Sissy! : the effeminate paradox in postwar US literature and culture Introduction: Saying Oh yeah! to sissies: fascinating effeminacy defined The sympathetic sissy: Carson McCullers Truman Capote and fascinating effeminacy in postwar US literature The straight acting gay man versus the truth telling queen: Gore Vidal James Baldwin and gay mens debates about effeminacy I [heart] boys who sparkle : straight female fandom and fascinating effeminacy Amplifying the paradox: effeminacy in the age of HIV AIDS The sissy triumphant : fascinating effeminacy goes mainstream Conclusion: Our makeup is terrible but I love you anyway : why fascinating effeminacy matters in the twenty first century