The ways in which we present ourselves are manifestations of our identity. In the film Boys Don’t Cry, the protagonist is a male transgender individual who displays his identity in how he acts and performs.  A gender studies lens, as well as a communications lens, can work hand in hand to explore the idea of gender performativity. By looking through Lindolf’s methodological communicative lens in conjunction with Judith Butler, we can see how Brandon Teena intentionally created a male-presenting identity through a process of practices and performances.

Boys Don’t Cry is a 1999 film directed by Kimberly Peirce that follows the true story of a transgender male, Brandon, living in Nebraska. While in Nebraska, Brandon finds himself hanging out with a group of friends and even finds a liking to one of the girls, Lana, and they begin a romantic relationship which is what the film mostly focuses on. When Brandon’s male acquaintances in the group find out about his transgender identity they commit a brutal hate crime and take his life. Prior to this unfortunate event, we can explore how Brandon embodied his male identity through performativity. 

The gender studies lens (also referred to as the feminist lens) is often concerned with exploring gender by means of focusing on cis-gender female characters. However, some aspects can still be aptly applied to Brandon’s characters. As gender studies is concerned with what it means to belong to a certain gender identity, stereotypes, the traditional social roles assigned to a particular gender, and perceptions of other characters, we can use these key ideas to explore Brandon’s identity as a transgender individual (Gocsik et al, 2019). Utilizing ideas of gender performativity offered to us by Judith Butler, a philosopher and gender studies scholar, we can explore Brandon’s character.

The controversy surrounding gender identity has long been debated, taking into question whether it is all biological and predetermined by sex or “socially constructed” by societal culture (Fraker, 2018). Judith Butler did not agree with either and instead proposed that gender identity forms due to repeated words and actions. These repetitive words and actions therefore shape and form an individual’s identity. Butler notes in her work, Gender Trouble, that gender is “a set of repeated acts within a highly rigid regulatory frame” (Salih, 2002). This serves as an important quote because it notes that we cannot control what acts we partake in for our gender identity, it is determined for us; not by biological sex but in the sense that we are assigned roles.

Butler also brings up that gender is a performance and it is a doing rather than a being. By this she means that an individual does not have a gender identity, they are enacting roles associated with that identity. According to Butler, Gender is more accurately classified as a process and not a thing. Butler’s ideas about gender performance can be very accurately tied with Lindolf’s ideas of the qualitative research paradigm and his own ideas of practices and performances.

Any type of act of communication can be considered a kind of performance according to Lindolf and Taylor and in turn, the different variations of a performance would be considered an underlying practice (Lindolf and Taylor, 2011). Researchers explore how much a performance can deviate from the standard practice before it’s perceived as something entirely different. This highlights the close connection between the practical construction of meaning and communication. Communication essentially shapes our social reality by involving our actions and behaviors within cultural and political contexts. 

In a more simplified explanation, performances are actions that are observable to researchers and often have a symbolic or cultural significance or meaning behind them. Practices refer to ways performances are played out such as specific actions or habits that do not usually have any significance behind why they are practiced. Researchers study both the performances and practices to see the relationship between the two and how people’s actions are connected to what they are trying to communicate.

In the context of Boys Don’t Cry, the debate surrounding gender identity has a lot of relevance since the film navigates Brandon’s experience as a transgender man in a world that is deeply entangled with preconceived traditional notions of what is masculine and what is feminine. Being set in a midwestern town in the 1990s, the rural setting and culture of that area may play a role in the film’s plot. The film sets scenes that are the “essence of white poor rural identity” (Halberstam, 2000) which may contribute to the acts of homophobia, transphobia, and general hatred that we see committed by Brandon’s “friends”. 

