Non-Normative Masculinities in Carson McCullers’s The Ballad Of The Sad Café

Abstract

Normative masculinity has historically been defined as white masculinity staged by white, middle-class, heterosexual, able-bodied men. This model has been exclusively based on the (able-bodied) male body, and therefore non-male and disabled men have been prevented access to privilege, and they have confronted the forms of social oppression. By drawing insights from masculinity studies and disability studies, this article analyzes Carson McCullers's The Ballad of the Sad Café (1951) and examines her portraits of non-normative masculinities through the non-male and the disabled men, revealing much about the limitations of hegemonic masculinity and the contradictions present in the American South. The article not only considers how McCullers replaces normative, white, able-bodied masculinity in the novel but also discusses how Miss Amelia and Cousin Lymon construct their versions of masculinity, as each bypasses the assumptions surrounding their gender expressions. By rejecting normativity, avoiding heteronormative constraints, and disrupting gender binaries, Miss Amelia and Cousin Lymon gain agency, authenticity, and independence and actuate positive change in a bigoted southern society that is no longer the prefecture of only white able-bodied men.

Keywords

• Carson McCullers
• The Ballad of the Sad Café
• masculinity studies
• disability studies
• non-normative masculinities

Carson McCullers’ın The Ballad Of The Sad Café Eserinde Normatif Olmayan Erkeklikler

Abstract

Normatif erkeklik, tarihsel olarak beyaz, orta sınıf, heteroseksüel, engelli olmayan erkekler tarafından benimsenen beyaz erkeklik olarak tanımlanmıştır. Bu model yalnızca (engelli olmayan) erkek bedenine dayandırılmıştır ve bu nedenle erkek olmayan ve engelli erkeklerin ayrıcalıklara erişimi engellenmiş ve çeşitli sosyal baskı biçimleriyle karşı karşıya kalmışlardır. Bu makale, erkeklik çalışmaları ve engellilik çalışmalarından yararlanarak, Carson McCullers'ın Küskün Kahvenin Türküsü (1951) adlı eserini analiz eder ve erkek olmayan ve engelli erkekler aracılığıyla normatif olmayan erkeklik portrelerini inceleyerek hegemonik erkekliğin sınırlamaları ve Amerikan Güneyi'nde mevcut çelişkiler hakkında çok şey ortaya çıkarır. Makale yalnızca McCullers'ın romanda normatif, beyaz, engelli olmayan erkekliği değiştirme biçimini ele almakla kalmaz, aynı zamanda Miss Amelia ve Cousin Lymon'ın her biri kendi cinsiyet ifadelerini yönelik varsayımları bertaraf eden kendi erkeklik versiyonlarını nasıl oluşturduklarını da tartışır. Miss Amelia ve Cousin Lymon, normatifliği reddederek, heteronormatif kısıtlamalardan kaçınarak ve cinsiyet ikiliklerini bozarak, özgünlük ve bağımsızlık kazanırlar ve artık yalnızca beyaz ve engelli olmayan erkeklerin bölgesi olmayan bağnaz güney toplumunda olumlu bir değişim gerçekleştirirler.

Keywords

• Carson McCullers
• The Ballad of the Sad Café
• erkeklik çalışmaları
• engellilik çalışmaları
• normatif olmayan erkeklikler

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