Scandinavian Homosexualities offers non-Scandinavian readers a rare opportunity to explore the history, sociology, notions, experiences, and cultural politics of homosexuality in Scandinavian societies in English. This unique insight into some of the most advanced countries in regard to institutionalized civil rights for lesbians and gays will help you direct change and progress in your own country. Chapters in Scandinavian Homosexualities draw from a range of theoretical and methodological strands to give you an overall picture of homosexuality in Scandinavian society. They cover a wide range of issues, including: traditions and practices in the legal regulation of same-sex sexuality the historically changing understanding of femininity and masculinity physical, social, and cultural niches of same-sex desire and sexual conduct theoretical approaches to individual experiences of sexual and erotic self In Scandinavian Homosexualities, you’ll come to see the cultural and social differences that exist between Scandinavian and Anglo-American societies. Specifically, you’ll see how differences in the culture of gender and sexuality may bear upon our scholarly theories and conceptualizations of homosexuality and on our analysis of sexual and gender politics. In many of the chapters there is, thus, an agenda to encourage comparisons among Western societies. The Scandinavian countries are among the most advanced in the world with regard to institutionalized civil rights of lesbians and gays. They are also, which is relevant for analyses of sexuality and homosexuality, societies where men and women are exceptionally equal in access to social, economic, and cultural resources. You can directly apply what you learn in Scandinavian Homosexualities of the cultural specificities of gender and sexuality in Scandinavian societies to your efforts to establish equality for same-sex relationships within your own culture.

Queer in Europe takes stock of the intellectual and social status and treatment of queer in the New Europe of the twenty-first century, addressing the ways in which the Anglo-American term and concept 'queer' is adapted in different national contexts, where it takes on subtly different overtones, determined by local political specificities and intellectual traditions. Bringing together contributions by carefully chosen experts, this book explores key aspects of queer in a range of European national contexts, namely: Belgium, Cyprus, England, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, The Nordic Region, The Netherlands, Poland, Russia and Spain. Rather than prescribing a universalizing definition, the book engages with a wide spectrum of what is meant by 'queer', as each chapter negotiates the contested border between direct queer activist action based on identity categories, and more plural queer strategies that call these categories into question. The first volume in English devoted to the exploration of queer in Europe, this book makes an important intervention in contemporary queer studies.

The revised edition of The Gay and Lesbian Literary Heritage is a reader's companion to this impressive body of work. It provides overviews of gay and lesbian presence in a variety of literatures and historical periods; in-depth critical essays on major gay and lesbian authors in world literature; and briefer treatments of other topics and figures important in appreciating the rich and varied gay and lesbian literary traditions. Included are nearly 400 alphabetically arranged articles by more than 175 scholars from around the world. New articles in this volume feature authors such as Michael Cunningham, Tony Kushner, Anne Lister, Kate Millet, Jan Morris, Terrence McNally, and Sarah Waters; essays on topics such as Comedy of Manners and Autobiography; and overviews of Danish, Norwegian, Philippines, and Swedish literatures; as well as updated and revised articles and bibliographies.

This book provides a coherent history of criminal law and homosexuality in Scandinavia from 1842 to 1999, a period during which same-sex love was outlawed or subject to severe legal restrictions in the Scandinavian penal codes. This was the case in most countries in Northern Europe, but the book argues that the development in Scandinavia was different, partly determined by the structure of the welfare state. Five experienced scholars of the history of homosexuality describe how same-sex desire has been regulated in their respective countries during the past 160 years. With backgrounds in history, sociology, and gender studies, the contributors represent an interdisciplinary approach. Their contributions present for the first time a comprehensive history of homosexuality in Scandinavia. Among other things, it includes the most extensive study yet written in any language about Iceland's gay and lesbian history. Also for the first time, the book discusses in detail same-sex sexuality between women. Female homosexuality was outlawed in Eastern Scandinavia, but not in the Western parts of this region. It also analyzes the modern tendency to include lesbian women in the criminal aspect of the medicalization of homosexuality and the growing influence of medical discourse on the law. Jens Rydstrm is lecturer in history, particularly gender history, at Stockholm University (Sweden) and the author of Sinners and Citizens: Bestiality and Homosexuality in Sweden, 18801950. He is currently working on the history of laws on registered partnership in the Nordic countries. Kati Mustola is a research fellow at the Department of Sociology of the University of Helsinki (Finland). She is currently involved in research on the situation of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgender people in the workplace. She also specializes in Finnish lesbian and gay history. She has edited several books in lesbian and gay studies and for many years was responsible for the teaching of lesbian studies at the Christina Institute for Women's Studies at the University of Helsinki.

