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What forms of resistance are gay men in France and North America enacting against heteronormativity and homophobia ? And why are they enacting these particular forms of resistance ? To answer these questions , this thesis aims to draw connections between gay men's resistance strategies and larger socio -political phenomena in both France and North American cultures . First I focus on the discursive construction of citizens , both heterosexual and homosexual , in order to illustrate how gay men are relegated to second -class citizenship based on their sexual identities and practices . My focus , here , is cultural citizenship and sexual citizenship , two themes that run throughout this thesis . Next , I use Foucault's theories of knowledge -power to reveal how power relations in society discursively create subject positions , such as 'homosexuals' and 'heterosexuals' , utilizing structures of control , norms , rewards , and punishments in order to champion heterosexuality to the detriment of homosexuality . In order to contest exercises of power , gay men engage in acts of resistance . i examine scholarly debates centered on resistance , and create a list of criterion for overt resistance , which I dub A AVOIR Resistance on account that it includes the characteristics of Action , Alternatives , Visibility , Opposition , Intent , and Recognition . Utilizing my rubric for overt resistance , as well as Foucault's notions of power , I analyze interview transcripts from a sample of gay men in North America and France to reveal that some gay men , living outside of large metropolitan areas , are rejecting hegemonic ideals of 'gayness' and integrating into mainstream heteronormative society . These men are creating what I call 'authentic communities' where many individuals from various backgrounds and lifestyles live together harmoniously based primarily on access to resources rather than identity markers such as sexual identity . this research shows a split between the ways that urban and suburban gay men embody their homosexuality . Since research on gay men focuses on those living in urban areas , my research calls , instead , for focus on suburban gay men and their resistance to homo -normative ideologies of what it means to me gay . |
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