Acceptance

Hennessey contrasts ignorant and accepting language to suggest that LGBTQ+ knowledge dictates which characters in The Other Boy accept Shane as a transgender male. When Alejandra explains that “Maybe [Shane will] lose some people. Hopefully not too many” (158) after telling friends and family that he is transgender, she indicates that not everyone is capable of accepting gender nonconforming people into their lives.

Hennessey demonstrates this unfortunate reality through Madeline. Though she shares similar interests with Shane and enjoys his company, once she learns the truth about his birth gender, she determines that continuing a romantic relationship with him is “too weird” (171). Madeline cannot accept that Shane is equally capable of being a good boyfriend regardless of his gender identity. Hennessey suggests that Madeline struggles to embrace Shane as a transgender male because she fails to comprehend how Shane can be a boy when he was born...