Femmephobia and Penetration in the Development of Masculinity and the (Anti)Nationalist Identity of Reinaldo Arenas in Antes que Anochezca

Abstract

This article addresses the relationship between masculinity and nationalism, especially in literature of exile. It investigates the militarism of the Cuban national identity that promotes homophobia through a disdain for the feminine in the development of national masculinity. Antes que anochezca therefore exemplifies anti-nationalist exile literature as it rejects Castroist censorship and the criminalization of homosexuality. However, while the novel is anti-nationalist, it continues to perpetuate a repudiation of femininity as he valorizes masculinity, showcased in his sexual relationships between men. This is done in the novel through a dichotomy of active and passive roles in men who have sex with men that is established through the roles of penetrator/penetrated. Therefore, femmephobic ideology based on the national development of Cuban masculinity has permeated queer literature in exile, even in an anti-nationalist novel.