
Originally Posted by
Oslo
Well, Angels in America immediately comes to mind, especially because it was lauded as this hugely progressive piece upon its debut... and still is often seen as such. However, none of its representations of gay males are particularly empowering. I won't spoil it if you haven't read/seen it, but ultimately, not one of the gay male characters (and there are several) is an agent within his own narrative: they're all for the most part weepy, victimized and self-loathing. Now, almost two decades later in the midst of the "It Gets Better" campaign, things are perhaps worse. In an attempt to engender sympathy for the plight of gay teens, the "victimized homosexual" archetype has become ubiquitous in literature/film/television (ohmygod, don't even get me started on friggin' Glee) to the point where homosexuality has become a universal byword for tragedy.