The Culture of Queers

Author(s): Richard Dyer

Art | Creativity | Fine Art

For around a hundred years up to the Stonewall riots, the word used for gay men was 'queers'. In The Culture of Queers, Richard Dyer traces the contours of queer culture, examining the differences and continuities with the gay culture which succeeded it.


Opening with a discussion of the very concept of 'queers', Dyer asks what it means to speak of a sexual grouping having a culture, and addresses issues such as gay attitudes to women and the notion of camp. Dyer explores a range of queer-made culture, from key topics such as fashion and vampires to genres like film noir and the heritage film, and stars such as Charles Hawtrey (outrageous star of Carry On films) and Rock Hudson. 


Offering a grounded historical approach to the cultural implication of queerness, The Culture of Queers both insists on the cultural consequences of the oppression of homosexual men and offers a celebration of queer resistance. cultural production, examining genres from vampire films to film noir and heritage cinema, and offering queer readings of filmmakers such as Visconti, Fassbinder and Pasolini, and stars like Rock Hudson and Charles Hawtrey.


Product Information

Richard Dyer is Professor of Film Studies at the University of Warwick. His books include White: Essays on Race and Culture (Routledge 1997), The Matter of Images (Routledge 1993) and Now You See It (1990).

General Fields

  • : 9780415223768
  • : Routledge
  • : Routledge
  • : December 2001
  • : books

Special Fields

  • : Richard Dyer
  • : Paperback
  • : English
  • : 306.76/6
  • : 256