Description
Book SynopsisThis ground-breaking book explores the experiences of gay men and their understanding of what it meant to be gay in the 20th Century: from when homosexuality was illegal though the less repressed but no less difficult eras of gay liberation and the HIV-AIDS epidemic.
Trade ReviewWinner of The Raewyn Connell Prize 2010, awarded bienially for the best authored first monograph in Australian Sociology
'the most ambitious study of its kind...and one of the most enlightening' - Journal of Australian Studies
'...a thoughtful and detailed work.' - Blaze
'Here is the tale of three waves of gay men - the oldest born in 1922 and the youngest in 1980. It shows just how central age is in social life and how queer worlds have been radically transformed in a very short period of time. It gives us hope. Rich in detail, uplifting and unfussy, this delightful book provides an uneven but undeniable story of progress.' - Ken Plummer, Emeritus Professor of Sociology, University of Essex. Editor of Sexualities, and author of Intimate Citizenship
Table of ContentsIntroduction Collecting and Understanding Gay Life Stories The Coming-Out Stories of the Old Cohort The Coming-Out Stories of the Middle Cohort The Coming-Out Stories of the Young Cohort The 'Scene' Community Life Couple Relationships Friends and Family Life as an Old Gay Man Conclusion Appendix 1: Interview Schedule Appendix 2: The Age Cohorts and the Interviewees
