Challenging Heterosexual Norms: A Study On Gentleman Jack From The Perspective Of Queer Theory

Queer theory is a kind of sex/gender theory that emerged in the 1990s in the West.Based on the appeals of freedom and equality,it criticizes the conventional gender concept and advocates an open,fluid and diverse perspective in the issues of sexuality and gender identity,which is of great significance to deconstruct the traditional binary oppositions of male/female and heterosexuality/homosexuality and to eliminate the discrimination and oppression for unconventional identities.Aired in 2019,Gentleman Jack is a queer TV drama based on the true stories and coded journals of Anne Lister.With the help of the theory of Michel Foucault and Judith Butler,this thesis intends to interpret the TV drama Gentleman Jack from the perspective of queer theory.Firstly,it analyzes the oppression from heterosexuality suffered by the two lesbian protagonists Anne Lister and Ann Walker.In the 1830s of Britain,when male homosexual practices were still punished to death and lesbianism had not formed into a common concept,the two lesbian protagonists are disciplined and marginalized by the hostility and rejection from the mainstream society,and then trap in the plight of self-perception influenced by the ingrained notions of“moral sexuality”and“perverse sexuality”.Secondly,it discusses the two lesbians’efforts to master their fates through their transgression of the heterosexual norms.In order to get out of the state of being marginalized,they bravely challenge the social norms through subversive bodily activities of masculine performativity and lesbian sexual practices.Meanwhile,they gradually leave behind the self-doubt and self-denial of their new identity,positively affirming their lesbian ego guided by lesbian desire and true love.Finally,the thesis pays attention to the two lesbians’realization of sexual autonomy and same-sex marital relationship.They finally break through the constraints of heterosexual norms,running for freedom and happiness with their embrace of true self,which embodies the queer appeals of freedom and equality.It is concluded that TV drama Gentleman Jack not only reveals the existence and true life of lesbians in the early 19^thcentury Britain,but also proves the fictionality and compulsory construction of gender coherence,recognizing more possibilities of sexuality and gender beyond the heterosexual matrix.