Female Masculinity

By J. Jack Halberstam

Book Overview

Masculinity without men. In Female Masculinity Judith Halberstam takes aim at the protected status of male masculinity and shows that female masculinity has offered a distinct alternative to it for well over two hundred years. Providing the first full-length study on this subject, Halberstam catalogs the diversity of gender expressions among masculine women from nineteenth-century pre-lesbian practices to contemporary drag king performances.
Through detailed textual readings as well as empirical research, Halberstam uncovers a hidden history of female masculinities while arguing for a more nuanced understanding of gender categories that would incorporate rather than pathologize them. She rereads Anne Lister's diaries and Radclyffe Hall's The Well of Loneliness as foundational assertions of female masculine identity. She considers the enigma of the stone butch and the politics surrounding butch/femme roles within lesbian communities. She also explores issues of transsexuality among "transgender dykes"-lesbians who pass as men-and female-to-male transsexuals who may find the label of "lesbian" a temporary refuge. Halberstam also tackles such topics as women and boxing, butches in Hollywood and independent cinema, and the phenomenon of male impersonators.
Female Masculinity signals a new understanding of masculine behaviors and identities, and a new direction in interdisciplinary queer scholarship. Illustrated with nearly forty photographs, including portraits, film stills, and drag king performance shots, this book provides an extensive record of the wide range of female masculinities. And as Halberstam clearly demonstrates, female masculinity is not some bad imitation of virility, but a lively and dramatic staging of hybrid and minority genders.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0822322439
• ISBN13: 9780822322436
• Release Date: October 1998
• Publisher: Duke University Press
• Length: 360 Pages
• Weight: 1.36 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.1" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Masculine babe

I had the good pleasure of living across the street from a very masculine gal. She was not very tall, or muscular for that matter but she was all man. Her name was Laurie. Laurie had a buzz haircut, dressed in boy clothes, basketball shorts, tanks, etc. She was killer fine with a broom, a weed whacker, a trimmer, hedger, moving brush and concrete. That half-pint was stronger than any man in the neighborhood including me. I am still amazed by her. I think she eventually married the gal she was living with and took her name for some reason. Laurie was ALL man and I was amazed! This book is spot on my friends.

an important historical analysis

this book will not hold your hand as you discover your masculinity. it will, however, inform you about the bredth and depth of female masculinity from a variety of perspectives. it is thorough in it's look at the affects of class and race and also contains a very interesting and important chapter on the tensions between butch, transgender, and FTM. this book is an important read for any student of women's or queer studies.

In case you're unsure . . .

Halberstam is brilliant, and so is this book.

Insightful analysis of female masculinity

When picking up a book that does not purport to be anything other than academic, one must be prepared for the contents to be just that - academic. Halberstam writes well, her ideas are important, and she adds complexity and insight into several areas of scholarly research and debate. I would strongly recomend this to anyone interested in feminism, gender, difference and social justice.

a great foundational book in the area

This is a good introduction to the topic. Helps you think through the difference between masculinity and maleness. Wish there were more about how race and class effect masculinity.

a stunning history of female masculinity

A highly readable and stunning history of female masculinity in Britain and the USA, considering court cases, literature, film, pop culture and drag king performances. I learned that the most interesting masculinities are not male, and that the history of the occlusion of butchness is a crucial foundation for understanding gender construction of all kinds.