Gay men and drag: Dialogical resistance to hegemonic masculinity

Abstract

Hegemonic masculinity has been a valuable theoretical approach to understanding ways in which cultures coax members to conform to the requisites of dominant masculinity. However, it has difficulty explaining individual resistances to hegemonic pressures. This paper is one in a series of projects which have identified communities that explicitly defy traditional masculinity norms in order to understand the psychosocial methodologies employed to accomplish resistance within the systemic pressures of hegemonic masculinity. We utilized dialogical self theory as a model to investigate how a gay male drag theater troupe negotiates masculinity in order to understand how that negotiation can help resist dominant discourses of masculinity and form community.