Conceptual and Spatial Migrations: Rural Gay Men's Quest for Identity
Résumé
This chapter explores the link between the construction of sexual identity, expressions of masculinity and mobility practices between rural and urban spaces in two countries, France and the United States. These countries are used for comparative study because both constitute postindustrial societies where rural spaces have undergone significant changes, and whose rural spaces are sources of rural romanticism promoting heterosexuality and marginalizing other sexual orientations. Also, while both countries manifest diversity in rural areas, heterosexual norms and traditional masculinities continue to culturally define them. Based on the life narratives of 30 self-identified rural gay men, this chapter defines how gay men (mostly White working-or middle-class) build their sense of self through back-and-forth movements between urban and rural settings. By contrasting French and American case studies, we present the significant, but nonetheless ambivalent, role of the city in the building of their sexual identity. We argue that the sexual identity construction of our research participants does not happen through experience in the city, but rather, it is a process occurring through their movement within and between rural and urban spaces. In conclusion, we highlight, in contrast to previous studies, that the impetus to rural return for these men is based in the adapted values, traditions and representations of the rural space.
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