Gender-Nonconformity in Late Nineteenth-Century America

Abstract

In modern times, transgender and gender nonconforming identities are under attack. Many detractors have tried to argue that trans and nonbinary identities have not existed until the past decade, and disproving that had been a major part of my goal in creating this paper at first. However, when actually researching gender in the realm of history, I discovered that there’s so much more nuance to be had when finding figures from the past that did not align as traditionally male or female. These people did exist, and lived full and interesting lives. But trying to find details about these marginalized peoples’ conception of themselves during a time when their existence was taboo has proven incredibly difficult. This paper analyzes a series of specific case studies of Americans in the late 1800s, and takes a poststructuralist approach at examining how they would have perceived themselves and their identity within the world that condemned them.