Beyond the Closet The Transformation of Gay and Lesbian Life

Gay life has become increasingly open in the last decade. In "Beyond the Closet," acclaimed author and social critic Steven Seidman presents a unique and invaluable chronicle of this lifestyle change and to look at the lives of contemporary gays and lesbians to see how their "out" status has been altered. Powered by the raw, honest stories of today's gay men and women and analysis of gays in recent films and in popular culture, Seidman shows how the closet is a twentieth-century historical oddity, one that could only exist in a period that combined a strong sense of gay identity with oppressive antigay discrimination.

This compelling, well-written and intelligent account is an important step forward for the gay and lesbian community.

Gay life has become increasingly open in the last decade. In Beyond the Closet , Steven Seidman, a well-known author and leading scholar in sexuality, is the first to chronicle this lifestyle change and to look at the lives of contemporary gays and lesbians to see how their "out" status has changed. This compelling, well-written, and smart account is an important step forward for the gay and lesbian community.

Acknowledgments Introduction In the Closet Gay and Lesbian Life after the Closet Straight Encounters From the Polluted Homosexual to the Normal Gay From Outsider to Citizen Epilogue Appendix Notes Index

Steven Seidman is Professor of Sociology at the State University of New York at Albany, and an expert on sexuality and social theory. His many books include Embattled Eros: Sexual Politics and Ethics in Contemporary America, Romantic Longings: Love in America, 1830-1980, and The Handbook of Gay and Lesbian Studies.