TY - GEN T1 - Willa Cather, queering America T2 - Between men--between women. A1 - Lindemann, Marilee LA - English PP - New York PB - Columbia University Press YR - 1999 UL - https://ebooks.jgu.edu.in/Record/jstor_eba_ocm51952561 AB - Although it has been proven posthumously by scholars that Willa Cather had lesbian relationships, she did not openly celebrate lesbian desire, and even today is sometimes described as homophobic and misogynistic. What, then, can a reassessment of this contentious first lady of American letters add to an understanding of the gay identities that have emerged in America over the past century? As Marilee Lindemann shows in this study of the novelist's life and work, Cather's sexual coming-of-age occurred at a time when a cultural transition was recasting love between women as sexual deviance rather than romantic friendship. At the same time, the very identity of "America" was characterized by great instability as the United States emerged as a modern industrial nation and imperial power. Indeed, both terms, "queer" and "America," achieved fresh ideological potency at the turn of the century. Willa Cather: Queering America is an enlightening unpacking of Cather's writings, from her controversial love letters of the 1890s--in which "queer" is employed to denote sexual deviance--to her epic novels, short stories, and critical writings. Lindemann points to the "queer" qualities of Cather's fiction--rebellion against traditional fictional form, with sometimes unlikable characters, lack of emphasis on heroic action, and lack of engagement in the drama of heterosexual desire OP - 185 CN - PS3505.A87 Z724 1999eb SN - 0231500270 SN - 9780231500272 SN - 1282871846 SN - 9781282871847 SN - 9780231113250 SN - 0231113250 SN - 9786612871849 SN - 6612871849 SN - 0231113242 SN - 9780231113243 KW - Cather, Willa, : 1873-1947 : Views on sexual orientation. KW - Cather, Willa, : 1873-1947 KW - Homosexuality and literature : United States : History : 20th century. KW - Feminism and literature : United States : History : 20th century. KW - Women and literature : United States : History : 20th century. KW - Lesbians : United States : Intellectual life. KW - Love-letters : History. KW - Sexual orientation in literature. KW - Homosexualité et littérature : États-Unis : Histoire : 20e siècle. KW - Femmes et littérature : États-Unis : Histoire : 20e siècle. KW - Lesbiennes : États-Unis : Vie intellectuelle. KW - Lettres d'amour : Histoire. KW - Orientation sexuelle dans la littérature. KW - LITERARY CRITICISM : American : General. KW - Feminism and literature KW - Homosexuality and literature KW - Lesbians : Intellectual life KW - Love-letters KW - Sexual orientation KW - Sexual orientation in literature KW - Women and literature KW - United States KW - 1900-1999 KW - History ER -