Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Date of Degree
6-2025
Document Type
Doctoral Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy
Program
Anthropology
Advisor
Jillian R. Cavanaugh
Committee Members
Angela Reyes
Diane Riskedahl
Rusty Barrett
Subject Categories
Anthropological Linguistics and Sociolinguistics | Anthropology | Civil Rights and Discrimination | Courts | Critical and Cultural Studies | Discourse and Text Linguistics | Gender and Sexuality | Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication | Inequality and Stratification | Law and Gender | Law and Race | Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Studies | Linguistic Anthropology | Linguistics | Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies | Queer Studies | Race and Ethnicity | Sexuality and the Law | Social and Cultural Anthropology
Keywords
Love, Narrative, Belonging, Queer, New Orleans, Louisiana
Abstract
This dissertation examines the love narratives of same-sex attracted men in New Orleans, demonstrating that these narratives are interdiscursively linked to broader social, political, and historical structures. Rather than treating love as a private emotion or stable linguistic act, I argue that love narratives function as sites of belonging, evidencing how individuals navigate exclusion, recognition, and relational attachment. By centering love narratives as critical sites of meaning-making, this dissertation makes three key interventions. First, I show that belonging must be understood not only through legal and institutional recognition but also through the ways individuals forge and sustain relational ties across social and intersubjective domains. Second, I demonstrate that love narratives evidence belonging across four key dimensions—territorial, political, social, and intersubjective—revealing how intimate relationships are shaped by broader histories of exclusion and recognition. Third, I argue that “I love you” is not a singular utterance but an interdiscursive act, gaining meaning through its interaction with past declarations, bids for futures, and the discursive conditions in which it is spoken.
This dissertation is based on twelve months of ethnographic fieldwork conducted between September 2023 and September 2024, employing participant observation, semi-structured interviews, archival research, and narrative analysis. Structured around four relational moments when the phrase “I love you” was used—its first utterance, its use after conflict, its articulation in times of joy, and its final use—this dissertation traces how love narratives shape experiences of belonging amidst histories of exclusion.
Recommended Citation
Sorapuru-Mitchell, Davine A., "With Other Men: Love, Narrative, and Belonging Among Same-Sex Attracted Men in New Orleans" (2025). CUNY Academic Works.
https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/6325
Included in
Anthropological Linguistics and Sociolinguistics Commons, Civil Rights and Discrimination Commons, Courts Commons, Critical and Cultural Studies Commons, Discourse and Text Linguistics Commons, Gender and Sexuality Commons, Gender, Race, Sexuality, and Ethnicity in Communication Commons, Inequality and Stratification Commons, Law and Gender Commons, Law and Race Commons, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Studies Commons, Linguistic Anthropology Commons, Quantitative, Qualitative, Comparative, and Historical Methodologies Commons, Queer Studies Commons, Race and Ethnicity Commons, Sexuality and the Law Commons, Social and Cultural Anthropology Commons
