Jamaica is widely viewed as virulently homophobic. Section 76 of the Jamaican Offences Against the Person Act makes consensual gay (male) sex illegal (Jamaica Ministry of Justice, 1969); a 2004 Human Rights Watch report stated that Violent acts against men who have sex with men are commonplace (2004: 2); and LGBTQ activists in the public domain are frequently attacked or killed (J-FLAG, 2013).

Culturally-specific notions of masculinity appear central to these trends. Errol Miller_s controversial 1998 book Men at Risk caught the zeitgeist with its assertion of the marginalisation of Caribbean men. Whether attributed to the legacies of slavery and colonialism or recent gains in gender equality, such (perceived) male fragility feeds into the region_s entrenched homophobia. It is therefore necessary to consider the sexual prohibitions of Jamaican culture in light of the island_s proscriptive masculine norms.

Against this backdrop, the creative writer and Jamaican, Marlon James presents a conundrum. Recently awarded the Man Booker prize, his global success makes him a national asset, with Jamaica_s main newspaper, the Gleaner reporting widely (and favourably) on his success. However, as an openly gay man, James is at odds with mainstream views of acceptable male behaviour.

This research will investigate whether and how a successful, gay, Jamaican such as James can challenge existing models of masculinity and reduce anti-gay prejudice. Its thesis is that exposure to alternative models of gendered behaviour (as represented by both James and his fiction), will reduce anti-gay prejudice through a shift in the cultural understanding of masculinity.