Queering Mayberry: An Exploration of Sexuality and Gender in the Andy Griffith Show

by Matthew Thomas-Reid

Overview

Queering Mayberry: An Exploration of Sexuality and Gender in the Andy Griffith Show is an interdisciplinary study which reexamines The Andy Griffith Show through the frame of queer theory, offering a fresh perspective on its cultural significance in the Southern Appalachians.

Amid current debates on Critical Race Theory and LGBTQIA+ rights, the nostalgic pull of the “Myth of Mayberry” remains potent. This work critiques the restorative nostalgia surrounding small-town southern ideals, arguing that disrupting the monolithic image of southern conservative, Christian, cisgender identity requires a critical look at the cultural artifacts that helped shape it. Through a combination of historical research, including original episode scripts with Andy Griffith's notes, cultural studies, and performance theory, it uncovers a complex relationship between queerness and Southern Appalachian identity.

Queering Mayberry: An Exploration of Sexuality and Gender in the Andy Griffith Show will be valuable to scholars and students in Appalachian studies, media studies, queer theory, and social history.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781032758275
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	03/07/2025
Pages:	136
Product dimensions:	6.12(w) x 9.19(h) x (d)

About the Author

Matthew Thomas-Reid, Ph.D is Associate Professor in Leadership and Educational Studies and affiliate faculty with Gender, Women's, and Sexuality Studies at Appalachian State University. He began his career as a middle school social studies teacher, and his areas of research include Appalachian Studies, philosophy of education, cultural studies, and gender and sexuality.

Table of Contents

1. Mayberry and Queer Ephemera 2. Barney: Portrait of the Queer Fool 3. Howard: The Boy Who Is Good to His Momma 4. Wild Men of the Hollar: Exploring Archetypes of the Appalachian 'Other' 5. Blurring Gender in the Hills: Old Maids, Eroticism and a Longing to be Seen 6. Opie's Queered Education 7. You Can't Go Home Again