The “Real Alaskan”

Abstract

Using a cultural studies approach, we connect recent theories on rural masculinities and nostalgia to show how a particular variety of rural Alaskan masculinity becomes dominant and struggles to maintain its dominance even in late capitalist urban spaces. This Alaskan masculinity, we argue, is embedded in landscape and frontier nostalgia, through discourse, images, and practices surrounding the “real Alaskan.” Our examples come from both reflective nostalgia found in classic and contemporary literature about Alaska and restorative nostalgia found in the modern tourist industry. The real Alaskan, a cultural symbol deeply coded as masculine, rural, and white, repudiates—or at least marginalizes—that which is feminine, urban, and Native. We argue that it is not only part of the nation's imagination but also one in which many Alaskans are invested.