{"id":2454,"date":"2023-10-22T15:14:21","date_gmt":"2023-10-22T19:14:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/?p=2454"},"modified":"2023-10-22T15:14:39","modified_gmt":"2023-10-22T19:14:39","slug":"on-queer-melancholy-did-i-create-something-pointless-perhaps-but-thats-what-makes-it-fun","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/2023\/10\/22\/on-queer-melancholy-did-i-create-something-pointless-perhaps-but-thats-what-makes-it-fun\/","title":{"rendered":"On “Queer Melancholy.” Did I Create Something Pointless? Perhaps, But That’s What Makes it Fun!"},"content":{"rendered":"

The last paragraph of Brokeback Mountain <\/em>by Annie Proulx reads as follows: \u201cThere was some open space between what he knew and what he tried to believe but nothing could be done about it, and if you can\u2019t fix it you\u2019ve got to stand it\u201d (55). \u00a0This paragraph is the perfect melancholy end to a melancholy story. Throughout Brokeback Mountain <\/em>Annie Proulx rejects strong emotions generally. At least, with regards to the situation Jack and Ennis find themselves in. The reader is presented time and time again with language that suggests that while Ennis is not happy with his current life, he also doesn\u2019t truly wish to change it. Whether it be from fear or what the reader might consider internalized homophobia Ennis is content to live a life in the middle of happiness and sadness.<\/p>\n

This emotional state is exemplified in the final paragraph. We find the character attempting to reconcile the \u201cspace between what he knew and [\u2026] tried to believe\u201d suggesting that while Ennis knows he handled his relationship with Jack poorly, and he has regrets, he also knows that he can\u2019t change the past. That what is done is done, and that he must instead stand the whirlwind of emotions which consume him.<\/p>\n

It here where I will potentially coin a third emotion which is discussed in this course, rather than \u201cQueer Joy\u201d or \u201cQueer Anger\u201d Ennis Del Mar exemplifies \u201cQueer Melancholy\u201d an emotional response which exists when one remembers the experience of Queer Joy, and feels Queer Anger yet is unable to do anything about the later or re-encounter the former.<\/p>\n

In this Annie Proulx makes strong commentary about Queer Life in the so-called \u201cfly over states.\u201d A life which allows for small moments of Queer Joy, but with no course for retribution when those joys are violently ripped from one\u2019s life.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The last paragraph of Brokeback Mountain by Annie Proulx reads as follows: \u201cThere was some open space between what he knew and what he tried to believe but nothing could be done about it, and if you can\u2019t fix it you\u2019ve got to stand it\u201d (55). \u00a0This paragraph is the perfect melancholy end to a … Continue reading On “Queer Melancholy.” Did I Create Something Pointless? Perhaps, But That’s What Makes it Fun!<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5366,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[346798],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2454","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-2023-blog-post"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2454","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5366"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2454"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2454\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2454"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2454"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.dickinson.edu\/everythinginbetween\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2454"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}