Even through this analysis of the setting, we can see how there is an established “regulatory frame” for Nebraskan citizens of the male and female identities. Acts such as escaping the police in a high-speed chase or riding on the back of pick-up trucks are presumably cultural traditions established by the residents of this town. In order for Brandon to fit in with the male identity of the people of Nebraska, he must comply with these actions and take part in them. Whether he actually wants to or not, he does not have a choice as this is the rigid frame he is trapped in. Even in the title of the film, the phrase “boys don’t cry” suggests the belief that men should not cry, have emotions, etc because it is not considered manly. This idea of being forced into actions Brandon may not want to participate in goes to show the inescapable and even oppressive roles that are assigned to people. When individuals feel they must adhere to certain practices, it oppresses their true identity and personality and creates a cycle that they, unfortunately, cannot break out of due to the possibility of harmful consequences.

In the example of Brandon outrunning the police, he was the driver of a car full of his friends. You can observe even just in his facial expressions that he is uncomfortable and scared. Despite wanting to just pull the car over and be confronted by the police officer, the two other male characters, Tom and John are yelling at Brandon to keep driving and try to get away. Eventually, Brandon does pull over and they are all confronted by the officer. This upsets Tom and John and Brandon is left stranded in the desert due to his lack of compliance. This goes to show that if Brandon does not comply with what his male acquaintances in this town tell him to do, he will face consequences. Brandon is trapped in a rigid framework of doing what is considered masculine by them.

Butler’s proposition of gender being a performance rather than a fixed state also aligns with Brandon’s character. With this idea in mind, Brandon does not possess his male gender identity but instead engages in actions and roles that are associated with his identity. Instances of this shown in the film include Brandon cutting his hair short, stuffing his jeans with socks for the appearance of a penis, dressing in typical male clothing, having a deeper voice, etc. Each of these things is an aspect that aligns with what society perceives to be masculine. Butler’s idea of gender being a process rather than a tangible entity also is prevalent in the film. We can observe this as Brandon learns what new actions are considered to be masculine. The identity of being male is a process that Brandon has to experience and figure out. Brandon’s gender expression undergoes an evolution throughout the film as he learns what is and is not considered  “male” by the people he is surrounded by.

Switching to the communicative framework offered by Lindolf and Taylor, we can observe the practices and performances displayed by Brandon’s character in the film. 

The performance is quite clear to see and with the added beliefs from Judith Butler, it makes it even easier. In this film, the performance of Brandon is his gender identity. It is important to note, however, that it is not the performance of his transgender male identity, but just male identity. Brandon is not trying to communicate to others that he is transgender, he is trying to communicate that he is a man. The symbolic meaning, as Lindolf and Taylor put it, behind this performance is the desire to fit in. Through presenting himself and performing as a man, Brandon aims for his friends and the general public to see him for who he wants them to see him as. In a sense, the symbolic meaning is that Brandon wants people to see him for his true self, an identity that he already considers himself to be. His performance is also reflective of the culture of the town/state he is living in. The expectations and traditions of manly behavior may differ across the country but Brandon’s performance is indicative of Nebraska’s culture or perhaps an even more niche culture of his friend group. 

With the performance now laid out, the practices that Brandon enacts and engages in can fall into place and can be aligned with the explained performance. Practices are routine things that Brandon does, almost like habits or patterns of behavior. If the practices were observed just as they are with no context of why (the performance) they would have no significant cultural meaning to them. In addition, the repetitive nature of practices also adds to their significance. Just engaging in an activity once or even a few times is not necessarily indicative of any bigger picture or meaning. 

As mentioned before when discussing Butler’s ideas of performativity, practices that Brandon partakes in include wearing male clothing, stuffing his pants, and taking part in dangerous/high-energy activities (outrunning the police, riding on the back of trucks, getting into bar fights). In a way, all the things he does on a day-to-day basis are what contribute to his performance as a man. These nonverbal actions are the ways in which he communicates his performance to others.

Boys Don’t Cry serves as a compelling cinematic representation of the intricate relationship between gender studies and communications frameworks to explore gender performativity. Through the dual perspective offered by Judith Butler and Lindolf and Taylor, we gain apt insight and understanding into Brandon’s character and how he shows and communicates his identity to those around him. 

Brandon’s desire to fit in with his newfound friend group as well as to be perceived as his true self underlies the performance of his gender identity. The film shows how gender identity is not just a journey of figuring yourself out but also a complex interaction of societal expectations with performative acts and communicative practices.

December 21, 2023