Appearances

In Vázquez’s “Appearances,” she waits to reveal that Brian and Mickey are straight men. She knows that the reader will assume they are gay, so that when she announces their actual sexual orientation, it will shock the reader. Interestingly enough, she talks about Mickey’s girlfriend before she reveals his heterosexuality, slightly lessening the “reveal” when it comes. She does eventually bluntly state his and Brian’s sexuality in an attempt to show that “gay men look like all men and all men look like gay men (476).” It makes the reader aware to the fact that antigay feelings can negatively affect heterosexuals and homosexuals. Vázquez tells the story of Tom and Jan Matarrase to further her point. When out for a walk one evening, the married couple was attacked by a group of men who thought they were a gay couple. Vázquez desperately wants her readers to know that anyone can be a victim of antigay violence. If straight men like Mickey and Tom can be attacked for simply looking gay, how can we protect those who actually are gay? The menace of antigay feelings seems much more potent when some of its victims aren’t even part of the targeted group.