The Quest for a Ukrainian Queer Literary Canon

• In Event: Queer Ukraine: Culture, Literature, Legislation

Abstract

The Ukrainian queer community has been gaining increasing cultural visibility and social acceptance, with the process sped up in the context of resistance against Russia’s full-scale invasion and Russia’s homophobic state policies. As contemporary authors find their voice and explore the predicaments faced by today’s queer Ukrainians, they reach out for inspiration and models to emulate both internationally and within the domestic tradition. Similarly to other minority communities, they seek to uncover a tradition that was lost or buried due to multiple factors of social repression. This paper explores such attempts and the evolution this quest has undergone over the past couple of decades.

Author

• Vitaly Chernetsky, U of Kansas