"En fröken af mankön" : Könsöverskridande beteende och identitet under 1800-talet

Sammanfattning: The purpose of the thesis is to examine how the gender identity of individuals who did not identify within the cisgender norm were experienced by the individuals themselves as well as perceived by their surroundings during the nineteenth century in Sweden. This is done by analysing the autobiographies of two gender nonconforming people, Therese Andreas Bruce and Lars “Lasse-Maja'' Molin. The books are considered unique since it is “first hand” material, written by the subjects themselves rather than being described by others in criminal or medical records, which is where the majority of these individuals made an appearance during this time period. By examining the autobiographies, it is possible to conclude how the individuals saw themselves and experienced their gender identity. The theoretical perspective of the thesis is provided by Arnold I. Davidson, Jens Rydström, Sam Holmqvist and Dror Wahrman to cover both a LGBTQ+ historical perspective as well as literature on identity formation from a wider perspective. Through this inquiry it can be concluded that the experiences of gender nonconforming individuals were unique and dependent on the individual's personality rather than just their gender identity. While Bruce was deeply dependent on his surroundings and other people to confirm his male identity, Lasse-Maja valued objects such as clothes, jewellery and other symbols to establish their gender identity.  Further, the conclusion could also be drawn that these individuals were perceived differently by their surroundings and that they also handled the response in different ways. Lasse-Maja did not seem to care about the negative responses and reactions while Bruce was deeply wounded by similar behaviours. Gender identity, both then and now, appears as individually experienced and in constant fluctuation.