Emo Gay Boys and Subculture: Postpunk Queer Youth and (Re)thinking Images of Masculinity

Abstract

This is an exploration of gay youth subculture and emo boys. The study is a mesh of findings and related theoretical understandings about gay emo subculture, masculinities, style, and alternative gay youth. This study looks at gay male teenagers who identify with emo, a movement that stems from music and aesthetics creating a particular visual for these young people. The study is concerned with the larger ramifications of desire, gender, and queer life for young people who associate with emo. The analyses will move through a lexicology of what gay emo can be, an understanding of the aesthetics of gay emo youth subculture, and a reconsideration of notions of marginality within mainstream gay community. The piece will position youth and difference in a very pivotal way to explore the problematic hegemonies of fictionalized/fetishized masculinity within the gay community. The result will be an exploration of alternative queer youth as a cornerstone for contemporary gay “identities.”

KEYWORDS:

• Emo
• gay
• gender
• masculinity
• postpunk
• representation
• subculture
• United Kingdom

I want to thank the students who responded to my blogs, the young people who guided me through my attempt to create a foundation for the arguments, theories, and questions posed throughout this project. Moreover, I want to express my deepest thanks to Dr. Robyn Diner, who helped with the research and parts of the editing process.