Queer Theory has often been described in critical views as studying gender and sexuality in people. It’s been the subject of studying queer people prominent in the LGBT+ community. Politics surely have a field day when discussing Queer Theory, but it’s also very prominently discussed in modern media forms of entertainment. Within the last ten years, Hollywood, the Internet, and other waves of creative expression have been successful in delivering high-quality shows and movies featuring queer characters and couples. These characters paved a new length of redefining couple tropes commonly seen in older media, introducing the audience to new types of characters and giving queer couples a chance to sign in modern media and literature.
According to Gediminas Lesutis, their “ new interpretation of queer theory that is undertaken without explicitly centring sexuality or normativity traditionally associated with queer studies as a theoretically and practically engaged body of knowledge (Lesutis 392). We have adapted to a certain norm in the thousands of years for as long as we’ve had fiction and literature. Typical romantic stories we hear regularly include a masculine man falling in love with a feminine lady, with personalities between the two ranging depending on the character. With the rise of technology in the past 100 years, our minds have been introduced to the waves of showcasing these stories on the big screen in television and movies. Things took a bigger turn with the rise of the internet in the 1990s. Within the past 24 years, waves of new content have spread in the world, either in literature, Hollywood cinema, or independent content online.
The internet paved the way for people of all talents to share their skills with those who click online and like posts. It also ensured thoughts that are generally ignored by peers in real life get shared with others who might feel the same way. In later years, especially in the 2020s, queer expression has been more prominent in our daily lifestyle as there is an abundance of people coming out both in terms of gender and sexuality expression. This trend has been a hot topic of discussion, especially online and in the media. Along with the rise of the internet and tales of queer people coming out, there have been multiple forms of literature (Books, comics, television, streaming, and movies) that have shown positive queer representation. This trend has extended to forms of entertainment for kids and adults.
Animation has been a home for expressing queer representation in terms of the characters and pairs they use. This resents mainly the queer community as, just like those who suffer from neglect and bad stereotyping, animation is constantly referred to as a genre for kids instead of being recognized as an art medium loved by people of all ages. “Thinking that adults “endure” animated films just for the sake of their children is also blatantly false. Animated movies for younger audiences have something to offer to people of all ages, such as stunning visuals and impactful messages” (Edwards). That’s why it’s important to recognize that just because something looks like it caters to one thing, it shouldn’t be turned into a common stereotype for everyone to think.
Queer theory has given us an idea of how to rethink stereotypes in the media. Having an open mind to new types of character tropes helps us adapt to different ways to write new and unique characters. “With my reading of queer theory, I similarly do not suggest that sexuality or normativity can (or should) be disentangled from the social. Nevertheless, my proposition is that, whilst (sexual) normativities inevitably form a part of social life, we can productively do queer theory-inspired work without having to necessarily foreground them as the focus of a queer endeavour (Lesutis 393). These kinds of queer characters can help with relating to queer audiences as well. “ A mirror opportunity occurs when readers get to relate to what is read through reflective interactions with the characters” (Logan 33). Without the ability to relate to fictional characters, we would struggle to have audiences learn how to accept themselves for who they are and make them feel like they’re not alone.
A prime example of redefined tropes in media is how to identify the “fictional queer couple.” This couple stems from having general characteristics that differentiate them from common couples found in media. The first person in the pair would have a tough, authoritative role. But instead of taking on the tougher, in-control traits of a masculine partner, they would attribute to feminine characteristics, such as sweet, happy-go-lucky personalities and more expressive emotions. Their partner would be feminine, but they would attribute to masculine traits, such as tougher, serious, and aggressive mannerisms. Regardless of the sex, the traits would be expressed through the queer couple.
