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Transgender and Intersex: Theoretical, Practical, and Artistic Perspectives Read chapter Read first chapter

2016 | OriginalPaper | Chapter

10. On the Intelligibility of Trans* and Intersex Characters in Contemporary British and American Fiction

Author : Mirjam M. Frotscher

Published in: Transgender and Intersex: Theoretical, Practical, and Artistic Perspectives

Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan US

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Abstract

The past decades have seen an unmistakable uptick in fiction starring trans* or intersex characters. The entrance of trans* and intersex characters into fictional space can potentially open up new narrative possibilities in representing characters who were, and sometimes still are, deemed hard to portray or seen as entirely unintelligible. Focusing on three novels in particular, Stone Butch Blues (1993) by Leslie Feinberg, Trumpet (1998) by Jackie Kay, and Middlesex (2002) by Jeffrey Eugenides, this paper traces the different modes of representation used in the novels, the way all three differ in their approach to their trans* and intersex protagonists, the concepts of gender, sex, and sexuality underlying these narratives, and to which degree the trans* and intersex lives are deemed viable and intelligible.

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Metadata
Title
On the Intelligibility of Trans* and Intersex Characters in Contemporary British and American Fiction
Author
Mirjam M. Frotscher
Copyright Year
2016
Book
Transgender and Intersex: Theoretical, Practical, and Artistic Perspectives

Print ISBN: 978-1-137-54352-3

Electronic ISBN: 978-1-349-71325-7

Copyright Year: 2016

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1057/978-1-349-71325-7_10