Abstract

“Queer Mormons” surveys both Mormon history and contemporary Mormonism from a queer theoretical perspective. The first section considers what Mormonism’s theological attachment to heterosexuality has been and how it has changed over time as well as the development of Mormon views of sexuality between the nineteenth, twentieth, and twenty-first centuries. The chapter also addresses the emergence of “queer Mormons” and the discursive and ethical negotiations that have gone into defining such an identity/group. Finally, the chapter posits some preliminary conclusions about what contemporary Mormonism’s investment in heteronormativity means for the future of a queer Mormonism.