“That’s So Gay” at Rutgers!

Last Updated on September 6, 2023

When you are in college, nothing beats finding a course that fulfills university requirements AND interests you too. I was in need of taking one more writing class for my major so I read through the list of available classes at Rutgers.

“Research in the Disciplines” is a category of writing courses where each individual section focuses on a unique topic. I saw different options ranging in everything from the Civil War to the ethics of food. One section that stood out to me from all the rest was a section called “That’s So Gay.

thats-so-gayNo way!! Could it be true? Could this class really exist?

Well, it does! And I think I have the BEST Professor. My classmates seem pretty great too! I’m so incredibly happy with this class right now.

rainbowOur first day was perfect. The professor tried to write the course name on our syllabus in a really “gay font” to see how the students would react to it. He wanted us to discuss what could even make a font seem “gay.” Unfortunately, the font was too “fierce” for the printer to handle so it put a gradient where the course title should have been instead…

He said we could write in the course name ourselves with our “gayest handwriting” if we felt compelled to do so. Hahaha.

I am excited to develop my research paper for this class. We have the freedom to write about any topic of our choice as long as it relates back to LGBT stuff and how people misuse and misinterpret the language. He’s pretty relaxed about how much we can stretch the assignment which, in my opinion, is one of the best things a professor can do if they want their students to produce unique and well-written papers.

The professor said one of his students once wrote a paper on gaydar and how gaydar is really just stereotyping so anyone who says they have “good gaydar” is really just saying that they’re a “good stereotyper” … Interesting!

When I looked around at the other students, I was fascinated to see that a lot of them didn’t look gay (and again, I’m not even sure what “gay” people should look like…) I guess my assumption was that it would mostly be gay students taking the class. Now I’m not so sure.

This one guy looked super-straight in my opinion but when I looked in his direction, he smiled at me and waved. Maybe he was just being friendly?

25 Comments

  1. Lisa's Kansa Muse

    Interesting class. Gay is not a look lol. What I find interesting then they tend to have more of a male type and female type (queen). The male queens are the ones we really associate being gay. I find it interesting myself. Mr. Gadget had a dinner with a female couple last night. They are wonderful to hang with I hope some point you find a gay couple and find out for yourself. I also knew a professor that everyone thought was *gay*. He grew up in a household in very rural Canada where he was not in contact with other males and lived with his mother and sister. Have a great class.

    1. Exactly. The masculine gay men blend right in and go unnoticed in many cases. Sexuality is such a small facet of our complex lives… it’s silly that it has such a significant impact on how some people view us. I’m glad to see things improving with each passing year though.

      Thanks for checking out my posts! 🙂

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