Networks of affect, male homoeroticism and the Second World War: a soldier’s archive

Abstract

While geographies of affect are increasingly influential and geographies of sexuality well established, there is considerable potential for enhancing links between these subfields. This article explores the archive of a gay World War II veteran, revealing the intricacies of an intense same-sex wartime affair in New Caledonia and introducing the concept of ‘networks of affect’: the interconnected pathways through space and time that provide conduits for emotion and desire. This account of networks of affect, read through archival materials, provides rich insight into wartime homoeroticism and allows us to further develop embodied geographies of affect and sexuality.