Abstract
<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>Bisexuality and Beyond is the first historical study of bisexuality in Britain. It uses original oral histories alongside extensive archival research to explore the creation of the gay/straight binary from the perspective of those who fell beyond its limits, challenging historical narratives about liberationist politics and identity formation. Historians of sexuality agree that the binary divide between gay and straight is a relatively recent invention, only becoming dominant around the mid-twentieth century. The history of bisexuality is the missing piece in this narrative. This book looks at the broader circumstances of this period to investigate the problems of defining bisexuality and its politics coherently, and of navigating its relationship to gay and lesbian politics. This book therefore sets out the concept of ‘multiple-gender-attraction’, an umbrella term that encompasses and extends beyond the category of bisexuality. It is not an identity label, but a description of potential attraction, drawing on queer historical approaches to explore the distinctions between emotions, behaviour, and identity. Through detailed histories of the gay liberation movement, lesbian feminism, and Britain’s first bisexual organizations, Bisexuality and Beyond argues that the binary of gay and straight was created and reinforced by gay and lesbian politics as well as dominant straight society. By placing bisexuality and multiple-gender-attraction squarely in the frame, this book changes how we understand the emergence of identity politics in modern Britain, challenging established notions about the ‘queer’ inclusivity of counter-cultural activism, and intervening in histories of identity, selfhood, community, and radicalism.</jats:p>