My mom was a little weepy. My dad was very logical about it. Once they realized you can't change, they wanted to know that you can be happy and be gay. Once they realized that, they were very cool about it.
John Cameron MitchellRead
Queerness isn't just Lady Gaga and overpriced drinks and fauxhawks. It's James Baldwin and Bea Arthur and Gertrude Stein and Gore Vidal.
Interpretation
What this quote means
Queerness encompasses a diverse range of identities and expressions beyond stereotypes.
In this quote, John Cameron Mitchell emphasizes that queerness is a rich tapestry of cultures, histories, and expressions, not merely a set of surface-level stereotypes. He invokes the names of notable queer figures throughout history to highlight the depth and significance of queer identity, suggesting that understanding queerness requires appreciation of its varied contributions to society, art, and thought.
Themes
QueernessIdentityCultureDiversityHistory
In practice
Example use cases
In a discussion about LGBTQ+ representation in media.
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Thomas MertonRead
Do not delay in coming to grace, but hasten, lest the robber outstrip you, lest the adulterer pass you by, lest the insatiate be satisfied before you, lest the murderer seize the blessing first, or the publican or the fornicator, or any of these violent ones who take the Kingdom of heaven by force (cf. Mt. 11:12). For it suffers violence willingly, and is tyrannized over through goodness.
Gregory Of NazianzusRead
The knife is the most durable, immortal, the most genius thing that man created. The knife was the guillotine; the knife is the universal means of solving all knots; and along the blade of a knife lies the path of paradox - the single most worthy path of the fearless mind.
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No punishment has ever possessed enough power of deterrence to prevent the commission of crimes.
Hannah ArendtRead