One of the initial reactions of "normative" critics approaching Lesbian/Gay/Bisexual/Transexual criticism is, "But I'm not lesbian/gay...how can I have anything to say about this?" Well, in the same way men can try to see (and write) from a feminist perspective, so can we attempt to do so with LGBT concepts. So I invite you to try to expand your perspective--which is really the point of literature in general, isn't it?--learn the concepts and terminology discussed in Chapter 10, and go for it.
So, be bold and get in there. There are a lot of different ways into this theory, so let's start with one that we can all access--that of gender assumptions. Pick a text in which the character either affirms or challenges a gender expectation. I'll give an example: I recently saw Spiderman: Homecoming and there was a point at which a bad guy admitted he thought that the masked Spiderman was a young girl, not a 15-year old boy. That was enough to get me thinking. It kind of reminded me of how Peter Pan, a young boy, is usually portrayed by a woman. It opens up some interesting questions. I also contend that one of Peter Parker's dominant characteristics was his awkwardness, reinforced by being an outcast at the school and repeatedly put in his place by the ultra-virile and masculine Tony Stark. Confidence is a trait that is typically considered a "masculine" trait, one that Iron Man owns in spades, but Peter Parker must don a disguise to affect it, much like a professional woman must adopt "masculine behavior" to make it in the business world. (I am reminded of JAG's Col. Mackenzie's advice on females making in the Marines-"act like a woman, think like a man.") And why does he have such trouble maintaining relationships with women, anyway? (Granted, he usually breaks dates to pursue bad guys, but it happens a LOT.) There are some arrows pointing in unexpected directions here, which bear a closer inspection. It would be a decent entryway into the queer theory concepts of Chapter 10.
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