Female masculinity in interwar Sweden: Play, agency, desire

The project explores how the notion of the “masculinised” modern woman arose in the 1920s as a popular theme as well as a source of cultural anxiety, whether in regard to contemporary fashion-trends, films, sports, cross-dressing or associations of lesbianism. Exploring when and how female masculinity was read as harmless play, as female agency or as a sign of non-normative desire, is an essential task of the project.

Through an analysis of debates and visual representations in a Swedish context, utilising different materials (magazines, literature and film) and methods (archival research, textual criticism and visual analysis), the project makes a contribution to queer studies as well as critical history. It will shed important light on patterns (still at play) in cultural responses to transgressive gender expressions.

Funded by the Swedish Research Council.

Researcher: Jenny Ingemarsdotter