation alone was enough to improve the quality of gay heroes. Ultimately, I argue that representation of Iceman of The X-Men, Wiccan and Hulkling of The Young Avengers, and the multiple gay male heroes of The Pride are too tangled in heteronormativity, homonormativity, and gay hegemony to be considered positive. This result suggests that while representation can increase visibility, a new framework for how gay superheroes are represented is necessary to make progress
Aesthetics · Art · Comics · Hegemony · Heteronormativity · Homosexuality · Human sexuality · Literature · Mainstream · Political science · Politics · Pride · Queer · Sexual identity · Sociology · Comics and Graphic Narratives · Digital Games and Media · Gender Studies · Gender, Feminism, and Media
| Citations per year | 0.5 |
|---|---|
| Citation span | 2022 - 2022 (1) |
| Highly cited | No |