Turns Out, We Really Are Everywhere: A Queer Critical Content Analysis of Middle-Grade Rural Books

• In Event: Embracing Place and Identity: Culturally Relevant and Inclusive Pedagogies in Rural Education

Abstract

This queer critical content analysis study examines a subset of middle-grade novels set in rural places featuring queer protagonists. We apply Ahmed’s (2005) queer phenomenology theory to our examination of the representation of intersectional rural/LGBTQ+ identities, paying special attention to the books’ taking up or disrupting familiar tropes of metronormativity (Halberstam, 2005)—the notion that rural LGBTQ+ individuals must relocate to urban areas to find acceptance (Gray, et al., 2016). Findings reveal adherence to certain stereotypes of rural intolerance toward queerness, with characters’ fathers, especially, exhibiting marked disapproval of their sons’ expressions of traits typically considered feminine. However, our analysis reveals intention on the part of authors and publishers to share more nuanced, inclusive representations of youth’s queer rural experiences.

Authors

• Rachelle Kuehl, Virginia Tech

• Karen Eppley, Pennsylvania State University

• Matthew Panozzo, University of Memphis