Notable examples come from Vivianne Medrano’s independent shows Hazbin Hotel (2024) and Helluva Boss (2019), both share strong queer representation and queer couple leads, female and male in that order. The leads for Hazbin Hotel are Charlie Morningstar, the sweet happy-go-lucky princess of Hell, and Vaggie, a serious, short-tempered, and warrior-driven fallen angel who’s in a healthy relationship with Charlie. In Helluva Boss, the leads are male, with Blitzo, a former clown turned freelance assassin boss, and Stolas, a demon prince of Ars Goetia who falls for Blitzo despite their demon species segregation. No healthy relationship is happening at the moment, but they do sleep together to keep a deal intact. So far, the ship itself is one-sided with each side going through the arc of coming to terms with their relationship and finding the best way to move forward.
The case of the sweet partner and tougher partner regardless of sex has been used in other forms of media. Notable couples examples include Adora and Catra of She Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018), Harley Quinn and Poison Ivy from Harley Quinn (2019), Princess Bubblegum and Marceline the Vampire Queen of Adventure Time (2010) Terry and Korvo of Solar Opposites (2020), and Ballister and Ambrosius of Nimona (2023). “This criterion is best defined when YA queer literature reflects the achievements, self-awareness, and tenacity of queer characters” (Logan 33). All of these cannon queer couples face the struggles of accepting themselves as they are before coming to accept each other. Most of these characters go through either seasons or 180 minutes of overcoming their problems regarding how they behaved in the world or how the world treated them.
The characteristics between queer partners can also be reversed in terms of appearance and personality depending on the character. One person will display feminine traits such as sweet and sensitive personalities while supporting shorter hair. The second partner will display tougher and more serious tones like a masculine figure but have longer, feminine-styled hair. One example includes the bisexual and lesbian couple Luz and Amity from The Owl House (2020). Luz is the sweet personality expressive partner while bearing shorter male-length hair and Amity has a serious personality while having longer, shoulder-length feminine hair. Another example is the gay couple Stede and Ed from Our Flag Means Death (2023). Stede has shorter hair with a sensitive, almost elegant personality while Ed has longer hair, but is very brutish, serious, and violent.
While a majority of these characters found solace in one another to defy stereotypical norms in all forms of fictional media, they also paved the way to create new forms of storytelling in media. Stephanie R. Logan makes it clear that “The YA literature that was published over the next two decades follows a similar pattern of protagonists seeking visibility, voice acceptance, and rights” (Logan 30). Extending from works of animation or live-action filming, queer stories tell numerous messages about how one needs to accept themselves for who they are and inspire others to do the same without rules and strict systems telling them otherwise. It’s unfair to let those systems tell you otherwise and vouch for who you should be in life.
Storytelling has been a prime way to inspire others to fight for the right thing and never let bad consequences bring you down. If queer people were forced to stay in the closet because of those people who think who they are is wrong, then it’s another sign that old-fashioned stereotypes are clouding our judgments. “Utopian thinking gets maligned for being naively romantic” (Munoz 27). To avoid stereotypes getting in the way of queer people’s rights, then we have to keep telling queer stories to remind people that there’s no harm in loving a person of similar sex, identifying as a gender you weren’t born with, and so on. “The components of this task can be accomplished by having students analyze, research, and respond to homophobia with letter writing, survey research, volunteer activities, or even lobbying of politicians” (Logan 40). Queer Theory has helped with bringing out queer characters for the world to see thanks to the expansion of the internet and media, and continuing those trends will ensure old stereotypes are gone and new ones will help teach a new generation how to make the world better.
Works Cited
Lesutis, Gediminas. “Queering as (Un)Knowing: Ambiguities of Sociality and
Infrastructure.” Progress in Human Geography, vol. 47, no. 3, June 2023, pp.
392–408. EBSCOhost,
https://doi-org.libproxy.plymouth.edu/10.1177/03091325231173564.
Logan, Stephanie R., et al. “Criteria for the Selection of Young Adult Queer Literature.”
English Journal, vol. 103, no. 5, May 2014, pp30-41. EBSCOhost,
search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=aph&AN=96063954&site=ehost-li
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Edwards, Belen. “Wake up, Oscars: Animation Isn’t Just for Kids.” Mashable, Mashable, 28
Mar. 2022, mashable.com/article/animation-oscars-2022-joke-phil-lord.
Sprockets and Springes 