Brown-Saracino (2015) argues in “How Places Shape Identity” that the current conception of how place shapes identities, i.e. through region, location, and institution, does not aptly describe how identities vary in places that are similarly situated. Instead, she asserts that there are three loosely grouped sets of place elements that affect how identity is shaped by place: numbers and acceptance, place narratives, and encounters with socioscape. Brown-Saracino (2015) refers to numbers and acceptance as a broad category encompassing the safety, acceptance, integration and distribution of LBQ women, which she claims orient the extent to which the women in each city participate in identity politics. Place narratives and encounters with socioscape
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Again, though similar in many attributes, each city is home to a vastly different way of identifying, falling along two ends of a spectrum: an emphasis on integration vs. an emphasis on labels. Most respondents in Ithaca and some in Greenfield articulated a desire for an integrated community, whereas a majority of those in Portland, San Luis Obispo, and some in Greenfield expressed the desire to have labels. Brown-Saracino (2015) was able to show how the differences in numbers and acceptance, place narrative, and socioscapes present in each city was able to explain this across-site …show more content…
For instance, the societal expectation that gay men are sexually promiscuous may have contributed to the formation of gay communities in urban centers because of the prevalence of bars and clubs. In contrast, the societal expectation that women are more family oriented and less promiscuous may have led lesbian women to form communities in smaller cities that are contain a higher proportion of families without as many bars. Situating themselves in more rural areas with an abundance of natural amenities may make it easier for some lesbians to perform their masculinity as well, as there are likely to be traditionally masculine activities—such as hiking and participating in sports—and factory or manual labor jobs
Again, though similar in many attributes, each city is home to a vastly different way of identifying, falling along two ends of a spectrum: an emphasis on integration vs. an emphasis on labels. Most respondents in Ithaca and some in Greenfield articulated a desire for an integrated community, whereas a majority of those in Portland, San Luis Obispo, and some in Greenfield expressed the desire to have labels. Brown-Saracino (2015) was able to show how the differences in numbers and acceptance, place narrative, and socioscapes present in each city was able to explain this across-site …show more content…
For instance, the societal expectation that gay men are sexually promiscuous may have contributed to the formation of gay communities in urban centers because of the prevalence of bars and clubs. In contrast, the societal expectation that women are more family oriented and less promiscuous may have led lesbian women to form communities in smaller cities that are contain a higher proportion of families without as many bars. Situating themselves in more rural areas with an abundance of natural amenities may make it easier for some lesbians to perform their masculinity as well, as there are likely to be traditionally masculine activities—such as hiking and participating in sports—and factory or manual labor jobs