“Poofs Wear Lacquer, Don’t They, Eh?”: Quadrophenia and the Queerness of Mod Culture

Abstract

This chapter considers the queerness of Quadrophenia and Mod. Moreover, as it is a cultural mapping of Mod and queerness amid both straight and gay culture, it examines the homosocial and homoerotic nature of subcultures that are to be found in Quadrophenia. Indeed, placing Quadrophenia amid the context of queer politics, this chapter offers a critical queer reading of Quadrophenia that aids our deeper understanding of Pete Townshend’s working-class, macho opus not only within Mod, but also wider social and cultural structures above-and-beyond subcultures. As such, this chapter goes beyond Mod and queerness as it encourages a re-evaluation of all social and cultural identities: be they Mod, Rocker, male, female, straight, or gay.