The Journal of Research on Libraries and Young Adults Volume 8 N.2: December 2017 www.yalsa.ala.org/jrlya Drawing Queerness: Evaluating Notable LGBTQ Graphic Novels for Teens *Dawn Betts-Green, PhD candidate, School of Information, Florida State University
[email protected] Don Latham, professor, School of Information, Florida State University
[email protected] * Corresponding author Abstract Despite the current growth of graphic novel popularity with teens and the increasing representation of the LGBTQ community in those graphic novels, there has been little work done to evaluate these works in terms of how the LGBTQ characters are presented. Using Jenkins’s adaptations of Lerner’s, Bishop’s, and Chauncey’s frameworks—as well as Jenkins’s own framework that combined these three for use with LGBTQ adolescent literature—the authors tested whether these frameworks were suitable for evaluating LGBTQ graphic novels for teens. Graphic novels deemed exemplary through their inclusion on the Rainbow List, Stonewall Awards, and Lambda Literary Awards were examined. Findings indicated that while these graphic novels offer positive portrayals of LGBTQ individuals, they are lacking in racial and sexual diversity. In addition, the frameworks proved highly useful but not totally sufficient for analyzing graphic materials. Introduction Almost twenty years ago, Christine Jenkins published a groundbreaking article that analyzed young adult novels with gay/lesbian/queer content that had appeared between 1969 and 1997.1 Employing three critical frameworks from other scholars, as well as her own, Jenkins examined approximately one hundred novels to determine the extent to which gay/lesbian/queer characters and their experiences were portrayed realistically.