Join us in the Digital Humanities Center (LA 61) for a talk by Dr. Derritt Mason, University of Calgary. Dr. Mason will explore the relationship between two texts that feature groundbreaking representations of young queer characters: John Donovan's 1969 young adult novel, I'll Get There, It Better be Worth the Trip, and Laika's animated film ParaNorman, both of which are recognized as "firsts" in their respective genres to represent openly gay characters. Dr. Mason's assertion, however, is that by privileging specific forms of visible gayness, critics risk eliding other, provocative queer forms that circulate in these texts. In conversation with one another, I'll Get There and ParaNorman provide a compelling temporal perspective on queer representation, and its popular reception, in media for young people.

Dr. Derritt Mason is an Assistant Professor of English at the University of Calgary. His primary teaching and research interests sit at the intersection of youth literature, queer theory, and cultural studies.

Presented by the Queer Young Adult Novel (English 502) and the Department of English and Comparative Literature at San Diego State University