230095 Queer(ing) Historical Romance (S) (SoSe 2025)

The enormously popular genre of romance fiction has one major requirement: The central couple must live "happily ever after" (or at least "happy for now"). This poses a problem for romance novels set in the past: In the UK, for example, homosexual activity between consenting men over 21 was only decriminalised in 1967. Contemporary authors who set their novels about queer characters in the past need not fear social ostracization or legal persecution, but their characters do. So how do writers of historical romance ‘queer’ the traditional conventions of the genre to represent and explore same-sex relationships -- indeed, any non-heteronormative, LGBTQIA+ relationships? And what does it mean to deconstruct hetero-normative historical romances in a queer reading of them? “Queering” romance fiction is thus something that writers do but also something that readers do (e.g. when fans of the BBC Sherlock created a bromance between Sherlock Holmes and John Watson).

The texts for the first half of the semester are set; in the second (somewhat shorter) half there will be time for texts suggested by members of the class.

N.B. For the purposes of this seminar, Dark Romance will be excluded from the “queer” category. Nonetheless, the novels we read together may be quite ‘angsty’ and contain scenes (e.g. bullying, anxiety attacks) that might trigger some readers. They usually also contain quite explicit sex scenes, duh.

Requirements for participation, required level

You should have *completed* BM2 / Basis2.

Bibliography

La Roman de Silence, possibly written by Heldris of Cornwall, an otherwise unknown poet in the early 13th century. We may read only extracts from a modern English translation, or a modern English adaptation of the story; this will be announced in time. (See the Wikipedia article for more info.)

Georgette Heyer, These Old Shades, 1926. - Heyer is the Grande Dame of English historical romance, so this novel (set in 1756 in France and England) will serve us to discuss the conventions of the genre. However, some of her novels (and we may also read extracts from The Reluctant Widow, 1946) can quite easily be 'queered'. To many Heyer fans, the Duke of Avon is the ultimate romance hero. He is to historical romance what Iron Man is to the superhero genre, but you'll probably hate most of the characters. (The Wikipedia entry will *spoil* the novel for you, so you may want to read it cold.) CW: suicide.

Anna Cowan, Untamed (2013). This queer-and-yet-strangely-hetero-normative debut novel polarised readers when it was first published. It is currently out of print, but I may be able to provide a PDF version. Its interest lies not just in the characters and plot but also in its flaws as a novel: it is a 'rough diamond' that may allow a fruitful discussion of how to WRITE queer historical romance. (See the Goodreads page for more info.)

K. J. Charles, Think of England (2014). This is male-male romance set in a remote country house shortly after the Boer War, in which Archie Curtis lost part of his hand. The crime-in-a-country-house trope is a familiar one; English society was probably never more intolerant and restricted than just before WW1. - K. J. Charles is a very popular writer of historical romances between men; I have chosen her because she actually *writes* well. See Goodreads for more info, but also her first-rate blog, if you are interested in writing: https://kjcharleswriter.com/)