Unravelling bad feelings, weaving trans care:
Kacen Callender’s Felix ever after
Supporting Agencies
- This work is part of the research project “Narratives of Happiness and Resilience” (Subproject One: “The Premise of Happiness: The Function of Feelings in North American Narratives”, ref. PID2020-113190GB-C21), funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities.
Abstract
This article explores the mixed and distressing feelings represented in Kacen Callender’s 2020 young adult novel Felix ever after, drawing on affect theories to highlight the potential that resignifying negative feelings can have for transgender youth. Along with reflecting on the transformative force of assertively managing bad feelings like anger or fear, the article analyses how the novel underscores the empowering effects that finding resilient care webs can have for young transgender individuals, particularly when confronting transphobia and questioning their identity.
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