CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2021
| Author | Manos, Emma Louise |
|---|---|
| Title | Imagining Queer Worlds: The uses of queer speculative fiction as a tool for personal validation, empowerment, and understanding |
| Summary | This thesis examines the potential of queer speculative fiction as a tool for queer readers to understand and affirm their own queerness. Through an interview-based ethnography of reading, I explore what makes speculative stories a unique category of literature, including the positive impact of reading escapist fiction and the possibilities of building narrative empathy between texts and readers. Speculative literature can provide queer readers with a much-needed break from their everyday lives, but it can also prompt them to reflect deeply on their own identity. These narratives can also create a sense of validation when readers see themselves in fictional characters, or even discuss their favorite queer stories with fellow fans in online spaces. In presenting this study of a small group of queer readers, I aim to provide a thorough discussion of speculative stories, queerness, and how imagined narratives can make us feel. |
| Supervisor | Lukic, Jasmina |
| Department | Gender Studies MA |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2021/manos_emma-louise.pdf |
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