Since the publication of Vito Russo's seminal study The Celluloid Closet in 1981, much has been written about the representation of queer characters on screen. Until now, however, relatively little attention has been paid to how queer sexualities were portrayed in films from the silent and early sound period. By looking in detail at a succession of recently-found films and revisiting others, Shane Brown examines images of male-male intimacy, buddy relationships and romantic friendships in European and American films made prior to 1934, including Different from the Others and All Quiet on the Western Front. He places these films within their socio-political and scientific context and sheds new light on how they were intended to be viewed and how they were actually perceived. In doing so, Brown offers his readers a unique insight into a little known area of early cinema, queer studies and social history.

A unique, multifaceted look at the meaning (and the specifics) of gay male pornography Open any “gay lifestyle” magazine (even the serious ones) or go to any gay bar, and you’re likely to encounter something related to pornography, be it an image of a porn “superstar” or advertisements for pornographic magazines, DVDs, calendars, etc. Eclectic Views on Gay Male Pornography Pornucopia examines this phenomenon with a series of provocative essays, in which experts in history, law, media studies, and psychology, as well as laypeople and gay porn insiders explore the complex world of male pornography and the various ways in which it has permeated gay culture—from the 1970s until today. This first-of-its-kind book examines the phenomenon of self-writing and performance for gay men in the last century, specifically looking at the lives of modern-day performance artist Tim Miller, who has received national recognition for his one-man shows portraying his struggles as a gay man; Wakefield Poole (born 1936), the first producer of gay pornography (Bijou, Boys in the Sand) in the era accompanying the emergence of the gay rights movement; gay adult film icon Scott “Spunk” O’Hara (born 1961); and Aaron Lawrence (born 1971), who worked as a gay escort, actor, and producer/director of his own sexually explicit “amateur” videos. In this groundbreaking analysis of gay men’s relationship with pornography, you’ll also learn about: gay pornography and the messages it carries about intimacy, body image, and hegemonic masculinity representations of ethnicity in gay pornography gay pornography and safer sex gay pornography and censorship viewers’ perceptions of gay pornography gay pornography and internalized homophobia, misogyny, and body fascism changes in the way gay pornography is produced and performed—from the 1970s through the 1990s the meaning of the recurring settings in American gay pornographic videos: prison, the military, and other all-male environments; and recurring themes: leather, S/M, dissatisfaction with heterosexual life, initiation into gay life, etc. In addition, Eclectic Views on Gay Male Pornography presents two fascinating chapters about the case of Little Sisters Book and Art Emporium in Vancouver. In this landmark case, the Canadian Supreme Court was asked to determine whether gay male pornography violated the sex equality protections guaranteed by the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The court also examined the way that Canada Customs treats international shipments to gay and lesbian bookstores. In addition, the book provides a revealing insider’s perspective on the gay adult video industry that contrasts the workaday reality of making porn with the glamorous mythology of the skin trade.

Learn what resources are needed for lesser-recognized LGBT health issues Most literature that explores LGBT health issues concentrates on HIV/AIDS while leaving research studies on other vital issues lacking. Current Issues in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health addresses this inadequacy by presenting a broad range of LGBT health issues from an interdisciplinary and mixed-method perspective. Leading experts present both quantitative and qualitative descriptions of health issues among various population groups, focusing on those topics poorly represented in present-day literature. This book is a strong start to fill in the blanks about unrealized health issues of LGBT individuals and offers insights into the resources needed to address them. Methods to assess sexual orientation and gender identity are not normally found in most population-based research. Because of the diversity within the relatively small LGBT population, research has been forced to generalize, making it less likely to effectively contribute to quality health issue data for these individuals. The research presented in Current Issues in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health takes particular care to specify how the orientation and sexual identity of study participants was measured. This book carefully mines previously unrevealed health disparities among LGBT populations across a broad spectrum of diseases—beyond the standard focus on HIV/AIDS. The most current and important studies are presented, including rare research on transgender health issues. The chapters are extensively referenced, and several include figures and tables to clarify and enhance understanding of the information. The wide range of topics in Current Issues in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health include: the inclusion of sexual orientation questions in research studies comparison of mental health issues between women of different sexual orientations mental health issues among men of different sexual orientations and HIV status in Australia the impact of sexual identity distress and social support in GLBT youth issues transgender youth health issues female-to-male (FTM) transexuals’ experiences accessing health care research on LBT domestic violence survivors health needs of male-to-female (MTF) transgenders of color Current Issues in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Health is crucial, thought-provoking reading for researchers working in LGBT health, public health professionals working in community health and LGBT health, policymakers, advocates, public health and community health faculty, and students interested in LGBT health issues.