An Assimilation or Transgression of “Normativities”

Abstract

Abstract This chapter reports on an explorative sociological study on the experiences of lesbian and gay students on the campus of a South African university. The study was informed by a qualitative research design embedded in the meta-theoretical principles of social constructionism, interpretivism, and queer theory. The primary focus of the chapter is twofold. First, the focus is on how some students assimilate into the potentially heteronormative or homonormative campus cultures to curtail possible homophobia. Second, the narratives of students who noted their attempts to transgress such “normativities” are addressed. Twenty interviews were conducted with ten openly gay and ten openly lesbian students. Data were analyzed through thematic analysis. Evident from the findings was that students adopt principles of heteronormativity or homonormativity depending on their choice to assimilate into the heterosexual campus culture or transgress the stereotypical expectations associated with heterosexuality and homosexuality.