A collection of notes, titles, citations, thoughts, images, acknowledgements, etc. relating to a senior thesis on the intellectual history of male homosexuality in the 19th century.
Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor
Historiography
In conversation with Nat, Rajiv, and Maddy at lunch today, I found myself wondering if contemporary understanding of what Americans were saying about homosexuality in the fin-de-siècle has anything to do with history’s tendency to privilege men’s experiences, writing, correspondence, etc. over women’s, or with men’s ability to occupy, say, positions in the academy at this time. It could also explain why proto-lesbian intellectual women could get away with homoeroticism in a way that men couldn’t—perhaps they were under less cultural scrutiny? It may bear investigating how the various characters in this story, male and female, have been represented over the past hundred-odd years, and the ways with which gender plays into the telling of this story.
