Doing identity with desire: online masculinities among men who have sex with men

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This project examines the construction of self and sexualidentity among men who have sex with men (MSM). TakingJapan as a case study, I investigate how MSM represent theirsubjectivities in online spaces and how this is perceived byothers in that space. This allows me to consider how broadersociocultural discourses influence the construction of onlineidentities. As research on MSM is lacking, both on- andoffline, the project fills a major empirical gap. Moreover,sexual and gender identity in Japan continually fluctuate andare renegotiated in a culture that is resistant to this change.Thus, the Japanese case provides new critical insight into thecomplexities of MSM identities and the positioning of theseonline subjectivities relative to offline social realities.8 / 13BackgroundPrevious research on the construction of gay/queermasculinities in language have largely assumed a correlationbetween self-representation and ascriptive identity (e.g.,Ascencio 2011; Podesva et al. 2002). Yet many men presentin digital spaces wish to appear sexually appealing to othermen while also rejecting identity categories typicallyassociated with same-sex attraction (Birnholtz et al. 2014;Blackwell et al. 2015; Gudelunas 2012). Online spaces areunique as users must represent themselves and theirdesires using images and language alone. They thus providea wealth of data which may trouble our understanding of howsexual identity is linked to discourses of desire (Ward 2007,2008; VanderStouwe 2017).Yet, it is not necessarily the case that online spaces exist in avacuum separated from the offline context in which usersotherwise live. Past work on MSM self-representation onlinehas shown that, for example, racial stereotyping is often thebasis of perceived masculinity and sexual role (Plummer,2008; Tenuis 2007). Another study comparing profiles fromthe USA and China on the MSM dating app Jack'ddemonstrated that higher levels of societal homophobia inChina motivated more Chinese users to portray themselvesas relationship-oriented and less interested in casual sex,which carries higher stigma (Chan 2016). Similarly, menliving in Singapore, where homosexuality is illegal, constructtheir online identities much less around same-sex desire andmore around discourses of male friendship, likely to protectthemselves in the event of arrest (Miller 2015).Japanese queer studies is a growing field, yet the onlinebehaviour of Japanese MSM remains unstudied. Japan - andits unique societal attitudes to gender and sexual identity -offer us a very different sociocultural context to explore andenhance our understanding of discourse, identity and desire.Being openly LGBT in Japan is still detrimental to one's socialstanding and job prospects, despite the fact that onee TVpersonalities (a genderqueer-male entertainer character withno true equivalent in the Anglosphere) are feted celebritiesendorsing consumer products from toothpaste to kitchenblenders. Studying MSM online behaviour within this uniquecontext will greatly improve our understanding of how queeridentities online are mediated by offline social realities.