![]() ^ "Straight Gals Dish on Why Gays make Great Pals"."Unacceptable mannerisms: Gender anxieties, homosexual activism, and swish in the United States, 1945-1965." Journal of Social History 40, no. ^ Sonenschein 1969 cited in Levine 1998.^ "Definition of "Nelly" by Oxford Dictionaries Online".Wentworth and Flexner define swish as a noun meaning "a male homosexual, esp. ^ Wentworth, Harold and Stuart Berg Flexner.Gay Macho: The Life and Death of the Homosexual Clone. "unknown article." Christopher Street, March 1978. (1974) "When We Say 'Out of the Closets!'" College English, 36, 7. #To walk speak or move in the manner of an weak effeminate boy or man the stereotype effeminate homosexual. To overplay or over do homosexual gestures the traits of an effeminate male homosexual. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. swish noun (LIKE A WOMAN) › US slang disapproving a man who behaves or appears in a way that is generally considered more suited to a woman, and who does not have traditional male qualities From this point of view, to swish indicates a form of activism that is uplifting, rewarding and fun, and creates opportunities for straight allies to become active in the LGBT civil rights movement. ![]() Most recently, Swish has taken on an empowering and action-oriented meaning within the LGBT rights movement, in part thanks to an organization by the same name. Now, they've 'butched up,' giving up limp wrists and mincing gaits for bulging muscles and manly handshakes, giving up fancy clothes and posh pubs for faded jeans and raunchy discos. At parties or Tea Dances, they came in dresses, swooning over Garbo and Davis. A couple of years ago, they had puny bodies, lisping voices, and elegant clothes. What a joke! Over the last few years I have watched many of these girls change as the times changed. With their pumped up bodies and thick moustaches, they all look so 'butch.' But I remember when everyone was 'nelly'. Further, one could turn swish on or off, as described in Gay Macho: The Life and Death of the Homosexual Clone: Thus while clones could view swish as embodying anti-gay stereotypes, being swish was a way of indicating and performing one's identity, indicating that anti-gay stereotypes could be derived from gay identities. However, the Castro clone, a hyper-masculine, macho standard and ideal behaviour that replaced swish, adapted many camp elements such as dishing (gossip). Though it may be assumed that most post-Stonewall gay men view acting swish as internalized homophobia, a concession to stereotypes of gay men as less than manly. Status after the Stonewall riots Īlthough being butch was viewed as deviant and socially unacceptable by gay male society, being swish has since lost its mainstream gay status post-Stonewall, and in addition to being used occasionally by mainstream culture is now most often derogatory even when used by gay men. In describing ordinary experiences the male variant is likely to use words as "terrific," "amazing," "completely devoted," "horrible," "tremendous," "sublimely," "charming," "appalling," "vicious," "loathed," and "madly." Exaggerations are made more conspicuous by placing undue or erroneous emphasis on certain syllables and intonations which leave little doubt of the effeminacy of the speaker. Such expressions as "Oh my word!" "Good heavens!" and "Oh, my dear!" are readily associated with other aspects of a feminine man. According to Martin Levine and Michael Kimmel in Gay Macho: The Life and Death of the Homosexual Clone:Įxtravagant language is common. īeing swish stereotypically includes a " sashaying" walk, and the use of falsetto voices, feminine pronouns, and superlatives. This behaviour is also described as being nelly in British English, and both terms are often considered to be derogatory. Swish is a US English slang term for effeminate behavior and interests ( camp), emphasized and sanctioned in gay male communities prior to the Stonewall riots.
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