Morrison Dissertation Final Submission
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Reveling in Uselessness: Queer and Trans Media, Consumptive Labour, and Cultural Capital by Joshua T. Morrison A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Film, Television, and Media) in the University of Michigan 2019 Doctoral Committee: Professor Caryl Flinn, Chair Associate Professor Daniel Herbert Professor Lisa Nakamura Professor Katherine Sender, Cornell University Josh Morrison [email protected] ORCID iD: 0000-0001-6460-2105 © Josh Morrison 2019 For Grammie who taught me to be fabulous and nurtured my passions And, especially, for Grandpa and the virtues he instilled: curiosity patience persistence (And, of course, for Liza) ii Acknowledgements At first, it seemed to me that the old idiom “it takes a village…” was very apt for a dissertation, but having reached the point of submission, I think a more accurate phrase would be that it takes a small army of people supporting you, helping you, listening to you, loving you, and giving you feedback to get from the beginning to the end of this process. I cannot possibly list everyone who has contributed to this project along the way, but know that if you aren’t listed, you are not forgotten, nor is your help, love, and support not appreciated. First, I must start by thanking my mentor, supervisor, friend, and colleague Dr. Caryl Flinn: from recruiting me to the University of Arizona, to helping me get to Michigan, to the uncountable hours she’s put into feedback, professionalization, teaching, writing letters, seeing me through my very best and worst moments, and the millions of other tasks a supervisor takes on, she has been the finest of examples to me. I could never have come so far personally, professionally, or intellectually without her guidance, kindness, and humour. Caryl, my fellow Canuck, you are truly a gem. Thanks also to my committee members, who have provided feedback, support, reference letters, teaching and research opportunities, and many things beyond: Drs. Dan Herbert, Lisa Nakamura, and Katherine Sender. You are a group of rock stars, and I continue to be in awe of your research, your teaching, and your mentorship. Endless appreciation and accolades must go out also to the many other professors who have helped me along the way, especially Dr. Candace Moore, who sat on my committee through iii my early years in FTVM, comprehensive exams, and prospectus. At Michigan, thanks also to: Drs. EJ Westlake, Johannes von Moltke, Markus Nornes, Sheila Murphy, Elizabeth Wingrove, Peggy McCraken, Yeidy Rivero, Richard Abel, Matthew Solomon, and Giorgio Bertellini, who have all taught me seminars that influenced my dissertation work, helped me with the job market and professionalization, or supervised teaching appointments. At the University of Arizona, thanks to Drs. Susan White (my one and only Bear-Cub Bro), Elizabeth Lapovsky Kennedy, Susan Stryker, Adam Geary, and Miranda Joseph. At Western, Drs. Alison Lee, Helen Fielding, Kim Verwaayen, Kim Solga, Chris Roulston, Mary Bunch, Arja Vainio-Mattila, Katherine McKenna, and Colleen Richardson. This dissertation also benefitted greatly from the editorial advice, feedback, and support of Drs. Eliza Steinbock, Cáel M. Keegan, and Laura Horak, the co-editors of the Cinematic Bodies special edition of Somatechnics which parts of Chapter 4 of this dissertation are published in. Big thanks go out to Dr. Ryan Powell, my mentor for the SCMS Queer Caucus Mentorship Program. A special thank you to Drs. Susan Knabe and Wendy Pearson, who adopted me as a baby queer academic, and have always supported me and helped me grow not just as a scholar, but as a person: I love you both endlessly. Thanks also to Susan and Wendy’s dining room table, upon which my dissertation was finished before defence. Finally, the first, and one of the best, teachers I ever had was my childhood and teenage piano teacher, Mrs. Szabo: thank you for everything, especially teaching me how to love and create art. Special thanks must always be given to all the staff who make departments run, and help students like me keep their degrees running, advancing, and happening at the day-to-day level. Thanks especially to Carrie, Mary-Lou, Marga, Lisa, Leigh, Darcy, Laura, and Alicia. My work has been supported by multiple fellowships, writing programs, and seminars and the people who make them vibrant, including: the University of Michigan Institute for the iv Humanities Fellowship Program (special thanks to Laura, Aileen, Duygu, Anna, and Michael), the Sweetland Dissertation Writing Institute, and the Institute for Research on Women and Gender Community of Scholars summer seminar (with a huge hug and thanks to Brady and Chris). From monetary support to invaluable interdisciplinary perspectives, I couldn’t have produced what I have without these opportunities, for which I am supremely grateful. No graduate program experience is complete