A SECOND UNIVERSE is a memoir-in-essays that traces the author’s coming of age and her pursuit of self-discovery, belonging, and healing in all its forms. The book opens in the past, diving into the lives of the author’s parents before she was born and shedding light on the many obstacles they overcame to bring her earth-side. Set against the backdrop of the Southern Utah deserts and the clarity the author finds in the natural world, these essays wind through the author’s different childhood homes, down the lonely and desolate road of a sister’s addiction, and into the darkness that comes as she braces for her father’s impending blindness. Similar to Brenda Miller’s LISTENING AGAINST THE STONE, this collection explores the inherent desire for human connection and spiritual insight that we search for in the places we live, the people we love, and the nature that surrounds us.

A decisão por revelar a orientação sexual, bem como em quais contextos fazê-lo, implica diretamente na trajetória de vida dos homossexuais. O objetivo deste estudo foi descrever a revelação da orientação sexual, segundo as características sociodemográficas, contextos e graus de revelação e episódios de discriminação e agressão entre 1217 homens de 18 a 77 anos, frequentadores de espaços de sociabilidade em dois distritos da capital paulista que aceitaram participar do estudo Sampacentro. Este estudo é um desdobramento de pesquisa maior cuja metodologia adotada foi à amostragem por tempo-espaço e os instrumentos de coleta foram: questionários de inclusão e estruturado com questões sociodemográficas, sociabilidade/práticas sexuais, atitudes e percepções sobre prevenção, estigma e discriminação. As variáveis foram descritas por frequências e proporções. Os testes de hipótese utilizados foram qui-quadrado de Pearson e Exato de Fischer para as diferenças entre as proporções e qui-quadrado de tendência para as variáveis ordinais. O nível de significância adotado foi 5 por cento . Predominou raça/cor de pele branca (59 por cento ), alta escolaridade, 43 por cento com graduação concluída; elevada proporção de atividade remunerada (90 por cento ); prevaleceu padrão socioeconômico B (57 por cento ); elevada proporção de não praticantes de religião (51 por cento ); 55 por cento solteiros e 82 por cento homossexuais. Foram estatisticamente significantes a revelação da orientação entre os jovens, os de raça/cor branca, os que estavam namorando e entre os homossexuais. 52 por cento dos participantes compartilharam a orientação sexual em todos os contextos sociais e em ordem crescente a distribuição da revelação entre os domínios da vida se deu nos contextos de amizade, dos serviços de saúde, familiar, trabalho e escolar. Em relação à experiência de discriminação observamos tendência crescente a maior exposição à medida que a orientação era compartilhada em número maior de contextos sociais. Para agressão também verificamos tendência crescente à medida que a orientação estava compartilhada em mais contextos sociais nos subitens: agressão física, verbal e ameaça de agressão, chantagem e constrangimento no trabalho. Concluímos que a revelação da orientação sexual é ainda um desafio na trajetória de homens homossexuais, acentuada por barreiras sociais, e que quanto mais contextos sociais compartilham a informação acerca da orientação sexual maior é a possibilidade da pessoa homossexual ser submetida a atos de discriminação e agressão. / The decision to reveal ones sexual orientation, and in what contexts to do it has a direct impact on the trajectory of homosexuals lives. The objective of this study was to describe the development of sexual orientation according to sociodemographic characteristics, contexts and degrees of development and episodes of discrimination and aggression among 1217 men aged 18 to 77 years frequenting social spaces in two areas of São Paulos State capital who agreed to participate in the Sampacentro study. This study is an outgrowth of a larger research whose methodology was the time-space sampling and whose data collection instruments were: questionnaires about inclusion structured around questions about sociodemographic data, sociability and sexual practices, attitudes and perceptions about prevention, stigma and discrimination. The variables were described as frequencies and proportions. The hypothesis tests used were chi-square test and Fisher\'s Exact test for differences between proportions and chi-square test for trends for ordinal variables. The level of significance was set at 5 per cent . Predominant among the sample were the white race/color (59 per cent ), high level of education, (43 per cent university graduates), high employment rate (90 per cent ), high socioeconomic standard (57 per cent in Class B), high proportion of not practicing any religion (51 per cent ); 55 per cent declared themselves as single and 82 per cent as gay. The revelation of their status as gay was statistically significant among young people, the white race/skin color, among those who were dating and among homosexuals. Fifty-two percent of participants shared information about their sexual orientation in all social scenarios; the distribution is given in ascending order in the scenarios of friendship, health services, family, school and work. Regarding the experience of all kinds of discrimination there was tendency to greater discrimination as the sexual orientation was shared in more scenarios. There was in increasing trend for suffering aggression as the orientation was shared in more scenarios, regarding physical aggression, verbal abuse and threats, beatings, the scam of lacing drinks with hypnotic drugs, blackmail and harassment at work. We conclude that the development of sexual orientation is still a challenge in the trajectory of homosexual men marked by social barriers, and that in the greater number of social scenarios the information about gay sexual orientation is shared, the bigger are the chances to suffer discrimination and aggression.

