Odd Couples Friendships at the Intersection of Gender and Sexual Orientation

• Main Author: Muraco, Anna (auth)
• Format: Electronic Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Durham, NC Duke University Press 2012
• Subjects: Sociology; Gay; Gender role; Heterosexuality; Homosexuality; Intersectionality; Lesbian; LGBT; Sexual orientation; Social norm
• Online Access: DOAB: download the publication; DOAB: description of the publication

Odd Couples examines friendships between gay men and straight women, and also between lesbians and straight men, and shows how these "intersectional" friendships serve as a barometer for shifting social norms, particularly regarding gender and sexual orientation. Based on author Anna Muraco's interviews, the work challenges two widespread assumptions: that men and women are fundamentally different and that men and women can only forge significant bonds within romantic relationships. Intersectional friendships challenge a variety of social norms, Muraco says, including the limited roles that men and women are expected to play in one another's lives. Each chapter uses these boundary-crossing relationships to highlight how key social constructs such as family, politics, gender, and sexuality shape everyday interactions. Friendship itself-whether intersectional or not-becomes the center of the analysis, taking its place as an important influence on the social behavior of adults.