without colleagues and friends to engage with, debate with, give and receive feedback with, and share experiences, good and bad, with. A special shout-out must be given to my FTVM cohort-mate, Yuki Nakayama, and honourary cohort-mate Orquidea Morales: without you two, I know my sanity wouldn’t have made it through this process with me. Through the years, my graduate school colleagues have meant the world to me. In FTVM: (Uncle?) Mike Arnold, Peter Alilunas, Erin Hannah (the OG FTVM Canadian materialist), Dimitri Pavlounis, Feroz Hassan, Nic Heckner (stars forever), Nathan Koob, Ben Strassfeld (a consummate gentleman), Katy Peplin, Richard Mwakasege-Minaya (a model colleague and friend), Kayti Lausch, Kaelie Thompson, Joe DeLeon, Marissa Spada (dolls rock, just like you!), Vincent Longo, Sean Donovan (loo loo LOOOO!!!!!), James Elrod, Júlia Irion Martins, and Sophia Chen. At Arizona, especially: Zury, Rax, Lisa, Erin, Josh, and the queen of getting shit done, November. Special Tucson love to Laura (who saw TOTWK with me for the very first time), Lauren (Betty would not approve) and Rachel (Shulamith would totally approve). At Western: Nadine, Nadine, Rae, Dana, Robin, Shannon, Mallory, Jacob, Jess, Lee, Althea, Jen, Jen, Kate, Lisa, and Shelly. A special thank you to my dissertation-writing group: Natasha (the best Rocky Horror sidekick and drinking buddy a queen could ask for), Ceclia, and Cheryl. Endless thanks also to the friends and colleagues who have given me their time reading my work, talking through v problems, and offering advice: Allie (the best academic Spice fan…right after me :P), Kady, Michael, Monique, and (of course and forever) Alice. To my partner Viktor: you’ve been there for me more than I could have hoped or dreamed during the final leg of this marathon. Thank for your love, your support, and your understanding: you’re wonderful. To my friends and family, pets and roommates, thank you for your patience, understanding, kindness, support, and love. Sarah, you’ve read and offered constructive criticism on so much of my work, so heaven knows you’ve served your time in the queer theory dungeon; thanks big sis. Mom and Dad, you’ve always been there for me, loved me, and been proud of me, which is a gift not every queer gets given: thank you. Grandpa, you may not have been able to see me defend, but your presence in my life has been unique, special, and one of the greatest gifts I’ve ever received. Vanessa, my sham wife (and my entire shamfam!), you have been the very best to me through the years: I wouldn’t be the person I am without you. To my roommates and neighbours who have brought me joy, talked me down, and otherwise been amazing, especially Tommy, Josiah, Rocco, Charles Shaw, and Pat (the coolest radical BMX biker queer you could ever find), forever thank you. To Liza, the derpy diva queen of my heart, and to He- Man Killface and Foxxxy Schlady, the calmest lizards you could hope for, I love you all. Finally, to everyone above and everyone I couldn’t remember to list in my dissertation- finishing haze, thank you, and I love you. vi Table of Contents Dedication ii Acknowledgments iii List of Figures viii Abstract x By Way of an Introduction Queer Potato: Uselessness and the Lives of Commodities 1 Chapter 1 Queering Use/lessness and Cultural Capital 38 Chapter 2 I Really Really Really Wanna Zig-a-Zig-AH: Spice Kitsch Under Postmodern Capitalism 74 Chapter 3 Ur(sine)texts: BEAR Magazine, The Bear Mailing List, and Produsage as a Site of Identity and Community Formation 128 Chapter 4 Cutting Camp with Killing: “Bad” Feelings, Homeopathy, and Consumptive Camp 198 By Way of a Conclusion Annie’s Eyes: Walking on the Broken Glass of Contemporary Capitalism 252 Bibliography 261 vii List of Figures Figure 1: Pretty Potato 1 Figure 2: Dance Camp 85 Figure 3: A Fabulous Woman 92 Figure 4: Recursive Spice 109 Figure 5: Pastiche Spice 112 Figure 6: BEAR 1 134 Figure 7: Biker Bear 154 Figure 8: Christopher 156 Figure 9: Woofer 163 Figure 10: Gordon 166 Figure 11: Gary 170 Figure 12: Raven 171 Figure 13: Jorge 172 Figure 14: Getting Personal 186 Figure 15: “This is the F*cking Sh*t!” 201 Figure 16: Bubbles Survives 214 Figure 17: “I Blame Society” 225 Figure 18: “You Shouldn’t Need Flashcards for Murder” 229 Figure 19: Boner’s End 240 viii Figure 20: Triumphant (Campy) Ending 243 Figure 21: Annie’s Eyes 253 ix Abstract Reveling in Uselessness: Queer and Trans Media, Consumptive Labour, and Cultural Capital posits and defends a theory of media consumption as sites for the creation and maintenance of queer and trans cultural capital. This occurs around the nexus of uselessness of two varieties, explained in the introduction: media genres, styles, aesthetics, or objects considered useless due to their mass (re)producibility, banality, or niche specificity, and the people who consume them that, due to their marginalized identities, are made to feel “useless” under contemporary capitalism.