Tongzhi living
Subtitle: men attracted to men in postsocialist China
By: Tiantian Zheng
Publisher: Univ Of Minnesota Press
Published: 2015
Language: eng
Number of pages: 244
ISBN-13: 9780816691999; 9780816692002
Subjects: Heterosexual men; Sexual behavior; Attitudes; Men
Description: Offers insights into the community of same-sex-attracted men in the metropolitan city of Dalian in northeast China. Zheng reveals an array of coping mechanisms developed by tongzhi men in response to rapid social, cultural, and political transformations in postsocialist China. Unlike gay men in the West during the past three decades, tongzhi men in China have adopted the prevailing moral idea of heterosexuality and pursued membership in the dominant culture while also endeavoring to establish a tongzhi culture. They are, therefore, caught in a constant tension of embracing and contesting normality as they try to create a new and legitimate space for themselves, paradoxically undercutting the goals they aspire to reach, perpetuating social prejudice against them, and thwarting activism they believe they are advocating.-- From publisher description.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (pages 209-239) and index.
Table of contents: title: Introduction: a walk in the park; title: A cultural history of same-sex desire in China; title: Popular perceptions of homosexuality in postsocialist China; title: The 1s and the 0s : defining, socializing, and disciplining gender roles in the Tongzhi community; title: The normal postsocialist subject : class, wealth, and money boys; title: Organizing against HIV in China; title: Embracing the heterosexual norm : the double lives of Tongzhi; title: Safe sex among men : condoms, promiscuity, and HIV; title: Conclusion: maybe not marriage : a future free of the closet; title: Acknowledgments; title: Notes; title: Bibliography; title: Index.