In 1990, Teresa de Lauretis coined “queer theory”, which subsequently sparked discussion of non-normative gender and sexuality in literature. Despite the theory’s codification nearly 30 years ago, there are few queer approaches to the foundational Old English poem Beowulf. The two primary handbooks on Beowulf, A Beowulf Handbook (1997) and A Critical Companion to Beowulf (2003) make no mention of queer theory. In 2009, David Clark’s article “Old English Literature and Same-Sex Desire: An Overview” gave a historiography for studies of early medieval English same-sex relationships and concluded future work should integrate queer theory in their approach. This essay aims to update all three reference-works by enumerating queer theoretical approaches to Beowulf since 1990 through two thematic strands: transgressive human behavior and queer monsters. By examining queer readings of Beowulf, I submit this theory’s usefulness in problematizing long-held assumptions and presenting new possibilities for understanding the Old English heroic world as diverse and plural.

中文翻译：

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潜力与可能性：贝奥武夫和酷儿理论概述

1990 年，Teresa de Lauretis 创造了“酷儿理论”，随后引发了对文学中非规范性别和性行为的讨论。尽管该理论在近 30 年前编纂成文，但对基础古英语诗歌《贝奥武夫》几乎没有奇怪的方法。关于 Beowulf 的两本主要手册，A Beowulf Handbook (1997) 和 A Critical Companion to Beowulf (2003) 没有提到酷儿理论。2009 年，大卫克拉克的文章“旧英国文学和同性欲望：概述”给出了中世纪早期英国同性关系研究的史学，并得出结论，未来的工作应该在他们的方法中整合酷儿理论。本文旨在通过两个主题分支列举自 1990 年以来对 Beowulf 的酷儿理论方法来更新所有三本参考书：越界的人类行为和酷儿怪物。