No description available.

Bakgrund: Att ha en sexuell läggning eller könsidentitet som skiljer sig från normen innebär för individen att hen i vardagen bli utsatt för mikroaggressioner. Individen blir därför försiktig med att avslöja sin sexuella läggning eller könsidentitet. Eftersom HBTQ-gruppen har mer ohälsa generellt sett än den övriga populationen tycks vårdmötets kvalitet vara avgörande för att ändra på detta. Både sjukvårdspersonalens bemötande och HBTQ-patientens inställning är aspekter som spelar in i vårdmötet, dels hur sjukvårdspersonalen bemöter patienterna men också huruvida patienterna vid vårdmötet väljer att avslöja sin sexuella läggning.Syfte: Syftet var att utifrån ett relationellt perspektiv belysa vad vårdmötet innebär för HBTQpatienter.Metod: En litteraturstudie med kvalitativ ansats utfördes innehållande tio vetenskapligaartiklar och granskades med hjälp av en SBU-modifierad granskningsmall, analyserades med innehållsanalys och sammanställdes sedan med inspiration av Polit och Beck, samt Friberg. Databaserna CINAHL och PsycInfo användes för sökning av artiklarnaResultat: Fyra teman framträdde som lyfter fram viktiga aspekter av fenomenet vårdmötets upplevelse: sjukvårdspersonalens medvetenhet och kunskap, sjukvårdspersonalens attityder, patienters sårbarhet och patienters proaktiva åtgärder. Resultatet visade sjukvårdspersonalens brist på medvetenhet om HBTQ-patienter, otillräcklig kunskap om allmänna och hälsorelaterade HBTQ-frågor, samt icke-vårdande attityder. Det motsatta, d.v.s. vårdande vårdmöten, dokumenterades också. Vårdmötet innebar ofta för patienterna en komplex hantering av avslöjandet om den sexuella läggningen/könsidentiteten och att de själva måste arbeta för att bli väl bemötta.Konklusion: Det finns olika aspekter av erfarenheter av vårdmötet för HBTQ-patienter, vilka kompletterar varandra. Huruvida dessa möten upplevs som vårdande eller icke-vårdande tycks påverka patienternas hälsa respektive positivt eller negativt.Nyckelord: coming-out, erfarenheter, HBTQ, kunskap, patienter, sjuksköterskor, vårdmöte / Background: To have a non-conforming sexual orientation or gender identity means beingexposed to microaggressions in everyday life. LGBTQ people are therefore often cautiouswith the way they disclose information regarding their sexuality or gender. Since LGBTQpeople tend to have greater ill-health than the rest of the population, quality in health careencounters is seen as an important factor in improving their health. A health care relationship involves both health care provider and patient, where both parts bring along their singular dispositions into the health care encounter. Questions regarding the way health care providers meet LGBTQ patients are raised, as well as how patients manage their non-conforming sexual or gender identities within health care encounters.Aim: The aim of this study was, from a relational perspective, to examine how LGBTQpatients give meaning to the health care encounter.Methods: A qualitative review of literature containing ten scientific articles was conducted.The articles were examined using an SBU’s modified review template, analysed with content analysis and compiled with inspiration from Polit and Beck, as well as Friberg. The databases CINAHL and PsycInfo were used for data collection.Findings: Four themes emerged, which highlight important aspects of the health careexperience phenomenon: health care providers’ awareness and knowledge, health careproviders’ attitudes, patients’ vulnerability and patients’ proactive measures. There wasextensive coverage for the health care staff's lack of awareness about the existence of LGBTQ patients, for the insufficient knowledge of both general and health-related LGBTQ issues, as well as for non-caring attitudes. But the opposite, which is to say caring health care encounters, were also documented. Health care encounters often implied for patients a complex management of their coming-out, as well as an effort on their part to make sure that they as patients be well received.Conclusion: Results show that different and complementary elements constitute LGBTQpatients’ experiences of health care encounters. Whether these encounters are perceived as caring or non-caring seems to affect patients’ health positively in the first case and negatively in the other.Key words: coming-out, experiences, LGBTQ, knowledge, patients, nurses, health careencounter

This essay argues that Little Women does not promote breaking stereotypical gender norms and nineteenth century gender roles, contrary to what several critics say. This paper will be using feminist criticism and analyzing two of the novel’s main characters, Meg and Jo, and examining their behavior towards stereotypical gender norms and rules. This essay concludes that while Jo challenges certain gender norms and roles, such as having “manly” emotions (anger) and taking on male-dominated jobs (author), within the narration she is punished for these and forced to become a conventional woman of the nineteenth century in order to live a happy life. On the other hand, Meg follows the rules of societal gender expectations and is rewarded for her behavior. By examining these two characters, this essay establishes that Little Women, because it is a didactic novel, delivers the moral that women can only be truly happy if they fit into stereotypical gender norms and roles.

This essay explores the character development of Ronan Lynch in Maggie Stiefvater's The Dream Thieves (2013) with the intention of showing the process of self-acceptance through the narratological concepts character and characterization as well as Young Adult literature research focused on coming-of-age in terms of self-discovery and sexual identity. It was found that Ronan does reach self-acceptance. In terms of characterization, this can be seen through his relationships with other characters and his role in the narrative. When it comes to coming-of-age, his self-acceptance is seen through his self-discovery in regards to sexuality, and especially through his identity construction in relation to his supernatural ability.

Thesis advisor: Maia McAleavey / This thesis examines the layers of interpretation that encase the female characters of George Eliot’s early fiction, and work through the seemingly contradictory ways in which Eliot intends for their status as created objects to be understood. Chapter 1 focuses on Caterina Sarti, Dinah Morris and Hetty Sorrel, and their depiction as both artists and art objects. Chapter 2 examines Maggie Tulliver and the way being a controlled object is embedded into her character, despite the appearance of freedom. What is puzzling about Eliot’s portrayal of these characters is that it is never clear how their attempts to be objects are meant to be understood. Eliot’s characterization of these young women is best understood in light of the association between becoming an object and “coming of age” as an adult woman. She sees no escape from this association, so these characters must be presented through layers of interpretation and objectification. / Thesis (BA) — Boston College, 2022. / Submitted to: Boston College. College of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Departmental Honors. / Discipline: English.

About a Girl is a coming-of-age memoir set in Montana, a place that I yearned to belong to, but was also desperate to flee. My girlhood was in some ways idyllic--I was a bright child, the oldest of six, and the bulk of my early education took place in rural one-room schools. When school was out, I ran free and wild in the relative safety of several ranches and farms that my stepdad worked on over the years. But as I entered adolescence, I began experimenting with drugs, alcohol, promiscuity, and other high-risk behaviors. This memoir explores themes of family, identity, isolation, and longing for transformation. My shifting relation to self is mirrored in my shifting relation to place, as my family moves to increasingly isolated locales during my girlhood; as I bounce between my mom's and dad's homes during a turbulent adolescence; and as I seek to establish independence by moving to Denver as soon as I graduate high school. Like many rural kids, I was ill prepared for the urban existence I'd idealized, and once I was on my own, I quickly progressed from being evicted from my first apartment to living on the streets. By using techniques such as dialogue, characterization, and scene building to give my memories narrative form, I seek to reconcile the girl I was with the woman I have become. In exploring the distance between these two selves, I also attempt to make peace with the stories I tell about who I am and how I came to be. For some of us, it is only by nearly destroying ourselves that we are able to find out who we are, and only by leaving home that we are able to make our way back.

Presented thesis deals with conversations that arise within the online mentoring counseling center "S barvou ven". Mainly young people going through the process of coming out are the target group of counseling center. In the theoretical part of thesis, I describe the counseling center, the social atmosphere that prevails around the issue of people with minority sexual orientation, clarify what a mentoring relationship is and its importance in the lives of adolescents and describe the process of coming out. The empirical part deals with the qualitative analysis of nineteen conversations. The results of the analysis showed that clients entering the counseling center use the conversation with the mentor to meet various needs, from the need to share their feelings or experiences to the desire to find their "friend" or partner in the mentor. The results of the second part of the analysis provide an indicative overview of the client's needs, as well as when and why their needs could or could not be met. The results also show how mentors work with needs which clients can not consciously describe. Last but not least, the results overview shows that mentors use a wide range of questions, offer information or provide clients, for example, a sense of belonging or hope, or offer their own experience.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI)